Still seeking the paperless office.

• Position: E-RECORDS - Brief article

Thirty-five years ago, a British-American information scientist introduced the concept of a paperless office. Today, it seems, we are no closer to attaining that scenario, according to a recent survey of UK offices.

Printer company Epson surveyed more than 3,600 European employees, and 83% called the paperless office "unrealistic." It found that hard copies are preferred over digital documents because workers feel the need to share, hand out, and edit reports. In fact, the majority of respondents felt they'd be more likely to make a mistake when editing an electronic document than a paper copy.

According to the survey, 83% of office workers in Europe said a ban on printing would "limit...