The census is a lot of things to a lot of people.

It's an important repository of information. For researchers, census data is the best way to find information about populations. What percentage of the American people could read in 1860? Just how urban were we during the Roaring Twenties, and what effect did the Great Depression have on that aspect of our lives?

It's an essential tool in economic decision making, too. Federal funds are allocated in part on the basis of information gathered in the census. Decisions about and within schools,  business plans, and marketing strategies use information gathered in the census.

Ordinary people use census data about their ancestors to gain a deeper understanding of their families, or practical information about health issues. 

But we're seeing the Census of 2010 as a testimony to electronic record-keeping.

We advocate electronic records, including electronic billing, as an environmentally responsible change, an important cost-cutting measure, and a way to reduce error and stress.

For the census, it may be what makes the process possible.

Our forefathers and foremothers probably didn't foresee the kinds of numbers we're working with this year. We're expecting 90 million responses to the census. They have to be tabulated within 90 days. Yes, that's a million documents a day to capture and count.

 It'll be done with the assistance of electronic technology. 

The census is still done on paper, so the records all have to be scanned before they can be worked with. By 2020, we should have turned the corner on that and moved on to a paperless census. But even with some paper involved, the 2010 census will still be more  automated, more efficient, and more accurate.

Every one of us counts. Fortunately, we've got computers to help do the counting.