For office innovators, the unrealized dream of the "paperless" office is a classic example of high-tech hubris (傲慢). Today’s office drone is drowning in more paper than ever before. But after decades of hype, American offices may finally be losing their paper obsession. The demand for paper used to outstrip the growth of the U. S. economy, but the past two or three years have seen a marked slowdown in sales — despite a healthy economic scene. The two innovations by Xerox Corp. and Anoto Group feature [A] integrated use of paper and digital form. [B] a shift from paper to digital form. [C] the use of computer screen. [D] a new style of writing.

A、Analystsattributethedeclinetosuchfactorsasadvancesindigitaldatabasesandcommunicationsystems.Escapingourcravingforpaper,however,willbeanythingbutaneasyaffair.
B、"Oldhabitsarehardtobreak,"saysMerilynDunn,acommunicationssuppliesdirector."Therearesomefunctionsthatpaperserveswhereascreendisplaydoesn’twork.Thosefunctionsarebothitsstrengthanditsweakness."
C、Intheearlytomid-’90s,aboomingeconomyandimproveddesktopprintershelpedboostpapersalesby6to7percenteachyear.Theconvenienceofdesktopprintingallowedofficeworkerstoindulgeinprintinganythingandeverythingatverylittleeffortorcost.
D、Butnow,thegrowthrateorpapersalesintheUnitedStatesisflatteningbyabouthalfapercenteachyear.Between2004and2005,Ms.Dunnsays,plainwhiteofficepaperwillseelessthana4percentgrowthrate,despitethestrongoveralleconomy.Aprimaryreasonforthechange,saysDunn,isthatforthefirsttimeever,some47percentoftheworkforceenteredthejobmarketaftercomputershadalreadybeenintroducedtooffices.
E、"We’refinallyseeingareductionintheamountofpaperbeingusedperworkerintheworkplace,"saysJohnMaine,vicepresidentofapulpandpapereconomicconsultingfirm."Moreinformationisbeingtransmittedelectronically,andmoreandmorepeoplearecomfortablewiththeinformationresidingonlyinelectronicformwithoutprintingmultiplebackups."
F、Inaddition,Mr.Mainepointstothelacklusteremploymentmarketforwhite-collarworkers—theprimarydriverofofficepaperconsumption—fortheshiftinpaperusage.G、Therealparadigmshiftmaybeinthewaypaperisused.Sincetheadventofadvancedandreliableoffice-networksystems,datastoragehasmovedawayfrompaperarchives.Thesecretarialartof"filing"isdisappearingfromjobdescriptions.Muchoftoday’sdatamayneverleaveitsoriginaldigitalformat.H、Thechangingattitudestowardpaperhavefinallycaughttheattentionofpapercompanies,saysRichardHarper,aresearcheratMicrosoft."Allofasudden,thepaperindustryhasstartedthinking,’Weneedtolearnmoreaboutthebehaviouralaspectsofpaperuse,’"hesays."Theyhadneverasked,they’djustassumedthat70millionsheetswouldbeboughtperyearasaliteralfunctionofeconomicgrowth."I、Toreducepaperuse,somecompaniesareworkingtocombinedigitalandpapercapabilities.Forexample,XeroxCorp.isdevelopingelectronicpaper:thindigitaldisplaysthatrespondtoastylus,likeapenonpaper.Notationscanbeerasedorsaveddigitally.Anotheridea,intelligentpaper,comesfromAnotoGroup.Itwouldallownotationsmadewithastylusonapageprintedwithaspecialmagneticinktosimultaneouslyappearonacomputerscreen.J、Evenwithsuchtechnologicaladvances,theimprovedcapabilitiesofdigitalstoragecontinuetoactagainst"paperlessness,"arguesPaulSaffo,atechnologyforecaster.Inhispropheticandmetaphorical1989essay,"TheElectronicPinata(彩罐),"hesuggeststhattheincreasingamountsofelectronicdatanecessarilyrequiremorepaper.K、"Theinformationindustrytodayislikeahugeelectronicpinata,composedofathinpapercrustsurroundinganelectroniccore,"Mr.Saffowrote.Thegrowingpapercrust"ismostnoticeable,butthehiddenelectroniccorethatproducesthecrustisfarlarger—andgrowingmorerapidly.Theresultisthatwearebecomingpaperless,butwehardlynoticeatall."L、Inthesamewaythatdigitalinnovationshaveincreasedpaperconsumption,Saffosays,sohasvideoconferencing—withitspromiseoffewerin-personmeetings—boostingbusinesstravel.M、"That’soneofthegreatironiesoftheinformationage,"Saffosays."It’sjustcommonsensethatthemoreyoutalktosomeonebyphoneorcomputer,itinevitablyleadstoaface-to-facemeeting.ThebestthingfortheaviationindustrywastheInternet.\