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Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

borretti.me

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Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#44
post #40

I think that the real power of spaced repetition is not in flashcard applications like this. It is in behavior modification. Let's take a real example to show how this works. August 19, 2025. My wife called me in to help her decide what to do about a dentist that she thought was ripping her off. A couple of quick suggestions later, and she went to being mad at me about not having heard the problem through before tryi…

I love this example because the correct, wise approach is so alien to my mind that I do not know how to respond to such situations. I am a professional problem solver, you described a problem, yet you do not want it solved? Just talk about it being annoying, like an immutable facet of the universe? Should I retort about my grievances with gravity making roof repairs a bear?

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sucks compared to what? I find anki super. It is amazing what other have built for me to use, for free. It is insane value.

Anki IS amazing and DOES suck at the same time. I am very glad it exists and this is not meant as a dig at the maintainer for whom I am very grateful. In particular, the UX is a mess. It is very hard for a beginner and frankly it feels like you are in an escape room whenever you want to do something new in terms of difficulty. Once you are over that hump and just internalize its warts, it is AMAZING, but it IS a huge…

[deleted]

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#46
post #40

I think that the real power of spaced repetition is not in flashcard applications like this. It is in behavior modification. Let's take a real example to show how this works. August 19, 2025. My wife called me in to help her decide what to do about a dentist that she thought was ripping her off. A couple of quick suggestions later, and she went to being mad at me about not having heard the problem through before tryi…

I love this example because the correct, wise approach is so alien to my mind that I do not know how to respond to such situations. I am a professional problem solver, you described a problem, yet you do not want it solved? Just talk about it being annoying, like an immutable facet of the universe? Should I retort about my grievances with gravity making roof repairs a bear?

The way I approach these situations is by reminding myself that the speaker is implicitly making a request - a request for empathy or understanding. While it's tempting to try to solve their problems, what they really want is for their feelings to be heard.

"Oh, that must have been frustrating."

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#47
This was a super interesting article for me as I'm working on a prototype software aiming to promote spaced repetition and some newer wave learning science as a common approach to "leveling up" in an age where AI is pushing the competitiveness of human labor.

I've thought about posting to HN but I'm a little apprehensive of when and how to post.

Anyone interested in this and/or have some advice for posting my prototype online for feedback?

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#48
I am always intrigued by new SRS systems, though sadly most are just "simplified" Anki clones. I have always been tempted to throw my hat into the ring.

The biggest area for improvement is probably deck collaboration. Most SRS proponents often state that its bets to make cards yourself because the act of making the cards is a key part of the learning process. I don't disagree, but part of the reason that making cards your self is recommended is because the shared decks are, on average, terrible.

After that I would like to see more built in support for non front/back or cloze cards. There are a lot of other card types that you can make, but are difficult or impractical to do in anki. Things like "slow" cards, one sided cards, code/music/math/text cards. These can all be done in anki, but it's a pain.

Then support for card order/hierarchy/prerequisite an and encompassing graphs like what MathAcademy does.

And lastly, a web first experience. Anki is offline/local first. That has the benefit that you are always safe from being rug pulled. But there are a lot of places (like work) where local first does not work well.

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#49
post #40

I think that the real power of spaced repetition is not in flashcard applications like this. It is in behavior modification. Let's take a real example to show how this works. August 19, 2025. My wife called me in to help her decide what to do about a dentist that she thought was ripping her off. A couple of quick suggestions later, and she went to being mad at me about not having heard the problem through before tryi…

This is really inspiring. Doing whatever you gotta do to be a better support for your loved ones is commendable.

Can you give an example of what you record in your SR system? Is it the anecdote itself? Do you generalize the pattern? Is there a "front" and "back?" A cloze?

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#50

This was a super interesting article for me as I'm working on a prototype software aiming to promote spaced repetition and some newer wave learning science as a common approach to "leveling up" in an age where AI is pushing the competitiveness of human labor. I've thought about posting to HN but I'm a little apprehensive of when and how to post. Anyone interested in this and/or have some advice for posting my prototy…

You might want to read https://news.ycombinator.com/showhn.html.
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