Intermediate and Advanced use of Anki

[zenmonkey]

I noticed that there isn't a general thread that covers, like the title says, the intermediate and advanced use of Anki. I think I might end up giving a talk on the subject at next year's PolyGat (tm) and I feel the might be useful as a point to reference different threads, tools, videos on the use of Anki.

I'll probably use this thread to also answer questions*. Join in!

What is intermediate and advanced? Anything beyond the basic use of creating simple cards and using the SRS tool. What you might consider simple might be someone else's 'I can't figure out how to...'

*I'm in no way affiliated with the Anki Developer or the development community. I just use the program a lot.

[Xenops]

I'll probably use this thread to also answer questions*. Join in!

What is intermediate and advanced? Anything beyond the basic use of creating simple cards and using the SRS tool. What you might consider simple might be someone else's 'I can't figure out how to...'

I have a question: aside from concrete vocabulary and Cloze cards, what does *intermediate* use entail? I'm familiar with how Gabriel Wyner uses his cards, and I'm not sure how you would go further than that.

Thanks for opening up this thread.

[trui]

I'm also glad you started this.

I don't like anki. I really don't! Can't stand it even. Sometimes I wish I did and it's a great tool for the people who enjoy it but it's just not for me. Buuut is it really anki that I hate? Anki is just a tool, and a flexible one at that. So many times I've considered making tests for myself with anki that are more complex than the one word or one sentence notes that most people find helpful.

Is this something along the lines of what you're talking about?

[Jaleel10]

Piggy-backing on this post to ask for any ''tips/guides'' on how to get the most out of Anki in terms of plugins/add-ons. Another thing! How does one create a beautifully designed card. Many times I have considered taking a crash course in HTML/CSS but I always saw that as time that could be spent actually learning haha. But if it is something I have to do, I wouldn't mind learning it now.

I always saw Anki has an easy to use, difficult to master type of thing. And something that would require a lot of prep work that is why I went with Clozemaster but I am trying to read more so if I can just copy and past sentences from my ebooks, articles or transcripts into an excel sheet during the week and create cards on a Saturday, that would be great. It must be better than learning a bunch of random sentences. Or maybe I should just be reading and listening and just ignore SRS ....urgh!!!! Hey, it is my first language and that is why I am willing to test it out!

[zenmonkey]

I'll probably use this thread to also answer questions*. Join in!

What is intermediate and advanced? Anything beyond the basic use of creating simple cards and using the SRS tool. What you might consider simple might be someone else's 'I can't figure out how to...'

I have a question: aside from concrete vocabulary and Cloze cards, what does *intermediate* use entail? I'm familiar with how Gabriel Wyner uses his cards, and I'm not sure how you would go further than that.

Thanks for opening up this thread.

Some of things that might be included are things like sub2srs, using conditionals, multiple embedded font, plug-ins, layouts, multiple profiles, global variables, image occlusion, etc...

[zenmonkey]

How does one create a beautifully designed card. Many times I have considered taking a crash course in HTML/CSS but I always saw that as time that could be spent actually learning haha. But if it is something I have to do, I wouldn't mind learning it now.

The easiest way to set up a pleasant card is to see the code of other people and copy/paste and adjust.

So for example, here is a little styling code I use form my Hebrew cards:

Code: Select all

.card {
 font-family: arial;
 font-size: 20px;
 text-align: center;
 color: darkblue;
 background-color: lightblue;
}
@font-face {font-family: myfont; src: url('_nachlaot.ttf'); }
.cursive { font-size: 32px; font-family: myfont; }
.mac .cursive { font-size: 32px; font-family:Nachlaot; }


The first section (dot)card sets general design elements for the text and background.
The second section (starting at @font) sets up a cursive hebrew font (which I've copied to the Anki media directory that I use for cursive hebrew text learning (vs print). Because the Anki version on the mac needs to use the local font family I also set-up the .mac .cursive. To use this fonts one enters:

Code: Select all

<div class=cursive dir=rtl>{{Hebrew}}</div>

The "class" sets the font. ("dir" is text direction, here righ-to-left).

So now you know how to change card colors, sizes, fonts and background.

[garyb]

I only use Anki at intermediate and advanced levels; for a beginner, I think courses and input already cover the basic vocabulary adequately. I use two card types:

- Cloze deletions, usually partial words, usually with a hint which could be in the TL or English or another language, for words/expressions I'd like to be able to use. I try to keep them short, like a sentence or two; I've tried "massive" ones but I just get lazy and don't read the whole thing so it becomes counter-productive. Full-word clozes are usually too ambiguous to be helpful unless the hint is very clear, so I find things like Clozemaster useless.

- Basic cards with sentence or two with a highlighted word, for things I'd like to be able to recognise receptively but don't really care about using actively.

I also have a maximum interval of around 4 months, since intervals on Anki since version 2 get very long very quickly and they removed the nice ways to tweak them. I've tried playing with the other interval settings but never found them satisfactory.

Fairly simple and painless, and it does what I want - revising a bit of mid-frequency vocab for a few minutes per day - so I've settled on it. I got the ideas from other forum threads, emk's in particular. There might well be better ways, and I'm not familiar with the Wyner's method for example; it's not something I want to overthink, but I'm curious about other people's ideas.

[zenmonkey]

I also have a maximum interval of around 4 months, since intervals on Anki since version 2 get very long very quickly and they removed the nice ways to tweak them. I've tried playing with the other interval settings but never found them satisfactory.

Fairly simple and painless, and it does what I want - revising a bit of mid-frequency vocab for a few minutes per day - so I've settled on it. I got the ideas from other forum threads, emk's in particular. There might well be better ways, and I'm not familiar with the Wyner's method for example; it's not something I want to overthink, but I'm curious about other people's ideas.

I'd consider the whole subject of tweaking intervals as part of a confirmed Anki user. I think most users don't get in there too much.Thanks for posting.

[aokoye]

I'd consider the whole subject of tweaking intervals as part of a confirmed Anki user. I think most users don't get in there too much.Thanks for posting.

It's funny I was just thinking about tweaking intervals and steps this weekend as well as the use of Anki for myself more broadly. I want so much to like it and I typically really don't enjoy it. That said, there are some use cases for me where it might be more useful than my preferred flashcard (web) apps.

A suggestion that may have already been brought up, but it might be useful to look at what med students are doing with Anki - at least those going to schools in Anglophone countries. It seems as though they are a large segment of end users and I suspect they are having conversations that might be slightly different but still useful to language learning in relation to Anki.

[zenmonkey]

I'd consider the whole subject of tweaking intervals as part of a confirmed Anki user. I think most users don't get in there too much.Thanks for posting.

It's funny I was just thinking about tweaking intervals and steps this weekend as well as the use of Anki for myself more broadly. I want so much to like it and I typically really don't enjoy it. That said, there are some use cases for me where it might be more useful than my preferred flashcard (web) apps.

A suggestion that may have already been brought up, but it might be useful to look at what med students are doing with Anki - at least those going to schools in Anglophone countries. It seems as though they are a large segment of end users and I suspect they are having conversations that might be slightly different but still useful to language learning in relation to Anki.

Absolutely, thanks! I've been reading Reddit for a few months and several of the plug-ins I use I learned from that community.