To PDF or Not PDF, Part 3
New technology can be a solution looking for a problem. In 1981, the Commodore
Vic-20 sold for $299. I worked retail and told customers, "You can use this to do your checkbook." We all believed it--I bought one myself and put my checkbook on it--as did a million others in the next 2 years.
In wondering why people in our laboratory prefer paper to Portable Document Format (PDF) procedures, I suspected I'd been sold a Vic-20 to do my checkbook again. Both make the simple needlessly complex.
Let's consider my original question: In a busy laboratory where there are policies and procedures an arms length away on the bench, what does an electronic duplicate of a printed page accomplish?
A PDF--an electronic document--is retrievable and searchable (unless scanned, in which case its data is a digital photograph). It can be stored, transferred and backed up with ease. But it can't be carried around, folded, scribbled on, tacked to a wall or propped up on the bench.
Unless, of course, you print it.
You're probably thinking, "But it's digital. It can't be destroyed or changed. You can instantly find anything you're looking for." Might as well add, "You can do your checkbook!"
A PDF looks like paper but isn't. For more than two decades, we've struggled to convince ourselves that a computer is better than paper by imitating it, from Apple's paper paradigm to Microsoft's writing tablet. The simple truth is, no matter how hard we try, an electronic manual isn't as handy as one sitting on the bench.
But like the Vic-20 that later became more powerful platforms that really could track your finances, electronic documents can solve real problems. In fact, they can do things impossible with paper.
Next, I'll explain how this can make a difference.