There is no need for the user to leave his or her office or lab to go to the library. Data can be delivered to the user in a format which can be manipulated by the user. Data could include experimental data which could be loaded into programs and tested by the user, structural parameters which could be loaded into modelling and viewing programs, or movie and sound files which could be displayed on the user's computer. An advertisement on the Web for a DuPont product contains an example of a QuickTime movie of a molecule . While electronic delivery of journal data does provide a number of advantages over paper, paper still has a number of advantages over electronic delivery.
Paper is very portable.
It can be easily carried between the office or lab and home, can be read on a train or plane, can be written on quite easily. Type on paper is a much higher resolution than type on a computer screen. Therefore, paper is easier to read, and easier to display high-resolution graphic material. A paper copy is much easier to browse than an electronic copy. A page flipper comparable to paper has not yet been developed in the computerized journal.