In this book, the various characteristics of files are recorded according to certain rules and formats, and a directory is formed. The advantages of book catalogue are: ① it can be compiled at one time, printed in large quantities and widely disseminated; ② Small size, easy to carry, and convenient for readers who are far away from the library to communicate with each other. Its main shortcomings are: ① it can't reflect the latest literature at any time, and it needs to compile a supplementary catalogue; If there are too many supplementary directories, it will cause inconvenience in consulting; (2) Invalid files cannot be deleted from the directory in time.

The book catalogue has a long history. In ancient China, all kinds of book catalogues were mostly book catalogues. The earliest existing library catalogue in the west was edited and published by Burke in Bonn, Germany in 1885. Before the beginning of the 20th century, the library catalogues of all countries in the world were mainly book catalogues. In the second half of the 20th century, with the appearance of machine-readable catalogue, book-type catalogue began to be valued by libraries, because computers can print out card items with machine-readable catalogue tapes, make book-type catalogue quickly, print in large quantities and update in time. In addition, it is widely used because of its small size and low cost.