Has anyone gone paperless in their home or office?

[TechnoPro]

My strategy:

* I get most of my satements (CC, bank, utilities, etc.) online then convert to PDF.

* The rest of the important papers I scan. This is a PITA as my scanner is slow. Time to upgrade.

* I write all of 2-3 paper checks a year; the rest of my bills are paid electronically.

* I download product manuals when I can, and discard the paper copy.

And yes, I backup my data diligently and maintain several offsite copies.

What are your methods?

 

[aplefka]

How does this help in the big scheme of things?

 

[GtPrOjEcTX]

Originally posted by: aplefka
How does this help in the big scheme of things?

saves the trees? 😉

 

[pulse8]

Originally posted by: aplefka
How does this help in the big scheme of things?

Easier to organize and store data files than paper ones.

I haven't gone completely paperless, but I'd like to.

I want to get one of those scanners that has an auto sheet feeder, but they are too expensive. 🙂

 

[acemcmac]

I am at home except for postit notes 🙂

 

[aplefka]

Originally posted by: pulse8

Originally posted by: aplefka
How does this help in the big scheme of things?

Easier to organize and store data files than paper ones.

That's the small scheme. Saving trees is what I was going for. To which I could reply "they're still going to print the paper manuals, etc."

 

[KingNothing]

I was, then my scanner broke. Now all my statements are sitting in a spare trash can until I get another scanner.

 

[Rastus]

I still use paper, but am contemplating getting a bidet.

 

[TechnoPro]

Originally posted by: aplefka
How does this help in the big scheme of things?

I'm not sure what you mean by the big scheme of things.

But my reasons are as follows:

I am significantly more organized now that I have gone digital. I can pull up any record I have in seconds without thinking twice of where something is stored.

I have less clutter in my home & office. This is a big one for me.

Accouting and financial tracking have been simplified and improved.

I can travel and have my whole "file cabinet" with me for refference.

Less paper for me to sort through, and less waste for the environment.

 

[aplefka]

Originally posted by: TechnoPro

Originally posted by: aplefka
How does this help in the big scheme of things?

I'm not sure what you mean by the big scheme of things.

But my reasons are as follows:

I am significantly more organized now that I have gone digital. I can pull up any record I have in seconds without thinking twice of where something is stored.

I have less clutter in my home & office. This is a big one for me.

Accouting and financial tracking have been simplified and improved.

I can travel and have my whole "file cabinet" with me for refference.

Less paper for me to sort through, and less waste for the environment.

I guess that's kinda what I meant. Yeah organization obviously, but what I really meant was even if a few people are smart and try to go paperless, it won't really have a signifcant effect until a lot of people do it. I think it's a good idea but too many n00bs use computers.

 

[pulse8]

Originally posted by: aplefka

Originally posted by: pulse8

Originally posted by: aplefka
How does this help in the big scheme of things?

Easier to organize and store data files than paper ones.

That's the small scheme. Saving trees is what I was going for. To which I could reply "they're still going to print the paper manuals, etc."

I don't care about the trees so organization and space are my big concerns. 🙂

 

[TechnoPro]

Originally posted by: aplefka

Originally posted by: pulse8

Originally posted by: aplefka
How does this help in the big scheme of things?

Easier to organize and store data files than paper ones.

That's the small scheme. Saving trees is what I was going for. To which I could reply "they're still going to print the paper manuals, etc."

You know what I find ironic? I think it's great when a product comes with no paper manual, either offering it on a CD or making it available for download. But what gets me is that people have a gripe with this: "I paid a lot of monet so I DESERVE a paper manual." Hell, if everyone read the manual, half this forum wouldn't even exist!

 

[aplefka]

Originally posted by: TechnoPro

Originally posted by: aplefka

Originally posted by: pulse8

Originally posted by: aplefka
How does this help in the big scheme of things?

Easier to organize and store data files than paper ones.

That's the small scheme. Saving trees is what I was going for. To which I could reply "they're still going to print the paper manuals, etc."

You know what I find ironic? I think it's great when a product comes with no paper manual, either offering it on a CD or making it available for download. But what gets me is that people have a gripe with this: "I paid a lot of monet so I DESERVE a paper manual." Hell, if everyone read the manual, half this forum wouldn't even exist!

Yeah, and you can get more out of a CD manual anyway because not only can they add a whole lot of info without costing them for the printing + paper + electricity to print, but they can also give you links.

 

[TechnoPro]

Originally posted by: aplefka

Yeah, and you can get more out of a CD manual anyway because not only can they add a whole lot of info without costing them for the printing + paper + electricity to print, but they can also give you links.

Not to mention video clips of installation and/or usage instructions.

 

[cmdrmoocow]

Paper still needs its uses.

The biggest is anything legal, like deeds, birth certificates, passports, etc, but of course, install manuals are awesome.

Since I got a PDA with keyboard recently, class notes go right in, are copied to desktop in dorm at end of day... and voila! No paper mess. No hunting around for where you put your homework.

Organization for teh win.

 

[TechnoPro]

Originally posted by: cmdrmoocow
Paper still needs its uses.

The biggest is anything legal, like deeds, birth certificates, passports, etc, but of course, install manuals are awesome.

Since I got a PDA with keyboard recently, class notes go right in, are copied to desktop in dorm at end of day... and voila! No paper mess. No hunting around for where you put your homework.

Organization for teh win.

How many deeds, birth certificates, and passports does the average person have? I'm not being sarcastic, mind you. I'm just comparing the volume of these legal/official documents to the influx of the everyday stuff. I keep all of my special papers in a small safe.

Forgive my ignorance, but how does one take notes on a PDA. Can you type fast enough to get the information in? Is it noisy? Back in my college days, we used chalk on a stone tablet to take notes...

 

[Ryan]

I like filing my stuff in a filing cabinet.

 

[arcas]

The problem with electronic statements (brokerage statements, bills, payment confirmations, etc) is that there is they're generally not digitally-signed so they can be easily altered. When there's a dispute 9 months down the road and you have to go to court, is the court going to accept at face value your electronic documents? Let's say you pay off a loan and the bank mails you a letter confirming said payoff. 5 years later you check your credit rating and find that loan is still marked as "open." If, for some reason, the bank no longer has record of you closing the loan, will the bank accept your electronic scan of the original letter as proof that the loan was in fact paid? This actually happened to me with a student loan that I paid off lump-sum after I left college. I fear what would have happened had I not kept the original letter confirming that entire balance was paid.

I tried to do the paperless office thing for a while. I still prefer PDF/*ML/etc for documents that are accessed infrequently. PDFs are good for reference manuals but I've yet to find a PDF reader with a pleasant user interface so documents that are frequently used get printed out and stored in a binder.