How the Index Card Cataloged the World(theatlantic.com)
theatlantic.com
How the Index Card Cataloged the World
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/12/how-the-index-card-catalogued-the-world/547271/?single_page=true
6 comments
For anyone interested in index card systems, the idiosyncratic method of Niklas Luhmann [0] is a fascinating example. Many additional interesting opinions on notetaking and modern database translations of classic note taking ideas maybe found on the website of the translator, Manfred Kuehn [1].
Another interesting and radically less complex example that I have personally found useful is the Pile of Index Cards system. [2]
Another interesting and radically less complex example that I have personally found useful is the Pile of Index Cards system. [2]
[0] http://luhmann.surge.sh/communicating-with-slip-boxes
[1] http://takingnotenow.blogspot.com/2007/12/luhmanns-zettelkasten.html
[2] http://pileofindexcards.org/wiki/index.php/Main_PageThe most impressive use of the index card is probably the Mundaneum: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mundaneum .
I am a fan of index cards, and only recently was thinking of buying a deck to replace my current GTD organizer.
I have heard that Vladimir Nabokov used to write his works on index cards. The Wikipedia article on him mentions this.
I have heard that Vladimir Nabokov used to write his works on index cards. The Wikipedia article on him mentions this.
You might like the "Hipster PDA" then: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hipster_PDA
The theory of information and computing seems pretty fundamental, and not necessarily tied to what we typically think of as a computer, with CPUs, RAM, SSDs, etc. In a way, a card catalog full of index cards and run by a bunch of people is a computer too. Maybe this isn't an incredible revelation, but it's still interesting to think about.
[1] https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EKWGGDXe5MA