@chrisaldrich From a feasibility perspective, I’d wager it’s much easier to carry around a notebook with all its contained writings, than a stack of index cards with all of theirs. 😉
@pimoore Only if you're not being creative. I find I can carry just about anything I need in a pretty compact form factor. What about when your notebook is full of material you don't need except for those two pages which on index cards you can fold up and toss in your pocket? Or maybe those times when you've got material across three notebooks which then all need to be carried instead of a smaller subset? Maybe a book ring and a holepunch or a simple binder clip will allow you the best of both worlds. Each of these modalities has a variety of different affordances which we don't often think about. 🤪
@chrisaldrich You make a great point about the context, as that would no doubt play a role in how much or little writings you need. That said, perhaps another point in a notebook’s favour (for me at least) is the paper. Some of the index cards I’ve written on felt like plastic. 😂
@pimoore I’m with you there. I use both a stack of index cards and a Hobonichi, and the cards are so much thicker. The same though about writing surface came to mind, though, and an index card has a bit more than the Hobonichi for the same physical footprint, since every page in the Techo has quotes, dates and other markings.
@pimoore There is definitely a much wider choice of paper quality, thickness, coating, and other varieties in the notebook space than in the traditional index card one. Most index cards are on the rougher/pulpy side (Oxford, Amazon Basics, Staples, etc.), but I've not run into many that felt like plastic, aside from Rocketbook's cards which are a bit more durable for being erasable/cleanable and reusable. For those into some higher end/luxe super smooth cards, perhaps Exacompta's Bristol cards are worthwhile? Of course, if one isn't as particular about their usual index card thickness, one could easily use off-the-shelf paper or custom cut their favorite paper and have thinner "slips", though with heavy use over time (thumbing through them), these can show significant signs of wear.