The problem
You look up the same definition for the fifth time.
Searching three times a week for what an outer join is, or the complexity of merge sort, adds up to hours. These are short, stable pieces of knowledge, precisely the kind a spaced recall installs once and for all.
Definitions settle, practice is practised
A paradigm, a data structure, a protocol: these are restored in a sentence. Writing code, by contrast, needs an editor, not a card.
Complexities known, not guessed
Logarithmic, linear, quadratic: exams ask for the exact order, and a multiple choice with neighbouring options is the best way to check it.
Commands you never retype
The flags of a command-line tool are forgotten between two uses. A card brings them back before you open the documentation again.
From your notes to cards
A set of lecture notes, three cards.
A definition, an exact term, a complexity to settle.
Uploaded excerpt · algorithms and databases
An outer join keeps rows with no match in the other table. Recursion refers to a function that calls itself. Merge sort has a time complexity on the order of n log n.
gives
Two-sided
What is an outer join?
A join that keeps rows with no match in the other table.
Fill in the blank
… refers to a function that calls itself.
Recursion
Multiple choice
What is the time complexity of merge sort?
n log n
n²
log n
n
The right shapes
What is revised and what is practised
Three shapes for the memorable part; the editor handles the rest.
Two-sided
For definitions and principles: the answer is a short explanation, never an isolated keyword.
Fill in the blank
For the exact technical term, the one used in meetings without always knowing how to spell it.
Multiple choice
Ideal for complexities, where the wrong answers are few and perfectly identified.
Your sources
Your materials
The course handout, documentation exported to PDF, a slide deck, a conference video: the code itself stays in your editor.
PDF
A chapter, a handout, a past paper with answers.
Word
Your own notes, in .doc as well as .docx.
PowerPoint
The lecture deck, exactly as you were given it.
Photo of your notes
The whiteboard or your notebook, as JPG or PNG.
YouTube video
An online lecture, straight from its address.
Pasted text
Three paragraphs are enough to make a deck.
Anki import
Your old deck finds its place again, in its own window.
On exam day
Before the mid-term
With the date entered, the least secure notions rise through the recalls. Days marked as breaks in the calendar receive no session. The method, in detail →
Frequently asked questions
Can code go on a card?
A short snippet, yes, when the question is about what it does or which line is at fault. A whole file, no: that is no longer a card but an exercise, and it belongs in an editor.
Is this genuinely useful for a developer?
For the stable part of the job, yes: vocabulary, complexities, rare commands, exam notions. Those are exactly the things looked up online three times a month.
How do I revise an algorithms course?
By separating the idea of the algorithm, its complexity and its use case: three cards, not one. Complexity is what goes first, so it deserves its own question.
Can I start from documentation?
Yes, as PDF or pasted text. A documentation page yields short, durable cards, provided you extract the definitions rather than the examples.
Explore the other subjects
Mathematics
Notation typeset inside the card, and fluency kept up.
Physics
Laws with their units, and orders of magnitude that hold.
Chemistry
Balanced equations intact, nomenclature kept up.
Biology
The diagram inside the question, labels to produce.
History
Dates produced rather than recognised, and causes put back in order.
Geography
The map in the prompt, landmarks to name.
Languages
Vocabulary you hear, conjugation you match.
Literature
Quotations restored word for word, devices named.
Philosophy
Concepts defined, distinctions held, authors attached.
Economics
Mechanisms explained, indicators known, schools placed.
Law
Provisions cited right, conditions stated in full.
These twelve pages are examples, not a list: every other subject works the same way. Every subject →
Time spent looking up a definition is time stolen from the project.
Create a free account →Free, no card required