1. Introduction

Expressions such as "digital document", "document management in digital form" and "EDMS (Electronic Document Management System)" are undoubtedly part of corporate life, and to a lesser extent, of the general public. These commonly-used terms seem to be universally accepted. They are part of the so-called digital economy. They are part and parcel of the technical developments that companies are implementing, simply because they are seen as bringing productivity gains and improved customer relations.

On the other hand, when it comes to defining this "digital document" object and placing it within the sphere of IT techniques, practices and uses, the players involved and the experts have enormous difficulty in reaching agreement.

The purpose of this article is to examine the scope of this expression, and to assess how it translates into practice....