Moving to an almost entirely e-based document management system

patwa_2

Hi. I thought I'd start a debate of sorts on this issue. Just going through teh papers and letters on my desk, and it's absolutely amazing the amount I just marked for the dustbin that i don't even need.

So I was thinking, seeing as so much of business is now conducted online, yet most companies still send documentation and information through via the paper post, what are people's thoughts towards moving to an e-based document management system? Obviously, where paper documents were needed to conduct business, you'd have to keep paper copies of those documents, e.g phone bills for cashback, share holding deeds and bond certificates and some government documents etc.

The average A4 printed page scanned in as a .tif file at 300dpi is about 1MB, so let's up that to 2MB to be flexible, and allow 100kb for an editable text document of the page, you can get 500 pages for 1GB, or the average USB pen. Compare that to hard drives and the prices they're going for today.

Advantages:
Reduces space and clutter
Easier to find things - you can tag documents with captions and search by those
Easy to mae duplicate copies and distribute by fax, e-mail or the web (or print)
Easier to read (especially if like me you're partially sighted)
More portable
Documentscan be merged/edited/used in everyday business
Added security with password protection/encryption

Disadvantages:
Time - about 2-3 minutes for the average 4-5 page letter
Binds you to the computer
Still need to keep paper documents for companies that wouldn't accept printouts
Backups Required in case of technical failure
Decent scanning equipment required

I have been considering this for some time. I usually end up scanning in letters anyway, if only so that I can read them without straining my eyes. For me, the above system wouldn't be that much of a step up, and I could always program my own custom solution.

Discuss.

Hussein.