Computers and the environment
At one time, computers were largely expected to remove the need for paper copies of documents because they could be stored electronically. But for all the texts that are written, stored and electronically, a lot of them are still ending up on paper.
It is difficult to measure the quantity of paper used as a result of people using Internet-connected computers, although just about anyone who works in an office will tell you that when e-mail was introduced, printers start working overtime. “I feel in my bones to be cut down,” says Ted Smith of Earth Village Organization.
Perhaps the best sign of how computer and Internet use pushes up dement for paper comes from the high-tech industry itself, which sees printing as one of its most promising new markets. Several Internet companies have been set up to help small businesses print quality documents from a computer. Earlier this week, Hewlett-Packard announced a plan to develop new technologies that will enable people to print even more so they can get a hard even if they are nowhere near a computer. As the company sees it, the more the Internet is used, the greater the demand for printers.

计算机和环境

人们一度认为计算机可以实现电脑信息存储，因此有望取代纸质文件。但即使是已实现电脑书写和存储的文本，有许多最后还是要落实到纸面上的。
使用联网电脑的后果是导致纸张的大量消耗，这种消耗难以衡量。在办公室上班的人会告诉你：自从电子邮件诞生，打字员就开始超负荷工作了，地球村组织的特德·史密斯说：“我累的骨头都要散架了”。
电脑和网络的应用推动了对纸张的需求。高科技产业将打印领域视为最有潜力的发展市场，是这一点最显著的体现。几家网络公司已经成立，致力于满足小企业在电脑上打印优质文件的需求，本周早些时候，惠普公司出台了一项计划，旨在发展新技术，使人们即使在远离电脑时也能打字。(此句原文可能有错误）公司看到：互联网使用的越多，对打印机的需求也越大。

这一切是否意味着人们对环保问题已经淡忘？一些活跃人士认为人们受到误导，以为环保方面的许多隐患已不复存在。旧金山"雨林行动网络"负责人基利·奎尔克说：“我认为由于回收技术的应用，人们相信问题已得到治理。”但奎尔克仍相信高科技将起到应有作用。