This year I will finally be able to put some effort into PDQMac.com, the site I’ve set up with the aim of improving people’s interface productivity. If there’s a key underlying point to what I’ll be doing with that site, it is this:

Productivity is all about muscle memory.

So I’d better explain what that means before I go any further. Let’s start with the fact that nearly all of us have learned how to drive a car and have a memory of that learning process. There are quite a few physical things that have to be learned in order to drive a car that you simply did not know before you started to drive; including managing the accelerator, brake, steering, winkers, and stick-shift (if you learned on a stick-shift car.) You were, no doubt, told how all of these controls worked, but you couldn’t drive properly just because you knew how to with your thinking brain. You had to keep practicing until your body learned how to use these controls.

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If you’re not one of its million users, then you’re probably asking “What is Stanza?” Stanza is an electronic book application for the iPod/iPhone available for free through the Apple App Store. It’s not the only free eBook application, but it’s the one that is dominating the market, probably because it wins out on ease of use and capability. And as of 30th December it has a million users.

Yesterday, I spoke with Neelan Choksi, COO of Lexcycle, the company that brought Stanza to market. Lexcycle is a  recent start-up, but the team behind it have been building software together for a decade and have extensive business experience. They dominated the iPhone eBook market quickly through a combination of good design and guerrilla marketing.

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Before we break into 2009 and consider what the future may offer, it is worthwhile looking back, like Janus at 2008 to review the year that passed. So I’ll do that right now in real time.

2008 was a signature year of change - and not just in politics and economics. The changes in technology and the technology market were many and various, and some were profound. Here are the ones that I suspect were the most important.

1. The GPU and the CPU: The GPU (graphics processing unit) is in the process of usurping the CPU on client computers and access devices (but not servers where a GPU has no relevance). This is bringing Intel into direct competition with Nvidia. (see What is a GPU and Why is it Important?)
   Why important: This is causing a genuine divergence in the computer market between PCs and other “client access devices” and server computers.

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