4 ms·

Is Anki useful in learning to program? Does anyone know of any examples?

ue_ 10y ago
It doesn't seem like the sort of thing that would be useful for programming. I'm under the impression that the best way to become familiar with a language is to just use it. It wouldn't really occur to me to have a flashcard saying "define a function prototype that accepts 2 integers and returns a pointer to char". Languages (vocab but also some grammar patterns), law cases, and other "fact" things is what I've used Anki for. If instead you were thinking of using it to memorise algorithms, you'd get too caught up in the content of the flashcard while trying to learn it rather than the process of the algorithm itself. I think, anyway. I've never tried it :)
- sanswork 10y ago
  Function definitions and stuff like that I agree you probably aren't going to get much from it but memorizing large parts of the standard library is somewhere you could since in a lot of cases you aren't going to be using a lot of parts regularly but when you need them you'll save a lot of time if you have them in your memory vs having to google/check docs.
- crucialfelix 10y ago
  I often forget some commonly used function definitions, especially when python and javascript have different arguments. I use http://devdocs.io/ http://devdocs.io/ which is very quick, but I would probably save a lot of annoyance and avoid these pauses if I just memorized them. http://devdocs.io/javascript/global_objects/array/join http://devdocs.io/javascript/global_objects/array/join http://devdocs.io/python~2.7/library/stdtypes#str.join http://devdocs.io/python~2.7/library/stdtypes#str.join
divbit 10y ago
I've used it for many years, and for a short while threw some programming things on there. The main use case (I think) would be something like: you have interviews coming up, and you know a bunch of programming languages, but you aren't completely precise on the vocab for each, e.g. in python you might use len(someString) while in javascript you might use someString.length . Anki would be perfect for straightening all these out. For day to day programming, I doubt it would be useful (as if you forget that for some reason, you could just try it quickly on the interpreter)
ingve 10y ago
Some frequently mentioned blog posts: Memorizing a programming language using spaced repetition software: https://sivers.org/srs https://sivers.org/srs Janki Method: Using spaced repetition systems to learn and retain technical knowledge: https://www.jackkinsella.ie/articles/janki-method https://www.jackkinsella.ie/articles/janki-method Janki Method Refined: https://www.oxbridgenotes.com/articles/janki_method_refined https://www.oxbridgenotes.com/articles/janki_method_refined Tips For Mastering A Programming Language Using Spaced Repetition: https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2014/08/mastering-a-programming-language-using-spaced-repetition/ https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2014/08/mastering-a-program...
kkoomi 10y ago
Use Anki to memorize that gosh-darn block syntax. It's like the lord's prayer for me, used it 1000 times yet can't recall it for the life of me.
oskarth 10y ago
I did some experiments here: http://experiments.oskarth.com/srspractice/ http://experiments.oskarth.com/srspractice/ A key thing is to differentiate between learning from scratch and retaining knowledge/a skill.
pcote 10y ago
For me, Anki reviews are a morning ritual. I do whatever it scheduled for the day. Then, I take time to review weaknesses. Then I move onto doing my actual projects. A combination of project experience and curiosity inform me as to what new Anki cards I need. So yes and no to your question. Anki by itself isn't useful for learning to program. Anki as part of a larger personal development system can be pretty effective from my experience.
mikekchar 10y ago
Most computer programming languages have a simple syntax, so it's probably not so useful to memorise it. I find that having learned 10s of programming languages, I barely remember syntax anymore and rely on examples in the code I'm working on. I think what's more interesting is using memorisation for learning short idioms. In fact, I recommend the same for human languages. Instead of learning vocabulary and grammar, memorising the translation of short sentences is much more effective in my experience. As with the discussion of mathematics, memorisation will not give you insight or fluency. However, to have insight and fluency, you need comprehension and the first step of comprehension is memory. You still need to practice for fluency, though. Some people find that when they are practicing for fluency, they retain what they need automatically. I am envious of those people ;-)

ue_ 10y ago

It doesn't seem like the sort of thing that would be useful for programming. I'm under the impression that the best way to become familiar with a language is to just use it. It wouldn't really occur to me to have a flashcard saying "define a function prototype that accepts 2 integers and returns a pointer to char". Languages (vocab but also some grammar patterns), law cases, and other "fact" things is what I've used Anki for. If instead you were thinking of using it to memorise algorithms, you'd get too caught up in the content of the flashcard while trying to learn it rather than the process of the algorithm itself. I think, anyway. I've never tried it :)

sanswork 10y ago
Function definitions and stuff like that I agree you probably aren't going to get much from it but memorizing large parts of the standard library is somewhere you could since in a lot of cases you aren't going to be using a lot of parts regularly but when you need them you'll save a lot of time if you have them in your memory vs having to google/check docs.
crucialfelix 10y ago
I often forget some commonly used function definitions, especially when python and javascript have different arguments. I use http://devdocs.io/ http://devdocs.io/ which is very quick, but I would probably save a lot of annoyance and avoid these pauses if I just memorized them. http://devdocs.io/javascript/global_objects/array/join http://devdocs.io/javascript/global_objects/array/join http://devdocs.io/python~2.7/library/stdtypes#str.join http://devdocs.io/python~2.7/library/stdtypes#str.join

divbit 10y ago

I've used it for many years, and for a short while threw some programming things on there. The main use case (I think) would be something like: you have interviews coming up, and you know a bunch of programming languages, but you aren't completely precise on the vocab for each, e.g. in python you might use len(someString) while in javascript you might use someString.length . Anki would be perfect for straightening all these out. For day to day programming, I doubt it would be useful (as if you forget that for some reason, you could just try it quickly on the interpreter)

ingve 10y ago

Some frequently mentioned blog posts: Memorizing a programming language using spaced repetition software: https://sivers.org/srs https://sivers.org/srs Janki Method: Using spaced repetition systems to learn and retain technical knowledge: https://www.jackkinsella.ie/articles/janki-method https://www.jackkinsella.ie/articles/janki-method Janki Method Refined: https://www.oxbridgenotes.com/articles/janki_method_refined https://www.oxbridgenotes.com/articles/janki_method_refined Tips For Mastering A Programming Language Using Spaced Repetition: https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2014/08/mastering-a-programming-language-using-spaced-repetition/ https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2014/08/mastering-a-program...

kkoomi 10y ago

Use Anki to memorize that gosh-darn block syntax. It's like the lord's prayer for me, used it 1000 times yet can't recall it for the life of me.

oskarth 10y ago

I did some experiments here: http://experiments.oskarth.com/srspractice/ http://experiments.oskarth.com/srspractice/ A key thing is to differentiate between learning from scratch and retaining knowledge/a skill.

pcote 10y ago

For me, Anki reviews are a morning ritual. I do whatever it scheduled for the day. Then, I take time to review weaknesses. Then I move onto doing my actual projects. A combination of project experience and curiosity inform me as to what new Anki cards I need. So yes and no to your question. Anki by itself isn't useful for learning to program. Anki as part of a larger personal development system can be pretty effective from my experience.

mikekchar 10y ago

Most computer programming languages have a simple syntax, so it's probably not so useful to memorise it. I find that having learned 10s of programming languages, I barely remember syntax anymore and rely on examples in the code I'm working on. I think what's more interesting is using memorisation for learning short idioms. In fact, I recommend the same for human languages. Instead of learning vocabulary and grammar, memorising the translation of short sentences is much more effective in my experience. As with the discussion of mathematics, memorisation will not give you insight or fluency. However, to have insight and fluency, you need comprehension and the first step of comprehension is memory. You still need to practice for fluency, though. Some people find that when they are practicing for fluency, they retain what they need automatically. I am envious of those people ;-)