What libraries lost when they threw out the card catalog
One problem with digital databases: What if the electricity goes out for a very long time? Or a nefarious hacker manages to destroy the database? (Or all librarians&#x27; terminals are locked by NotPetya...)<p>Library without catalog is, while not <i>totally</i> worthless, <i>much</i> more difficult to use.<p>The physical card catalog, like other paper-based archives, is more resistant to attacks. For it to be destroyed, you need to cause physical damage, like a giant flood or tornado or hit it with explosives.<p>See: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.raphkoster.com&#x2F;2017&#x2F;06&#x2F;27&#x2F;the-internet-as-existential-threat&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.raphkoster.com&#x2F;2017&#x2F;06&#x2F;27&#x2F;the-internet-as-existe...</a><p>I hope that at least the national libraries and archives will maintain physical backups for the worst-case scenarios.