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Why Anki?
- Thread starter zyzzbruh
- Start date
First- for anyone wondering what Anki is- Anki is a free program that you download onto your computer and it lets you create flashcards, import images into them (really useful- I did this with the images in Feralis' notes when studying for the DAT), import media/audio/video into them, and it brings up the flashcards on a frequency based on how often you get them right. (This is the key thing about Anki).
So if you get a flashcard right the first time, it'll bring it up in 4 days. In 4 days, if you get it right again, then it'll bring it up in 12 days (the interval increases if you get the card consistently right), etc. etc. You can adjust the interval for your own personal comfort. Meanwhile, if you get a flashcard wrong, it will bring it up the next day and will keep doing so until you get it right.
The idea is to save your time on the cards giving you trouble rather than wasting time repeating cards that you already know. However, every so often, by repeating the cards you already know, you are ensuring you don't forget that material.
This feature really shines when you have BIG card decks...like 200+.
I used to be a big Quizlet fan. They have a "star" cards feature which you can use to highlight challenging cards too, but to me, Anki is just much more useful once you learn how to use it because of additional features that Quizlet lacks. Especially with the importing of the media- With Quizlet, you can't do all those functions unless you pay extra. With Anki, it is free. And those functions are very important for visual learners like me.
Example: I am having trouble memorizing how chemiosmosis in the mitochondrion works. Well, I just google an image of Chemiosmosis and import it into my Anki flashcard for it, and now I'll see the image every time it comes up and learn it better (I'm a visual learner).
And Quizlet is not a learning program like Anki is.
I'm really happy I made the switch to Anki, and I am never going back to Quizlet.
So if you get a flashcard right the first time, it'll bring it up in 4 days. In 4 days, if you get it right again, then it'll bring it up in 12 days (the interval increases if you get the card consistently right), etc. etc. You can adjust the interval for your own personal comfort. Meanwhile, if you get a flashcard wrong, it will bring it up the next day and will keep doing so until you get it right.
The idea is to save your time on the cards giving you trouble rather than wasting time repeating cards that you already know. However, every so often, by repeating the cards you already know, you are ensuring you don't forget that material.
This feature really shines when you have BIG card decks...like 200+.
I used to be a big Quizlet fan. They have a "star" cards feature which you can use to highlight challenging cards too, but to me, Anki is just much more useful once you learn how to use it because of additional features that Quizlet lacks. Especially with the importing of the media- With Quizlet, you can't do all those functions unless you pay extra. With Anki, it is free. And those functions are very important for visual learners like me.
Example: I am having trouble memorizing how chemiosmosis in the mitochondrion works. Well, I just google an image of Chemiosmosis and import it into my Anki flashcard for it, and now I'll see the image every time it comes up and learn it better (I'm a visual learner).
And Quizlet is not a learning program like Anki is.
I'm really happy I made the switch to Anki, and I am never going back to Quizlet.
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- Pre-Dental
Can't help you there bud, sorry. I would just wake up and spend my first 30 minutes every morning doing Anki. I'd get through all the cards due that day in that time. I was moving at about 100cards/30mins pace.
Yep and Barrons
No, I would still make my own. By making my own flashcards, I had 100% confidence that I covered all the material that was challenging in Feralis and other notes. I would not have that same confidence in other peoples' cards.
What specifically are you having problems with? I'll admit, it's not the most user-friendly interface. But it should not take you more than 5 minutes to get started and cranking out cards.
My pleasure, THS! I know a couple of dental students who use it; it suits dental especially well since you need to do a little bit of studying everyday and can't cram for exams.
So with Anki, you just convert your lectures for that day to the Anki Cards (thereby reviewing it once in the process), and then Anki keeps throwing those questions at you over the following weeks until your exam. This way, you don't feel stressed out on exam week either.
As an added benefit, since you review the material when you're making the Anki cards on the same day that the lecture was presented, you learn the material even better. Research on learning has shown that the sooner you review presented material, the quicker and more permanently you integrate it with your existing knowledge.
I'm planning to use Anki with all of my lecture classes in dental school.
I hope you like it too.
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- Pre-Dental
I love anki. My biggest advice I would say about the program though is to not waste your time making detailed cards on topics you already know really well. It's not the most effective use of time and can burn you out. How I would do it is as I studied I would make cards for just for material I was unsure of. Additionally, I think one of the best things too is that it's offline. So you can use it with your device on airplane mode.
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- Feb 26, 2016
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I made about 400 cards the past few days, is there a way to export these Anki decks into a (printable) document?
I really like notecards for repetition, but before exams I like to have a hard copy of notes I can highlight/skim.
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You're the best, thanks man
