I'm the exact same way: I need a physical medium when it comes to notes, etc. I discussed it with a another friend of mine (a business guy) who similarly prefe

I'm the exact same way: I need a physical medium when it comes to notes, etc. I discussed it with a another friend of mine (a business guy) who similarly prefers notes/notebooks and we seemed to hone in on the fact that its superiority over non-physical mediums comes from its freeform nature. The freeform nature allows you to record things in a format that more accurately models the way your mind works. This makes it easier to come back to and have your brain go "Aha yes I have a memory stored for this data because I created this note". With a physical medium, you're never (or at least, much less so) forced into any format that was created by another person (to-do apps, etc.).