Monochrome makes the world go round

It goes unnoticed.

Diagrams, serial numbers, legal disclaimers. Labels, barcodes and indexes. We flip through pages, cast our eyes over the familiar black print, but they are all so commonplace, so normal. We don’t really give them any consideration at all, let alone marvel at their ubiquity. They do so much, yet we notice so little. We take monochrome printing utterly for granted because it is, and always has been, a given. So, let’s take a moment to think about all those places where black and white print sits quietly, but powerfully, in our world…

We find it where we learn

This is rather obvious if you think solely of good old-fashioned textbooks and school reading books. But what about handouts? Colouring and handwriting practice sheets? Educators’ notes? Consider how many children have sat down to a printed test paper. And how many plain black and white printed signs there are on walls and doors throughout the building. Schools are becoming more and more digitised, but their offices still deal with a lot of paperwork and the average school backpack continues to be full of printed resources. However, while we’re comfortably book-adjacent, it’s important to say that despite everything, printed books are still proven to be effective. In fact, a recent study found that reading on paper leads to superior deep-level comprehension and faster information retrieval than reading on screens.

It's there in a legal capacity

Legal proceedings and paperwork go hand in hand, don’t they? In almost every courtroom drama, there they are – stacked high as a neat visual indicator of the time consuming and complex nature of a case. That said, real life isn’t so different, while digitisation and submitting court bundles electronically is increasingly commonplace, there is still a huge amount of print in legal processes. Weirdly, security plays a role in this, as some information is considered too sensitive to digitise! Similarly, there are still some forms of legal documentation that require a physical signature. When you think about it, how extraordinary is it that more or less every aspect of our lives as citizens has some kind of printed black and white document attached to it? And consider for a moment the number of printed documents, sitting in official state archives, that are attached to legal precedents, historical legislation, treaties and agreements.

It appears when we want to see change

No, it’s not quiet. And yes, a lot of this exists online, but it’s the leaflets, door drops, stickers, t-shirts, posters and banners that pack the historic punch. Why? Because they actively disrupt – a leaflet thrust into a hand, a banner at a march, a group wearing the same shirt, a poster in your eyeline where you might not expect one to be. They’re visually striking enough to catch the eye of passers-by – and their cameras. There’s something uniquely powerful about the way in which both professional designers and DIY activists adapt their messages for a medium that is known for high volume and low cost, so that it can have the maximum impact. The print of protests has been used throughout history: think of the original Black Lives Matter posters or the Guerilla Girls ‘The Advantages of Being a Woman Artist’ (they also created high impact #MeToo posters in the same style). Simply printed but symbolic for generations.

A little scan of it can take us places

Ah, the humble QR code. For so long the butt of jokes, ugly, clunky and notorious for ending up in places that were impossible to scan, they rose like the proverbial phoenix from the ashes as the pandemic created a need for contactless everything. Today, they don’t just send you to brand websites – they have the long absent function and, as a result, you can now find them everywhere. Pick up a product and a little QR code can take you to find out more. On restaurant tables they help you to bypass the waiter, check for allergens or pay the bill. On public transport, they help you to access maps and check travel times. And, of course, advertising. Except, today, brands are using QR codes to give you experiences. Think unlocking special content, authenticating luxury purchases, how-to videos and even connecting you to in-store Wi-Fi without logging in. Admit it, they’re incredibly useful and here to stay. At least until something better comes along.

Let’s not neglect the little details

Every time you check for the price on clothes or shoes when you’re out shopping, there’s the familiar black text. When you stop for lunch, your menus might well be printed black text too. If you choose to pay your bill the old-fashioned way, you’ll get the option of a receipt to confirm your transaction. If your doctor prescribes you a medicine, there’s the little leaflet in the package, telling you what you need to know. Most letters or packages that arrive at our doors have the address printed in black because it’s clear and easy to read. And the boxes our deliveries arrive in are usually printed that way too. How about self-assembly instructions for furniture? Which come packed next to a piece of simply printed paper, telling you how to access your extended warranty.

It's hard to deny, isn’t it? “Boring old” black and white print really is everywhere and part of the fabric of our lives. It undertakes a world of tasks that can’t easily be done any other way, despite our living in a world of extraordinary technology. Take a look around you…

Learn more about our monochrome printing solutions:

● Single Function Black & White Printers
● Multifunction Black & White Printers
● Digital Black & White Presses
● Cut Sheet Black & White Printers