More perplexing to me is the notion that such a library contains no information, owing to this description:
> each book is unique and irreplaceable, but (since the Library is total) there are always several hundred thousand imperfect facsimiles - books that differ by no more than a single letter, or comma
If one were to try and distinguish one book of Shakespeare from another, they would need the full text they are looking for in order to be sure they have an accurate copy. essentially your key length is equal to the content length, and if you have the key already, the library contains nothing further.
I consider this as presaging the info-spam of an infinite, bot-infested internet: as more near misses of actual content is produced, the internet can contain measurably less information.
> each book is unique and irreplaceable, but (since the Library is total) there are always several hundred thousand imperfect facsimiles - books that differ by no more than a single letter, or comma
If one were to try and distinguish one book of Shakespeare from another, they would need the full text they are looking for in order to be sure they have an accurate copy. essentially your key length is equal to the content length, and if you have the key already, the library contains nothing further.
I consider this as presaging the info-spam of an infinite, bot-infested internet: as more near misses of actual content is produced, the internet can contain measurably less information.