A printer is a device that accepts text and graphic output from a computer and transfers the

information to paper, usually to standard size sheets of paper. Printers vary in size, speed,
sophistication, and cost. In general, more expensive printers are used for higher-resolution
color printing.

Advantage: Convenience
One of the key advantages of printing out material is that it is convenient. If you need to
mark it up or make notes on it, it is easy to do. Most printed documents are lighter and,
when folded, smaller than a tablet or notebook computer. They are also easily replaced, so
losing them or getting them wet isn't a major concern. The primary advantage of a computer
printer is convenience. Printing documents at home can save time and money compared to visiting a
commercial printer or office supply store. It is also a good way to manage documents and paperwork by
producing hard copies to use as backups or by printing documents or letters that need to be mailed out.
Advantage: Secure Delivery
Paper records can be anonymously delivered. Emailing a document creates a chain that
shows who sent it, when they sent it and to whom they sent it. Once someone prints out a
document, on the other hand, they can deliver it or not deliver it to anyone without creating
a record of the delivery. This can be useful if you need to send information without having
someone intercept it or without creating a record that you sent it.
Advantage: Ease of Reading
For many people, printed documents remain easier to read. The text on a printed document
is, as of 2012, sharper than the sharpest display. While the iPad 3's display renders text
with 264 dots per inch, even inexpensive printers can output 600 dots per inch. Most tablet
and computer displays are backlit and glossy. This makes them prone to washing out in
direct sunlight and prone to glare. The printed page, on the other hand, is easy to read in
anything but dark conditions.
Disadvantage: Cost
While there are a number of variables that determine what it costs to print a document, the
simple fact of the matter is that printing costs money. While the toner or ink for a black-
and-white page is frequently in the range of 1 to 2 cents, you also need to pay for paper and
for the printer itself. Color printing is even more expensive. Electronic documents, on the
other hand, cost essentially nothing to create and to send. You could send an entire high-
definition movie, which is roughly equivalent in size to hundreds of pages, over the Internet
for less than the cost of printing a single color page.
Disadvantage: Environmental Concerns
Printers kill trees. On average, a smaller office with 10 to 15 employees will consume enough paper to
necessitate cutting down 18 trees a year. Toner and ink are made with chemicals that can cause
environmental damage. The paper and toner or ink get delivered to your office generates carbon, and
the garbage gets hauled away, which generates more material in landfills and more carbon for the
delivery process. Printers also consume a great deal of power, with the fusers in laser printers
consuming hundreds of watts when they run.
printing industry has played a huge role in the development of the entire human race. With some
books, newspapers, articles and magazines published, people can know what is going on in this
world. School children are provided with text books, people can communicate properly, and the
advertisement of brands and stuff has also got a lot easier. Printing machine and its various forms
have proven to be a medium of connecting people at the domestic as well as international level.

If you would like to know the answer to the question “Why is printing important?,” you only need to
look around you. Our life has been linked to printing, so much so that we sometimes take it for
granted. In fact, it would not be possible for you to read what I’ve written, if not for the invention of
the printing press. Don’t believe me? Read on and you’ll agree.

It’s difficult to measure the impact of printing on culture and society. Hopefully, the reasons I’ve
enumerated above give you a rough idea on how to answer the question “Why is printing
important?” So if anyone asks you the same question, I hope you’ll join me in saying “Why? Because
printing changed the world!”
What has changed?
If you’re involved in the printing industry, as I am at home in the UK, figures and comments like this
make reassuring reading. We are all concerned with falling volumes and how to reverse the decline.
I try to view it as a market change – undoubtedly print is changing, and therefore, we as print
suppliers need to change too. I definitely see that volume, for example, is changing and moving – ten
years ago or more we were printing huge volumes for customers like the credit card industry and
cigarette manufacturers – changing laws and changing markets have put paid to much of this. But in
many cases the volume is simply switching to other areas – I’ve seen a lot of growth in products
such as personalised insurance and pension statements, huge growth in retail membership and
loyalty schemes, and also an increase in marketing material produced in order to drive people
online.
For years now people have been telling me that we will become a paperless society. In some
instances they are correct – billing and invoices have indeed moved online in many instances.
But, then I always say to them – go outside – go to a shopping centre or big sports event, for
example. Look around you – what do you see?

Signage. Posters. Advertising content. Some electronic, but much of it printed. Imagine an event
such as the World Cup without print. How would spectators know where to go? How would they
find the venues? Find out the train times or navigate the road network? How would they know
the identities of the players on the pitch? It is easy to overlook the fact that print is all around us
a lot of the time, an intrinsic part of the way we all live and do business, especially when you’re
feeling under pressure and have bills to pay and deadlines to meet!