Highlighting in FA

[dcgud]

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What color do you use to highlight in FA? Do you highlight just the bold topics, catch phrases, etc? My preference is Yellow Highlighter on bold topics with red Pilot .05 underlining certain phrases.

 

[dude1344]

Never been a fan of highlighting. You have to know everything in FA, so why highlight?

 

[Zback]

What color do you use to highlight in FA? Do you highlight just the bold topics, catch phrases, etc? My preference is Yellow Highlighter on bold topics with red Pilot .05 underlining certain phrases.

Might as well just get a paint brush.

 

[MossPoh]

I highlight more to visually differentiate between certain things. Some topics just don't have sufficient indentation or need an underline to separate from the discussion. It makes it easier to find certain topics quickly. So, in apoptosis I'd highlight "intrinsic pathway" and then 'extrinsic pathway" with two different colors and maybe highlight one key thing I tend to forget with each.

I also will color code if they have a bunch of topics on the left and then merge topics in the right side boxes....or if it just seems far away from the main part. It is really just an effort to visually tie things together and make it easier to track.


Side note, does anyone know of any pens that won't smudge but aren't crappy bics. I'm getting tired of placing pieces of paper between sheets so I don't get tons of smudging and printing when I go to the next page while listening to audio lectures and what not.

 

[Cochan]

I highlight more to visually differentiate between certain things. Some topics just don't have sufficient indentation or need an underline to separate from the discussion. It makes it easier to find certain topics quickly. So, in apoptosis I'd highlight "intrinsic pathway" and then 'extrinsic pathway" with two different colors and maybe highlight one key thing I tend to forget with each.

I also will color code if they have a bunch of topics on the left and then merge topics in the right side boxes....or if it just seems far away from the main part. It is really just an effort to visually tie things together and make it easier to track.


Side note, does anyone know of any pens that won't smudge but aren't crappy bics. I'm getting tired of placing pieces of paper between sheets so I don't get tons of smudging and printing when I go to the next page while listening to audio lectures and what not.

I live by Pental RSVP pens.

 

[nlax30]

I kinda did similar to above, highlighting more to make sections stand out as opposed to highlighting facts. I never did see much use in highlighting a review book, especially one that's already as condensed/high yield such as FA..... might as well just dip it in yellow paint.

I did annotate it a lot with black pen, preferably 0.5mm but that may be TMI.

 

[lord_jeebus]

More efficient to take a Sharpie and black out the few things you don't need to know

 

[Doc176]

Well I cant go through a book if its not highlighted but with FA I ended up getting the whole book yellow and blue 🙂. So its up to you

 

[MilkmanAl]

Never been a fan of highlighting. You have to know everything in FA, so why highlight?

Yeah, not much point in highlighting. Don't waste your time.

 

[512TA]

You will need a paint brush!!

 

[abmd]

i underline and or write staedtler triplus color markers. They don't smudge

 

[MossPoh]

Cool. I will have to look into both of those. I really like my pilot pens for most things, but they smudge all the time with that glossy coating in Goljan and FA (a little worse with Goljan probably) I have quite the collection of pens right now.

But yea, highlighting straight facts is pretty pointless. Like I said before, I do things I know I tend to forget or mix up...or that are deemed super high yield points when listening to board review audio type stuff. From a learning standpoint, it is also easier to learn with extra visual cues. I know it is done for space saving and conciseness, but my major problem with FA is how a lot of the information is crammed in rather than bulleted with a little space to write. I'd gladly suffer a slightly thicker book to give me more formal areas to annotate with the various topics. It is complete chaos right now...and I really don't even write much in it.

 

[DrJD]

Cool. I will have to look into both of those. I really like my pilot pens for most things, but they smudge all the time with that glossy coating in Goljan and FA (a little worse with Goljan probably) I have quite the collection of pens right now.

But yea, highlighting straight facts is pretty pointless. Like I said before, I do things I know I tend to forget or mix up...or that are deemed super high yield points when listening to board review audio type stuff. From a learning standpoint, it is also easier to learn with extra visual cues. I know it is done for space saving and conciseness, but my major problem with FA is how a lot of the information is crammed in rather than bulleted with a little space to write. I'd gladly suffer a slightly thicker book to give me more formal areas to annotate with the various topics. It is complete chaos right now...and I really don't even write much in it.

I recommend the "Ultra fine point Sharpies" for writing in FA or any other text book. One of my classmates suggested them to me last year and they are amazing. Literally a second after you finish writing you can wipe your finger over it and it is dry no matter how glossy the page you're writing on.

 

[Encephalectomy]

I highlight facts that I didn't know when doing qbank, but yea besides that you'd end up highlighting the whole book.

 

[MossPoh]

I recommend the "Ultra fine point Sharpies" for writing in FA or any other text book. One of my classmates suggested them to me last year and they are amazing. Literally a second after you finish writing you can wipe your finger over it and it is dry no matter how glossy the page you're writing on.

I literally JUST used a fine sharpie and noticed that it seemed to be pretty quick drying with very little bleeding. I have to find the extra fine though. I write way too small for the fine even.

It is sad that this is what my life has come to since starting medical school. I used to talk beer, scotch, wine, videogames, music, headphones, guns, cars....now I talk pens to annotate.

 

[Msttelschmerz]

I think they made the new FA pages, 2010 i.e., smudge free. They weren't the glossy type, as in Goljan's.

But I love Sharpie accent retractables.. I use the yellow ones (cause I think there was a study that yellow helps to improve memory?).

I also use bic brite liner- green and pink. just cause the color combination looks pretty and would make me want to reread the pages more. 😍

 

[MossPoh]

The pages still smudge..just not as bad as Goljan. I've found that the pages are very unfriendly to my beloved precise V5 pens.

Bic Brite liners are almost like staring into the sun, but nice grip on them. The sharpie retractables were a bit of a let down for me. They were too narrowed, but also they are just really loud and annoying if someone else is studying by you.

Oddly enough, I'm a fan of the super cheap papermate intro ones. I like the pink because it is very subtle and doesn't obliterate my attention from other things. Just a nice little nudge saying, "Hey there.....I'm a little factoid you like to skip and it will bend you over if you don't pay attention to me"

Yea...I'm a geek baby.

 

[dozitgetchahi]

1st pass I use yellow (and yes, I do end up covering a lot of the text).

2nd pass I use blue or pink. Yellow + blue = green; yellow + pink = orange. This is how I know I've gone over the material twice.

3rd pass gets a pen; I've often resorted to Bics since my usual favorite (uniball visions) smear like nothing else on FA/Goljan pages. However, Pilot also makes a line of pens called "Permaball", and they're essentially rollerball pens with indelible permanent ink. These work like a charm.

PS: I really wish they sold a loose-leaf, three hole-punched FA edition that you could drop straight in a binder, or maybe even a ledger-format edition that had tons of extra space for annotating.

 

[MossPoh]

I got the binding stripped on mine and put into a binder. There were two problems with it, albeit minor ones. The first is that they did go far enough over with the cut, so many pages still have a little adhesive that I have slowly tease the pages apart. The other problem is that the paper is so friggin thin that I have to pay attention if flipping through while doing DIT stuff, otherwise I'll rip a page out.

We have free printing with heavy duty printer/copiers, so I've resorted to just "printing" a bunch of blank sheets with 3 hole punches already done. I keep them in the front of the binder. If I encounter something FA sucks at explaining OR I keep missing it in questions, I will write/draw/project my hopes and dreams onto that sheet of paper and slip it in whatever section it should go. That way, if it ends up being too much information for later on, I can just rip it out and forget about it.

This is probably the only time in my life that I've been organized with something.

 

[dozitgetchahi]

I got the binding stripped on mine and put into a binder. There were two problems with it, albeit minor ones. The first is that they did go far enough over with the cut, so many pages still have a little adhesive that I have slowly tease the pages apart. The other problem is that the paper is so friggin thin that I have to pay attention if flipping through while doing DIT stuff, otherwise I'll rip a page out.

This is probably the only time in my life that I've been organized with something.

Yeah, ripping the pages is what I worry about also if I were to go through with debinding FA. I remember Taus saying he had to add those reinforcing circles on each page to stop the ripping, which sounds both tedious and time-consuming. And I agree - I feel oddly organized with this effort for a change. Step 1 really seems to have the power to get you to get your act together lol.

BTW, is anyone else ripping out random charts/color slides/pages from other review books that they find useful? After reading CMMRS and realizing it lacked a lot of color colony pictures, etc I ripped the color slides out of an older edition of BRS Micro I have and stuck them in the FA micro section. I've been doing the same with other Taus method review books where elaborate charts, diagrams, etc exist that I don't have the time/space to completely draw into FA.

(Disclaimer - I'm not suggesting you rip pages out of library books, etc. I own all the books I'm doing this with.)

 

[21CentSouldier]

I use highlighters in both FA and RR Path, but more so in RR Path. I do this because it makes it easier for me to find what I'm looking for ie. epidemiology, MoA, Path, Clinical/Lab Findings, etc... Though the RR path outline imo is well done, trying to find things when it is all in black can be a pain.

Orange is usually for section titles and the names of things. Also used for the more serious adverse effects in pharm.

Yellow = epidemiology and random facts

Green = Pathogenesis in RR and MoA for pharm in FA

Purple = Clinical/Lab findings

Blue = normal function in RR path.


Also only use Zebra F301 pens, the most awesome pens EVAR.

Black = Professors notes + other review books other than Kaplan
Green = Kaplan
Red = QBanks

 

[MossPoh]

I usually redraw the charts myself. Sometimes it is to learn them better, but oftentimes it is just kind of relaxing and mindless activity that makes me feel productive.

 

[DrVanNostran]

I highlighted stuff in my final run through that I would need to look at again before the test. Just stuff that doesn't stick.

 

[ar2388]

1st pass I use yellow (and yes, I do end up covering a lot of the text).

2nd pass I use blue or pink. Yellow + blue = green; yellow + pink = orange. This is how I know I've gone over the material twice.

3rd pass gets a pen; I've often resorted to Bics since my usual favorite (uniball visions) smear like nothing else on FA/Goljan pages. However, Pilot also makes a line of pens called "Permaball", and they're essentially rollerball pens with indelible permanent ink. These work like a charm.

PS: I really wish they sold a loose-leaf, three hole-punched FA edition that you could drop straight in a binder, or maybe even a ledger-format edition that had tons of extra space for annotating.

i like the 3rd pass idea.. i currently do what you do for 1st and 2nd pass...
i cant help it, highlighting just helps me out...

 

[Redrox]

I highlighted stuff in my final run through that I would need to look at again before the test. Just stuff that doesn't stick.

Couldn't agree more. In my last run through, I highlighted the things I clearly had forgotten or knew I had gotten wrong on questions multiple times. Came out to about two-five bits per page.

Day before the test I could run through the book, just reading these highlighted parts, maybe 2-5 times. There was more to it, but yeah, kicked ass on the test.

 

[MossPoh]

Because I know everyone is so glued to this conversation (note sarcasm), I thought I'd share my new pens that seem like they may work great. I got some Pigma Micron pens by sakura at an art supply store. I was going to pick up the staedtler, but I honestly didn't need 20 different colors to add to my 2 cups of pens I already keep. I got a few basic colors of these ones and they are awesome.

It is a .2 line that writes with barely any pressure. No smudging at all. I literally wrote "Test" on a first aid page, counted to 3, and then tried to smudge it...nada. If you like to joke up on your pen then it might be a problem. It seems seems to have a little edge and I highly doubt anyone would want to take sandpaper or a dremel to a 2 dollar pen (less with student discount at utrecht)

I write REALLY small and this actually enabled me to write in between lines in very books and didn't leave any of that pooled ink like some pens like to do if you hesitate.

Great and riveting story I know.