4 ms·

The reason people like flashcard apps is not simply because they don't want to write with pen and paper, it is 1) they like spaced-repetition algorithms and 2)

The reason people like flashcard apps is not simply because they don't want to write with pen and paper, it is 1) they like spaced-repetition algorithms and 2) if you have a set consisting of many hundreds of cards (common in language learning) it much more convenient to carry one phone around than that pocket-bursting stack of cardstock.

wearywanderer 5y ago
The act of writing the cards is part of the learning process. Every time I make a stack, I end up knowing half of it before I even start 'using' it. With software cards, this doesn't work so well. And you can always put the stack into your purse or backpack if your pockets are small. I'm sure soldiers have somewhere they can put a stack of cards.
- sigstoat 5y ago
  i use electronic SRS flashcard stuff, and i hand write the material onto scrap paper when i first encounter it. i don't have to worry about keeping it neat/legible, i still get the physical connection, and it doesn't take up any space after i've written it.
- Mediterraneo10 5y ago
  Again, you don’t understand the value some people find in spaced-repetition algorithms. For example, in language-learning decks involving hundreds of cards, writing the cards may lead you to remember the word on a short-term basis, but you are likely to soon forget it. A flashcard app using spaced repetition will ensure that you see that card at the right intervals so that you can retain it until you definitively internalize the word from seeing it used in context in texts.
  - wearywanderer 5y ago
    > you don’t understand Understanding an argument and agreeing with it are not the same thing. I understand the premise and argument for spaced-repetition algorithms, but I do not agree that these algorithms provide a meaningful advantage over paper cards when you consider that paper cards must be written. The act of handwriting cards is an advantage paper cards have over software cards, which I believe more than offsets any algorithmic advantage the software cards have.

wearywanderer 5y ago

The act of writing the cards is part of the learning process. Every time I make a stack, I end up knowing half of it before I even start 'using' it. With software cards, this doesn't work so well. And you can always put the stack into your purse or backpack if your pockets are small. I'm sure soldiers have somewhere they can put a stack of cards.

sigstoat 5y ago
i use electronic SRS flashcard stuff, and i hand write the material onto scrap paper when i first encounter it. i don't have to worry about keeping it neat/legible, i still get the physical connection, and it doesn't take up any space after i've written it.
Mediterraneo10 5y ago
Again, you don’t understand the value some people find in spaced-repetition algorithms. For example, in language-learning decks involving hundreds of cards, writing the cards may lead you to remember the word on a short-term basis, but you are likely to soon forget it. A flashcard app using spaced repetition will ensure that you see that card at the right intervals so that you can retain it until you definitively internalize the word from seeing it used in context in texts.
- wearywanderer 5y ago
  > you don’t understand Understanding an argument and agreeing with it are not the same thing. I understand the premise and argument for spaced-repetition algorithms, but I do not agree that these algorithms provide a meaningful advantage over paper cards when you consider that paper cards must be written. The act of handwriting cards is an advantage paper cards have over software cards, which I believe more than offsets any algorithmic advantage the software cards have.