There are two arguments being conflated here.
- Advantage
- “Can I do it with Pen-and-Paper”
Point 1 is immutably True; deck trackers allow you to save time and processing power (your brain’s, not the computer’s). BIG advantage and that’s honestly why people use them. That’s never going to change. That’s just a simple fact, end of discussion on that front.
Point 2 is not violated by having deck trackers overlay the list of 30 potential cards; you can research EXACTLY which cards are allowed ahead of time and print it out yourself, pen-and-paper style.
The only thing the deck tracker is doing, is what it has always done: save you time and brainpower, as per Point 1. There’s nothing sneaky or weird, here. It’s doing what it has always done.