I am having a grand clear out of paper, which is threatening to take over the house. Most of it consists of xerographic copies and printouts. What I should have done is to print files out, read them, and throw some away at once and most of the rest after a few months. What I should not have done is to leave useful documents unprinted, for in that case I would only have skimmed them (or left them for a future reading that would never have taken place), not absorbed them. Paper is desirable, often necessary, for many practical and psychological reasons. Most of us know this, and those that don’t find out by trying to become paperless.
This book reports that while electronic information has grow exponentially, paper use has grown too, but “more or less linearly”. It explains why paper is desirable and necessary by listing its properties (e.g. it is thin, light, porous, opaque, flexible, etc.), analysing the factors involved and reviewing the findings of several years of research in various organisations. The authors (both British – one a cognitive psychologist, the other Director of the Digital World Research Centre at the University of Surrey) make much use of the concept of “affordance” – a term that I am uneasy with, because of the inevitable overtones of affordability, but meaning what is enabled to be done (why not call it “enablance” or “supportance”?) Paper “affords” a variety of behaviours and actions, as does electronically stored information – but a different variety.
The true costs of paper versus digital systems are compared, reading practices are studied, the role of paper in collaborative work is explored, and e‐books are looked at. It emerges that “the role of paper is much more complex and deeply interwoven with work practices than might at first appear”. The either/or syndrome seems to be endemic in human nature, but nearly always the answer is not one or the other but both in their proper place. So it is with the paper versus electronic issue, and this work shows how knowledge and analysis of all the factors can help decide what function belongs with which medium. A certain degree of paperlessness is possible, indeed highly desirable, if careful thought goes into deciding what is best on the computer, what on paper.
The book ends with a most interesting chapter on “The future of paper”, which needs to be read carefully. Looking at “affordances” of different media in the context of possible technological changes, the authors foresee that while other media will perform some of the current functions of paper, paper itself will continue to have an important place in the “document life cycle”, because of its unique properties.
The book is nicely produced, carefully proofread, and well indexed. It is worth anyone’s time to read; and it is also worth pondering while reading why for this purpose at least paper is irreplaceable.
