The rise of the paperless office has long been predicted, and I am sure that there are many examples where paper use has been drastically reduced. Indeed, I used to work for a company who helped to facilitate the end of the delivery of literally lorry-loads of paper (for the registration of drugs) and substitute that for just a couple of CDs. However, in my profession as a technical author, despite non-paper media formats, paper is still king of the office.
I admit to being a bit of a Janus about paper. Personally, I love the physicality of the printed page for recreational reading. Nooks, Readers, Kindles and iPads just can’t compete. However, in my specialist field of software documentation, electronic media works very well. I do miss the process of preparing a manual for printing, and feeling the finished product in my hands, knowing that I brought it into existence; at the same time, I know that physical manuals are no longer the best way to provide the required information, and I am happy to create electronic media. One beneficial result of this is the elimination of the production of large amounts of unnecessary paper. However, the review process provides a sting in the tail.
Considering the highly technical abilities of the people I work with, and their associated “geek factor”, it always amazes me how they shy away from using electronic methods of reviewing. I’ll send them my work for review, distributed as files that can be reviewed electronically and sent back through e-mail or file transfer. In many cases, what happens is that they print it out, write on the paper, and I end up with piles of paper on my desk. I have tried to introduce an electronic review process in several places of work, and met with strong opposition. “I don’t like reading on the screen”, they will say, or “We need to sign this off for audit purposes”. Well, there are many established methods for electronic signatures and auditing, as they are well aware. I really wish they would bite the electronic bullet and join me in the paperless office.
First published: 17 June 2010