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Spaced repetition systems have gotten better

(domenic.me)
699 points domenicd | 1 comments | 18 May 25 11:42 UTC | HN request time: 0.212s | source
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keiferski ◴[18 May 25 12:38 UTC] No.44020946[source]▶
I’ve been using Anki for about a decade now, and as far as I’m concerned, the only real improvements needed are design/UI based. It is functionally irrelevant if the algorithm is optimized or not when the actual user interface seems boring to potential users. While I do like that Anki has power user options, it’s also very unintuitive to the average person just looking into it.

Which is really a shame, as the spacing effect itself is such an underrated aspect of human learning that it almost feels like cheating.

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arrowsmith ◴[18 May 25 12:47 UTC] No.44020994[source]▶
I love Anki but it’s an archetypal example of “designed by an engineer”.

It’s powerful, with a lot of depth to its features - but it’s also hideous, clunky and unintuitive, and it takes a long time to figure out how to use it effectively.

An HN-reading tech nerd can probably figure it out, but your average Duolingomaxxing normie? No chance.

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cenamus ◴[18 May 25 12:49 UTC] No.44021013[source]▶
Sorry, but what's clunky about it? All buttons in reach of your thumb on the mobile app and usable keybindings on desktop?

Is there not enough useless whitespace around every button?

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felipeerias ◴[18 May 25 13:22 UTC] No.44021247[source]▶
I have been trying to use Anki for years. Every time it is the same story: I keep it up for a few months until I miss a couple days, then due cards accumulate far beyond what can be reasonably managed, and I end up spending more time trying to fix the app than actually learning anything.
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1. gwd ◴[18 May 25 17:51 UTC] No.44023113[source]▶
This is one of the reasons I ended up writing my own language study system. I haven't used the FSRS thing mentioned above, but I've heard it's much better, and having looked at the algorithm, it seems like it should be better.

The other reason I wrote my own system was to integrate SRS with extensive reading. Basically, my algorithm tracks the difficulty of all the words and grammar concepts, like FSRS; but then it gives you content at the right level for learning (either fewer than 5 new concepts, or an average of 95% known material).

And among the things that fits, it balances reviewing older material and learning newer material, based on what would have the largest impact. (Reviewing something you're about to forget has a bigger impact than learning something new, because the new thing you're going to forget much more quickly. So the balance of new / review and spaced repetition falls out naturally.)