The purpose of the Virtual Copier invention (“VC”) is to enable a typical PC user to add electronic paper processing to their existing business process. VC is an extension of the concept we understand as copying. In its simplest form it extends the notion of copying from a process that involves paper going through a conventional copier device, to a process that involves paper being scanned from a device at one location and copied to a device at another location. In its more sophisticated form, VC can copy paper from a device at one location directly into a business application residing on a network or on the Internet, or visa versa. The VC invention is software that manages paper so that it can be electronically and seamlessly copied in and out of devices and business applications (such as Microsoft Office, Microsoft Exchange, Lotus Notes) with an optional single-step Go operation. The VC software can reside on a PC, LAN/WAN server, digital device (such as a digital copier), or on a web server to be accessed over the Internet.