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by kendallpark 3287 days ago
> I actually had it in mind to create something like this myself -- a mobile-first, nicer-designed version of Anki.

This is also my current project. Although not mobile first. I use Anki a lot and personally find the UI to be insufferable.
1 comments
FreakyT 3286 days ago
100% this. I solely use the unofficial AnkiDroid port because it's leagues beyond the awful desktop app.

Somewhat related: a lot of its horribleness comes from the fact that the UI is written with QT, which is equally horrible for Windows and Mac, and basically okay for Linux as long as your DE is KDE.

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kendallpark 3285 days ago
> a lot of its horribleness comes from the fact that the UI is written with QT

I would agree with this. It also doesn't appear that much thought went into how the application should flow. It really feels like a smattering of UI components were picked out because they could accomplish the goal at hand without much thought as to what would optimize the user experience. For example, the way you browse through cards leaves much to be desired. Even stuff like the size of the buttons when you're reviewing cards. It DOES feel like the kit used to handle the GUI limits the application.

One thing that I think Anki got right (and I got wrong in my first iteration of a spaced-rep app) is doing away with the visual metaphor of a card. The reason you put information on a back of a real-life flash card is so you can review the question without seeing the answer. The answer is obfuscated, but readily available (you don't have to go look it up). There is NO reason to keep the metaphor alive in an app. It is actually less optimal to animate a card flipping over when you want to see the answer. It is better for the answer to simply appear underneath the question so you can easily reference each aspect.

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dotancohen 3286 days ago
What do you dislike as a user about Qt apps on Windows or Mac? Granted I _am_ on KDE (CentOS) but Qt apps that I've seen on Windows or Mac seem almost native. VLC, Opera, Anki
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yorwba 3286 days ago
What is so bad about the Anki UI? I have been using it for three years on Ubuntu Unity and I'm pretty happy with it. I especially like how keyboard-friendly it is.
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