How to minimize all windows/applications to the dock?
&#x2325;+&#x2318;+M actually minimizes all windows of a current application, not just the current focused window (unless of course, the application you have running only has one non-minimized window.)

The easiest way to hide all active applications is to select the Finder/Desktop, and then "Hide Others." The keyboard shortcut is &#x2325;+&#x2318;+H.

You can also simply hold &#x2325; and &#x2318; and click on the Desktop, or Finder on the Dock, or of course, simply use Expose and hit F11 (Or whatever you've rebound Hide-all to.)