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Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

borretti.me

161–170 of 198 posts

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#161
post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel you, I totally do. I get wanting to vent and wanting to be heard but solutions should come first. Honestly, when I hear people annoyed about offering solutions I get their need to engage with them differently but I also kind of believe they have a dysfunction about how they relate to the world.

This attitude reminds me of another phrase that I've internalized. Choosing to be right, is choosing to be alone. Whatever you choose to put above trying to get along with others, limits who can be part of your group. In the extreme, you will feel absolutely justified. And yet be absolutely alone. As an example, language communities that focus on being able to find the ideal way to program (eg Lisp) tend to splinter.…

Who is the one choosing, though? I think it's the one who brings another person into the conversation with a problem begging for help that turns on that same person for trying to make the situation better. That is the person who needs to be empathetic when they are the one seeking help. But apparently we live in this bizarre world where emotions are always right.

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#162

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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?

In what way are you a professional problem solver such that it applies to random problems in peoples' lives? The thing that drives me nuts is when people start throwing out immediate ideas, sometimes before I've even given a full account of the problem. But even if they do wait, I don't feel like explaining why all your immediate ideas don't work - most of the time, I've also already thought of those things. Try aski…

There's value to anyone willing to listen to you talking about your problem. Otherwise rubber duck debugging wouldn't work.

Why don't you ask some questions about their obviously wrong solutions instead od spoiling the fun they have guessing? After all to are the one with a problem.

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#163
post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This attitude reminds me of another phrase that I've internalized. Choosing to be right, is choosing to be alone. Whatever you choose to put above trying to get along with others, limits who can be part of your group. In the extreme, you will feel absolutely justified. And yet be absolutely alone. As an example, language communities that focus on being able to find the ideal way to program (eg Lisp) tend to splinter.…

I understand the need to engage people at the emotional level and meeting them where they're at. I just refuse to label this behavior as being constructive, desirable, something to cultivate and protect. I see this "complainy" way of engaging as unproductive and i treat it the same way I would treat my kid when having a tantrum, I accept it, I listen to him, I am understanding of his state and his emotions, but I als…

For what it’s worth, I agree with you, and my partner has a similar outlook. There are people in the world who prefer to live life from a perspective of truth seeking and open inquiry. Don’t let anyone gaslight you into thinking that this is a flaw or that you should fundamentally change yourself for the sake of the average person!

It’s important to be able to navigate these conversations professionally, but there’s no reason to be overly close with people who you don’t naturally mesh with.

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#164
post #161
post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This attitude reminds me of another phrase that I've internalized. Choosing to be right, is choosing to be alone. Whatever you choose to put above trying to get along with others, limits who can be part of your group. In the extreme, you will feel absolutely justified. And yet be absolutely alone. As an example, language communities that focus on being able to find the ideal way to program (eg Lisp) tend to splinter.…

Who is the one choosing, though? I think it's the one who brings another person into the conversation with a problem begging for help that turns on that same person for trying to make the situation better. That is the person who needs to be empathetic when they are the one seeking help. But apparently we live in this bizarre world where emotions are always right.

In the worst case you have some people who only want to transmit their own negative emotions to you. The don’t want to solve the problem (but will get angry if you don’t attempt it), they won’t accept empathy (or will use it as bait for subtle personal attacks), and they divert any and all conversations back to their own personal issues. The listener is not at fault in this situation!

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#165
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…

And how did the dentist fare?

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#166
post #85

> Cards are content-addressed, that is, identified by the hash of their text. Wouldn't this invalidate card's review history if I am to fix a typo in the card's text?

obviously, they and their claude didn't think about that

Even acknowledging this flaw, there's a valid reason (simplicity) to design it this way.

"Be kind. Don't be snarky."

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#167

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Using Anki every day for about half an hour (I'm a slow learner lol). Anki sucks, but it's good enough that there's no point looking for other apps.

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.

The default on iOS is pretty bad for example. Hidden hitpoints all over the card is obviously bad. And like the article states: no way to just go through all cards regardless of deck is kinda silly and annoying for no reason.

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#168
post #161
post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This attitude reminds me of another phrase that I've internalized. Choosing to be right, is choosing to be alone. Whatever you choose to put above trying to get along with others, limits who can be part of your group. In the extreme, you will feel absolutely justified. And yet be absolutely alone. As an example, language communities that focus on being able to find the ideal way to program (eg Lisp) tend to splinter.…

Who is the one choosing, though? I think it's the one who brings another person into the conversation with a problem begging for help that turns on that same person for trying to make the situation better. That is the person who needs to be empathetic when they are the one seeking help. But apparently we live in this bizarre world where emotions are always right.

It looks like you are passing judgement on the OP's situation.

As the OP, I can confidently tell you that you are absolutely in the wrong. You do not have sufficient information to pass this judgment.

I was emphatically not, "trying to make the situation better." Though that was the excuse that I would have made for myself. I was distracted, and wanting the problem to go away so I could get back to something else. (Which was rather less important.) I was throwing out suggestions before I had heard enough to say anything that had any chance of actually being useful. And if my mindset had been, "trying to make the situation better," I would have absolutely realized that.

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#169
post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Who is the one choosing, though? I think it's the one who brings another person into the conversation with a problem begging for help that turns on that same person for trying to make the situation better. That is the person who needs to be empathetic when they are the one seeking help. But apparently we live in this bizarre world where emotions are always right.

In the worst case you have some people who only want to transmit their own negative emotions to you. The don’t want to solve the problem (but will get angry if you don’t attempt it), they won’t accept empathy (or will use it as bait for subtle personal attacks), and they divert any and all conversations back to their own personal issues. The listener is not at fault in this situation!

As the OP whose situation was being described, I guarantee that my wife is very far from the worst case. If she was, we would not be married.

Re: Hashcards: A plain-text spaced repetition system

#170
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…

And how did the dentist fare?

The dental work that was needed, negotiated in advance, and paid for, happened.

The dentist's exorbitant rate on nitrous oxide (which we were not informed of in advance) was successfully renegotiated.

Unsurprisingly, my initial suggestions were in no way helpful to discovering this solution to the problem.

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