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Originally Posted by Steven Lyle Jordan
As someone who A) has never used a cocktail napkin to write on, and B) always has a PDA or smartphone with me... I can't relate.
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Even before PDA's became available?
That being said, you are limited to what the PDA can do.
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Every sysadmin and IT guy I know carries their smartphones and blackberries with them everywhere, and uses them incessantly to communicate, take notes and share info with others. Never seen one whip out a pen and paper and start writing down stuff.
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As a system administrator myself, I do use my phone to connect to work (as I indicated in another post) when I have to. But my work as a system admin is very different from the work I did as a programmer. Programming on a 3" screen literally sucks. If I was trying to figure out the best way to crack a tough programming problem, I either need a laptop or a piece of paper and a pen.
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Word and Notepad, both available on my smartphone and my laptop. Everything else is in my head. 
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I wasn't talking about writing ideas down. I was talking about doing basic calculations to see if an idea at least was close to feasible. Word and notepad are not very good for that.
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Yes, and as I indicated, we can do much better in that regard. Point is, when used properly a single device can replace reams of paper, making for a smaller environmental footprint than a comparable amount of paper (and most people have no clue how large that paper's footprint really is).
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I am not sure, but I suspect that most of those studies make assumptions about how long people keep the devices that may not be true. In addition, as I indicated before, there are almost certainly ways of reducing the environmental impact of our paper use.
Even if it ends up in a Landfill, its ultimately bio-degradable and reasonably non-toxic (maybe not at all, but I haven't read enough to be sure). The real issue is with how its made.
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I still have a "day job," as a web designer. I keep copious amounts of info on my PC and in my smartphone, and the only thing I ever print out is my occasional vacation recording sheet, because my HR department demands it. It is a form on the office network, and for the record, doesn't need to be printed at all... they just like it that way, in a conservative sense.
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Well, at my job, I rarely print out anything, but I do keep a notepad around for meetings and working out problems. I do know people who print everything out, including emails!
I just don't see any evidence of the paperless office becoming a reality anytime soon.
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Bill