PDF sewing patterns require taping 40-100 printed pages by hand
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Indie sewing pattern designers sell PDF patterns for $8-18 that must be printed at home on letter-size paper and then physically cut, aligned, and taped together -- often 40 to 100+ pages for a single garment pattern. A sewist making a coat pattern might spend 90 minutes just assembling the paper pattern before cutting a single piece of fabric. This matters because the person buying a PDF pattern chose digital specifically for instant access and convenience, yet the assembly process is slower and more frustrating than driving to a store and buying a tissue paper pattern. The real pain is that misalignment of even 2mm across taped seams compounds across the full pattern, causing fit problems in the finished garment that the sewist blames on their own skills rather than the medium. The problem persists because A0 copyshop printing costs $5-10 per pattern and is not available in rural areas, projector sewing requires a $300+ setup and ceiling-mounted hardware, and pattern companies have no financial incentive to solve the assembly problem since they already made the sale.
Evidence
Multiple sewing blogs document patterns requiring 40-100+ pages (Bethany Lynne Makes, Helen's Closet, Charlotte Kan). The 'corner-cutting method' and glue-stick hacks exist specifically because taping is so painful. PDF Plotting services charge $5-8 per A0 print. Projector sewing communities on Reddit (r/sewing) have grown rapidly as an alternative, but require a short-throw projector ($300+), calibration mat, and ceiling mount. Love Notions, Itch to Stitch, and other indie companies include 'print guides' to reduce page counts, acknowledging the problem implicitly.