Your boarding pass on your cell phone

As paper becomes less and less important in the digital age, the paper boarding pass may also be a thing of the past. According to this New York Times article, at least six airlines are already allowing travelers to check in with their mobile devices. Although this check-in process results in a paper boarding pass issued at the ticket window, it saves you from having to print an additional copy beforehand at your home or office.

Currently, Continental Airlines has begun testing a completely paperless boarding pass. The Continental electronic pass allows travelers to pass through security and board the plane without handling any paper at all. Continental sends a bar code to your mobile device and it is then scanned by security and gate agents.

Although I love the idea of paperless boarding pass, I have little faith in the TSA agents actually being up to speed on technological advances. I hope to be proven wrong.

Photo courtesy of USA Today

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Posted by Matt on Mar 25, 2008 | 11 Comments | | Tags: , , ,

Going paperless

According to the New York Times article “Pushing Paper Out the Door,” a paperless future is coming quicker than a lot of us may think. From online bill paying to ticketless airline travel, paper is no longer needed for day-to-day activities.

“Paper is no longer the master copy; the digital version is,” says Brewster Kahle, the founder and director of the Internet Archive, a nonprofit digital library. “Paper has been dealt a complete deathblow. When was the last time you saw a telephone book?”

Hmm, the last time I saw a telephone book, it was left on my front porch in a plastic bag by the good folks at Verizon. I never used it, and it quickly found its way to the recycling bin. The article goes on to highlight an Unclutterer fave, the Fujitsu ScanSnap, which was highlighted in Erin’s Paper Clutter Begone series.

…at home, where printers are slow, noisy and devour expensive ink cartridges, people are more cautious about hitting the “print” button. What little paper comes into the home — receipts, bills, invitations — can be scanned and then shredded. Filing cabinets can be emptied, the data kept, the paper gone.

The article also goes on to offer ways to get rid of those shoeboxes of photos that all of us have taking up space in back of our closets. Scanning services are an option, but you can tackle this at home with a garbage bag and a scanner.

For more on getting paper clutter under control take a look at Erin’s Paper Clutter Begone series:

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Posted by Matt on Feb 18, 2008 | 22 Comments | | Tags: , ,

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