Renewing FC vs. Switching to Zanki

[Ricekrispie]

I'm an M1 and have been using Firecracker on and off throughout this whole year. I haven't been as diligent about reviewing my cards daily or marking all of the topics related to what we've covered in class, but I've marked about 70% of what we've done. My 1 year subscription is set to end in August. I'm happy with the service, but I've read and heard good things about Zanki from my classmates, and I've heard that it also includes almost everything from Pathoma and UWorld. Is Zanki truly the superior product, or should I follow the adage of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" and stick it out with Firecracker?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Osteoth]

Zanki is great but if you've sunk a good amount of time into one product I would stick with it. Repetition is key, and switching to a new thing will force you to have to rewire your neuroplasticity to a new method of delivering the same material, just with difference phrasing.

This is based on your 70% of what we've done comment, which to me means you've gone through 70% of the material from M1 via FC.

 

[Gurby]

I do 90% of my studying with Anki and I love it. After trying FC for like a week earlier in M1, I think Anki/Zanki is the more powerful study tool. I enjoy the customizability and the ability to make/add my own cards. I trust the spaced repetition algorithm more because I can see exactly how it works and change it if I want to. While separating out the things you've covered in class is more annoying in Anki, it is also possible to be much more specific (I don't think FC has a "suspend card" equivalent?).

That said, I think you should stick with FC based on your post:
Zanki is not a "product" - it is not nearly as polished of an experience as FC is. It's a continually evolving work-in-progress by a bunch of random med students on the internet. Some cards are great, but some are garbage. You have to tweak the settings to use it optimally. You have to do the research and figure out what decks to download, and finding material you've covered in class inside of Anki is clunky and annoying.

I think if you're planning to do the majority of your studying with a flashcard program, it might be worth the time to learn Anki. It sounds like you are just looking for some more casual supplemental review - FC seems better for that, to me.

 

[Elessar]

It’s definitely not too late to start Zanki. I’d highly recommend it if you want your Step 1 study time next year to be low stress.

 

[intubesteak]

Firecracker is a conglomeration of FA, Pathoma, Goljan, Uworld, and other stuff. Hands down the most comprehensive and accurate resource, 10/10 would use again.

 

[Anti-PD1]

I'm an M1 and have been using Firecracker on and off throughout this whole year. I haven't been as diligent about reviewing my cards daily or marking all of the topics related to what we've covered in class, but I've marked about 70% of what we've done. My 1 year subscription is set to end in August. I'm happy with the service, but I've read and heard good things about Zanki from my classmates, and I've heard that it also includes almost everything from Pathoma and UWorld. Is Zanki truly the superior product, or should I follow the adage of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" and stick it out with Firecracker?

Do you like FC? Is it helping you retain information? Yes, Yes.. stick with it.

I'm sure they're both equal, they only differ in style and platform. FWIW FC has everything and more. It's like a wikipedia of USMLE knowledge. Every wide-eyed MS1 hears about FC from me... and I'm not even getting paid!

 

[doctorjayyy]

I used both zanki and FC extensively for about 6 months. I ended up dropping zanki. Honestly, FC is amazing. Like the other 2 posters above me stated, it seriously has EVERYTHING. I find the content to be superior to Zanki. The only downside as others have mentioned is it’s not customizable like anki. But all the other pros outweigh that small con. I’ve also experienced a couple minor hiccups with the app but the FC team is quick to respond and fix things. Numerous times I’ve had something come up in a qbank (e.g. uworld) that I was only able to find on FC (i.e. both bros and zanki did not have those concepts/factoids). All in all, I believe FC is the most complete source out there. I’d definitely stick with FC if I were you.

 

[sammiesings]

I've always thought FC had just way too much in it that wasn't useful/ever going to show up on step but maybe I'm gonna have to look at it again based on these posts...

 

[iforget2]

I've always thought FC had just way too much in it that wasn't useful/ever going to show up on step but maybe I'm gonna have to look at it again based on these posts...

Same. I'm starting M1 in July and want to commit to either Zanki or FC but still can't seem to decide on either even after hours of research on both.

 

[Gurby]

I'm also re-evaluating my life a little bit right now. I do love the polish of FC and how easy they make it to review the big picture concepts if you've forgotten them Do wish the cards were more granular.

My school has a traditional, M1=normal M2=abnormal curriculum which didn't really jive with FC earlier in M1. Maybe at the start of M2 when we get more into pathology, I'll stop adding new Zanki cards and give FC another shot.

 

[831929]

Zanki is just more user friendly in my opinion. When something is easier to use, you're more likely to use it. Sure it may miss some facts that are in FC but in reality, if you know all of zanki I don't think you should be concerned about additional information (besides stuff other staples like sketchy and uworld)

 

[Ricekrispie]

Thank you all for your input! Looks like I'll be renewing my FC subscription. I think I'll make a point to be more diligent with FC and make sure to mark everything we've learned up to this point throughout the summer, and keep it up through next year. Thanks again!

 

[carrots28]

I didn’t find FC helpful in the first few months but after reviewing earlier blocks just recently I found FC to be super helpful now towards the end of M1 year.

 

[intubesteak]

If there was something to improve in FC...it would be some of the "prompts", as people above have mentioned sometimes they are not the greatest. There are a good number of "what is the difference between disease X and Y?" and the answer is some pathology finding. So a lot of the times I was telling myself not to sweat those too much. By the end of dedicated, having done two passes through Uworld there were so many seemingly random facts or concepts that were now connected to a specific Uworld question. And plenty of stuff connecting two different systems that finally made sense. But until you've seen some of this stuff, it is just rote memorization which is pointless IMO. But by the end of dedicated when I was making a final pass through firecracker I could make connections between pretty much any fact in there and some outside resource (Goljan, Uworld, etc). So yeah a lot of seemingly esoteric facts become key information once you are deep into dedicated. That was my experience at least.

 

[Frogger27]

Is it too late to jump on the firecracker train as an M1 or should I wait till summer? Start Zanki instead?

Curriculum is rather normal. Doing neuro now to finish up M1 and then M2 is very systems based

 

[intubesteak]

Is it too late to jump on the firecracker train as an M1 or should I wait till summer? Start Zanki instead?

Curriculum is rather normal. Doing neuro now to finish up M1 and then M2 is very systems based

I would definitely use it alongside organ systems. Don't even worry about the basic science stuff, most important thing is to learn each system really, really well. If old stuff is getting in the way you can just unmark it and focus on the current block. For me firecracker + lots of Qbank questions was the way to go and set me up in a solid spot for dedicated.

 

[Frogger27]

I would definitely use it alongside organ systems. Don't even worry about the basic science stuff, most important thing is to learn each system really, really well. If old stuff is getting in the way you can just unmark it and focus on the current block. For me firecracker + lots of Qbank questions was the way to go and set me up in a solid spot for dedicated.

Would it be weird to start it halfway through an organ block? Thinking of maybe waiting till the summer and doing the two organ blocks (Neuro + MSK) I completed M1/start doing it alongside classes beginning of M2?

 

[bobjonesbob]

If you put in significant time with either resource it will yield the results you're looking for so I wouldn't agonize over the decision too much. I used FC heavily for about 9 months at the beginning of M1 then switched to Zanki this past summer. I think zanki is superior by a decent margin. There a many different factors to consider but these are some of the highlights:

1. the anki algorithm is better and it's much more transparent. You're never wondering whether you know a card or when / if you'll ever see it again.
2. images. you have to click like 5 times just to see some crappy picture related to the card on FC. In zanki the picture from UW, sketchy, etc. is right there for you to review. This is really important if you're planning to use sketchy for micro and pharm.
3. customizability. with anki you can edit cards, add in cards, pull out a select group of cards that give you trouble. It's much more versatile than FC.
4. The card style. I think this is debatable because the FC probably form a stronger connection by requiring more detailed / involved answers but I personally don't think flashcards are the optimal medium for that. When a card is asking 5 things and you know 3/5 how do you rate it in FC? That was never really clear to me. With zanki it's 1 or 2 facts and you either know it or you don't. Cram all the facts in with zanki and test your knowledge in qbanks.

this is an older thread of people discussing anki vs FC that you may also find useful
Firecracker vs brosencephalon

 

[intubesteak]

If you put in significant time with either resource it will yield the results you're looking for so I wouldn't agonize over the decision too much. I used FC heavily for about 9 months at the beginning of M1 then switched to Zanki this past summer. I think zanki is superior by a decent margin. There a many different factors to consider but these are some of the highlights:

1. the anki algorithm is better and it's much more transparent. You're never wondering whether you know a card or when / if you'll ever see it again.
2. images. you have to click like 5 times just to see some crappy picture related to the card on FC. In zanki the picture from UW, sketchy, etc. is right there for you to review. This is really important if you're planning to use sketchy for micro and pharm.
3. customizability. with anki you can edit cards, add in cards, pull out a select group of cards that give you trouble. It's much more versatile than FC.
4. The card style. I think this is debatable because the FC probably form a stronger connection by requiring more detailed / involved answers but I personally don't think flashcards are the optimal medium for that. When a card is asking 5 things and you know 3/5 how do you rate it in FC? That was never really clear to me. With zanki it's 1 or 2 facts and you either know it or you don't. Cram all the facts in with zanki and test your knowledge in qbanks.

this is an older thread of people discussing anki vs FC that you may also find useful
Firecracker vs brosencephalon

1. Agree, had to do some workarounds here
2. Seems like they added a ton of images in the last few months, going back through it there were some really good ones that were not there earlier
3. The only thing you cannot do in firecracker is edit a card, but you can add notes on it. The other stuff you are mentioning is all doable. I could not figure out how to do some stuff I wanted in anki but in FC it was easy. User error I'm sure, but still.
4. Agree, but while a lot of cards are not easy to master, the information is still important. I would rather have a complete resource with some cards that are not so great.

Keep in mind most of the negative opinions you get with a lot of these threads are from people who "quit". I used it start to finish, had my doubts for sure at times, but after taking step I am sooo glad I stuck with it.

 

[libertyyne]

1. Agree, had to do some workarounds here
2. Seems like they added a ton of images in the last few months, going back through it there were some really good ones that were not there earlier
3. The only thing you cannot do in firecracker is edit a card, but you can add notes on it. The other stuff you are mentioning is all doable. I could not figure out how to do some stuff I wanted in anki but in FC it was easy. User error I'm sure, but still.
4. Agree, but while a lot of cards are not easy to master, the information is still important. I would rather have a complete resource with some cards that are not so great.

Keep in mind most of the negative opinions you get with a lot of these threads are from people who "quit". I used it start to finish, had my doubts for sure at times, but after taking step I am sooo glad I stuck with it.

how did you end up doing on step if you dont mind me asking?

 

[intubesteak]

how did you end up doing on step if you dont mind me asking?

I would love to know as well but I'll have to get back to you in a couple weeks...will also post a more detailed description of how I studied because it was a little unconventional and I used FC more than anything else in dedicated (except maybe Uworld).

 

[intubesteak]

Update: got a 263.

Firecracker=gold

 

[Scrubb]

I would love to know as well but I'll have to get back to you in a couple weeks...will also post a more detailed description of how I studied because it was a little unconventional and I used FC more than anything else in dedicated (except maybe Uworld).

Congrats on your score! What would you say is the most effective way to use FC?

 

[intubesteak]

Congrats on your score! What would you say is the most effective way to use FC?

That's a tough one to answer...

I think the main thing is to first get a solid understanding of the material (lecture or book), then force yourself to memorize anything that needs memorizing using the cards. Everyone uses it a little differently, and the ways I used it changed a lot over the course of two years and even during dedicated...the main thing is to be engaged and thinking about things rather than rote memorization...and only memorize what you cannot learn by understanding.

 

[iforget2]

That's a tough one to answer...

I think the main thing is to first get a solid understanding of the material (lecture or book), then force yourself to memorize anything that needs memorizing using the cards. Everyone uses it a little differently, and the ways I used it changed a lot over the course of two years and even during dedicated...the main thing is to be engaged and thinking about things rather than rote memorization...and only memorize what you cannot learn by understanding.

Congrats on your score! One thing I personally like about zanki is that you're able to view a card you got wrong a few minutes later so you can keep reviewing that wrong card until you get it memorized. I heard FC isn't able to do this. Has that been an issue for you?

 

[Ricekrispie]

Congrats on your score! One thing I personally like about zanki is that you're able to view a card you got wrong a few minutes later so you can keep reviewing that wrong card until you get it memorized. I heard FC isn't able to do this. Has that been an issue for you?

There is a 'snooze' option that you can use. If I get a FC card wrong and I want to see it again in a few minutes, I snooze the card, and it pops up again a few cards down the line.

@intubesteak - congrats on your awesome score!

 

[intubesteak]

Congrats on your score! One thing I personally like about zanki is that you're able to view a card you got wrong a few minutes later so you can keep reviewing that wrong card until you get it memorized. I heard FC isn't able to do this. Has that been an issue for you?

Yep I used the snooze button a lot! But I agree that the Anki way of seeing cards again is really nice and the algorithm for spaced repetition may be better. But the content of FC is what I really connected with in the end. If they took all the material and put it into a book, it would be *very high yield*

 

[Epicurusall]

I'm an MS1 and have been using zanki since we started our second semester. It has worked very well for me and when I added in Pathoma and First Aid that has also benefited my understanding and performance, and makes the Zanki cards far easier to learn as I've seen the material from these other resources.

@intubesteak and any others with strong insight: Do you think that it would be worth me switching to FC and using this as a primary resource, in addition to the UFAPS method, or continuing with ZUFAPS?
I am more interesting in understanding the material and being able to score very well on step 1 (250+, unsure if I truly have a 260 in me) than I am in doing well in class. We tend to have a lot of PhD focused minutiae and I'm confident in adding that in during the last couple days before a test.

TL;DR do you think that FC is that far superior to Zanki in its content that it is worth switching when already into Zanki?

 

[Elessar]

I'm an MS1 and have been using zanki since we started our second semester. It has worked very well for me and when I added in Pathoma and First Aid that has also benefited my understanding and performance, and makes the Zanki cards far easier to learn as I've seen the material from these other resources.

@intubesteak and any others with strong insight: Do you think that it would be worth me switching to FC and using this as a primary resource, in addition to the UFAPS method, or continuing with ZUFAPS?
I am more interesting in understanding the material and being able to score very well on step 1 (250+, unsure if I truly have a 260 in me) than I am in doing well in class. We tend to have a lot of PhD focused minutiae and I'm confident in adding that in during the last couple days before a test.

TL;DR do you think that FC is that far superior to Zanki in its content that it is worth switching when already into Zanki?

Don't switch to FC, Zanki is way better imo. I haven't taken step yet, but my baseline NBME was a 248 and I'm not even in dedicated yet. If every high scorer convinces you to switch resources, you'll have a bad time. Do what works best for you!

 

[intubesteak]

I'm an MS1 and have been using zanki since we started our second semester. It has worked very well for me and when I added in Pathoma and First Aid that has also benefited my understanding and performance, and makes the Zanki cards far easier to learn as I've seen the material from these other resources.

@intubesteak and any others with strong insight: Do you think that it would be worth me switching to FC and using this as a primary resource, in addition to the UFAPS method, or continuing with ZUFAPS?
I am more interesting in understanding the material and being able to score very well on step 1 (250+, unsure if I truly have a 260 in me) than I am in doing well in class. We tend to have a lot of PhD focused minutiae and I'm confident in adding that in during the last couple days before a test.

TL;DR do you think that FC is that far superior to Zanki in its content that it is worth switching when already into Zanki?

You can always do the free trial and see if you think the content is better enough to justify switching. In the end is probably doesn't matter much...whichever one you will use consistently is the best one.