Why is there so much paper around? Why is it so popular? What is it used for? Will we eventually live without paper?
The invention of papyrus in ancient Egypt (ancestor of paper), the invention of the printing-press in the middle ages in Germany, the introduction of cheap newspapers in the 1800's and the invention of the Internet around 1990 were all revolutionary developments in information storage and transmission. Over the past 2000 years information management has grown in importance and sophistication, especially for business and financial records. A century ago your bank would keep track of how much money you have in your account by writing deposits and withdrawals in a paper book (a ledger). Fifty years ago banks had hundreds of employees who would use adding machines and typewriters to produce a paper statement and mail it to you each month. Since 1970, bank statements and many other documents have been produced "automatically" by computers.
In the 1980's, Personal Computers and cheap printers replaced typewriters in offices. Secretaries could type faster without worrying about mistakes, because the backspace key would simply erase the mistakes - before that, a rather slow and messy process for correcting errors involved painting with liquid Tipp-ex and waiting for it to dry. Since the Personal Computer could also be linked to a server which stored customer addresses that could be automatically merged into documents, the PC greatly increased secretaries' productivity. During the 1980's typewriters became obsolete and disappeared from offices.
Since typewriters were mainly used to produce paper, and since documents could be stored directly in computers and transmitted electronically (without bothering with envelopes and stamps), businesses posed the question: "Why do we need paper at all?" There was lots of discussion about the concept of a paperless office, and this sent cold shivers down the spines of many printer manufacturers.
However, the demise of paper and the hopes for a paperless office were "greatly exaggerated". Through the 1990's and into the 21st century computers were used to produce MORE AND MORE PAPER, not less. The use of paper in offices increased dramatically as a result of the easy production made possible by fast printers. It was only the development of the Internet, especially e-mail, that has slowed the increase in the use of paper. Many people have stopped reading daily newspapers (except online versions). Books are easier to purchase thanks to Amazon, but fewer people are reading paper books and production is slowing. Still, a trip around an office building will quickly convince you that the "paperless office" is not a reality just yet.
So how is your paper situation? Do you carry around a bag filled with heavy paper? Do you actually READ online, or do you only watch videos? Can you do your math homework in a word-processor? Do you go shopping with paper money or a credit card? What is your passport made of?
Paper has a variety of uses beyond simple publishing and report writing. Paper records will not disappear easily due to legal issues - e.g. clicking "I agree" on a software installation "license" is not the same as signing a paper contract, despite the claims of many software developers.
Today (and for homework) you should investigate the following issue:
"Will paper disappear from daily use within the foreseeable future (e.g. 10 years)?"
Come to class tomorrow prepared to discuss this issue and to present your opinions on the matter - hopefully supported by something you read. Here are some possible starting points. Focus your reading and thinking on the following issues:
Are you paperless yet? http://futureofdocuments.blogs.xerox.com/2007/06/18/are-you-paperless-yet/
Back to the future ... paperless office http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20060531.gtsrpaper31/BNStory/einsider/
Still a Joke http://www.mydigitallife.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2399&Itemid=29&limit=1&limitstart=0
Paper vs the Computer (security) http://www.webtapsecurity.com/articles_1_paper_v_comp.html
E-documents - more secure than paper? http://www.edocr.com/doc/13/e-documents-more-secure-paper
Which is riskier - data on paper or in digital form? http://www.ft.com/cms/s/1a3570c6-d660-11dc-b9f4-0000779...
E-book Readers http://www.ebooks-made-easy.com/ebookreaders.htm
Paperless Classroom? http://www.franklin.com/pressroom/news/arch99/03sep99.asp
Kindle http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/top-news/?i=51001;_hbguid=a3720952-7dd7-4582-b77b-c4c08f667ee2
More Kindle http://www.sdtimes.com/content/article.aspx?ArticleID=31463