Okay, they didn't use the expression "wear out" about files, but I catch your drift.

I never said that books last that long with or without maintenance. I certainly don't think they do! Preserving media for hundreds of years is very difficult no matter the format. I merely commented that access to older digital material may well prove difficult far into the future. I will admit that I was straying away from the original topic, which was a direct comparison between paper books and ebooks. I feel like the debate on whether we can play a Windows 7 game in 2022 kind of loses its point when we are talking about preserving things even further into the future, especially longer than the lifetime of the people who had fond memories of that piece of media. Yes, this was the example the other user made, and I agree with you that their difficulties can be overcome. But I think they have a point still. It's already not fully straightforward (as in install game, click & play), and it's only been 18 years. Games are a part of our cultural history and could prove very interesting to future historians and other social scientists. Will they be able to access them in hundreds of years? That's the real issue imo.

I have my doubts about us being able to preserve functional older computers for hundreds of years, but I would be happy to know that I'm wrong, as I get kind of stressed out at thinking of all the wonderful (in its way) old technology that will be forever lost.

> I understand your mini disc example and you’re right, but that’s a different problem.

Yes, that's why I called it an adjacent problem. My point was that physical media isn't necessarily better regarding future inaccessibility due to format obsolescence. Just a comment for those who love everything physical I guess :)