I know this is not an Anki forum, but many of us use Anki and it is most certainly a learning resource.

I've been using iAnki for a while, but was wondering what the pros and cons are of Anki Mini. Obviously this requires a jailbreak on my 2nd version ipod touch, but apparently this isn't that risky, and is reversible.

Anki Mini is a totally offline client, right? Similar to iAnki? Can it store reviews for longer than iAnki? Which do people use of these two and why?

Anki Mini is more complete. It can sync to the Anki server, it can have any number of cards & decks, media, fonts, etc.. It supports the various scheduling modes in Anki too.

The cons are that you need to jailbreak and set up various packages on the iPhone so you should know how to use ssh (there is a guide though).

Does anyone know how the speed compares between iAnki & Anki Mini?

Installing AnkiMini is dead simple once you've Jailbroken (which is, itself, relatively simple- google "Jailbreak").

You don't need to SSH anymore to install AnkiMini. All you have to do is download it through Cydia (the Jailbreak version of the app store). Its essentially a one click setup. Very easy.

I couldn't get my media deck onto AnkiMini though. I've never been able to get SSH working properly so theres no way for me to transfer my media files to the phone as far as I know. So I synced my deck via the online sync function (and thus without media), but it appears that the online decks don't have the same scheduling algorithms that the Anki desktop client does. I had 70 reviews due online but 0 reviews due on my desktop. I presume the online client just shows you every review that is due that day, whereas the desktop is more granular.

So I ended up going back to iAnki, which has worked fine for me thus far anyway.

I've only used iAnki so far. I've jailbroken my ipod touch but never got around to using ankimini since iAnki does everything I need perfectly. I might give it a go and let you know though.

blackmacros Wrote:So I synced my deck via the online sync function (and thus without media), but it appears that the online decks don't have the same scheduling algorithms that the Anki desktop client does. I had 70 reviews due online but 0 reviews due on my desktop. I presume the online client just shows you every review that is due that day, whereas the desktop is more granular.

Sometimes the deck on the server gets out of sync with the original because something didn't get synchronized correctly at some point (maybe with a particular version of Anki). Only new changes are synchronized, so no matter how much you sync it won't correct itself. It's not only a problem with AnkiMini. In that case, you can delete the deck on the server and re-create it, then it will be the same on the server as the original.

vosmiura Wrote:

blackmacros Wrote:So I synced my deck via the online sync function (and thus without media), but it appears that the online decks don't have the same scheduling algorithms that the Anki desktop client does. I had 70 reviews due online but 0 reviews due on my desktop. I presume the online client just shows you every review that is due that day, whereas the desktop is more granular.

Sometimes the deck on the server gets out of sync with the original because something didn't get synchronized correctly at some point (maybe with a particular version of Anki). Only new changes are synchronized, so no matter how much you sync it won't correct itself. It's not only a problem with AnkiMini. In that case, you can delete the deck on the server and re-create it, then it will be the same on the server as the original.

Ah thanks. I will try that, hopefully it solves the problem. I would start using AnkiMini if it was just a sync error, because its a pain to have to hide my stories with my thumb when reviewing with iAnki (my stories are on the question side, whited out. iAnki shows them but AnkiMini doesn't).

can u guys please post a video,
i cannot imagine how useful is to use an ipod touch.

cheers

hmmmm.... guys i think this is a little unrelated but is there a feature in anki that shows the japanese romaji for the shown kanji? well i've learned about 200 kanji already in 3 days but the problem is i still don't know how to pronounce any of them...

Why not just put the hiragana and katakana readings on the back of the cards?

Actually, I have an Anki question too, since I am still test-driving this whole SSR thing I made multiple decks, but am tired of going back between all of them. Is there anyway to combine multiple decks into a single deck? I didn't find any feature to copy/paste cards etc.

blackmacros Wrote:Installing AnkiMini is dead simple once you've Jailbroken (which is, itself, relatively simple- google "Jailbreak").

You don't need to SSH anymore to install AnkiMini. All you have to do is download it through Cydia (the Jailbreak version of the app store). Its essentially a one click setup. Very easy.

I couldn't get my media deck onto AnkiMini though. I've never been able to get SSH working properly so theres no way for me to transfer my media files to the phone as far as I know. So I synced my deck via the online sync function (and thus without media), but it appears that the online decks don't have the same scheduling algorithms that the Anki desktop client does. I had 70 reviews due online but 0 reviews due on my desktop. I presume the online client just shows you every review that is due that day, whereas the desktop is more granular.

So I ended up going back to iAnki, which has worked fine for me thus far anyway.

I certainly wouldn't say setting up Anki Mini is dead simple, in fact, I consider it to be one of the most tedious installations of an 'application' you'll ever face on an iPhone/touch. Multiple decks is still a bit dodgy as well. But if you're willing to settle for one deck (probably enough for the scrap of time you'll have spare to use it on the go) or work on multiple decks for a while, it is an extremely usefool tool. I've found no problems with due reviews; the server, desktop client and anki mini all have the same reviews due for me, as long as you keep on syncing them all to keep them in unison.

As long as you follow the included instructions that come with Anki Mini, the install should be slightly tedious, but certainly not difficult to do.
That being said, I installed it with my Mac, which has terminal, so the method might be a bit harder on Windows etc. Download 'Diskaid' to transfer your deck at the end.

Aijin Wrote:Why not just put the hiragana and katakana readings on the back of the cards?

Actually, I have an Anki question too, since I am still test-driving this whole SSR thing I made multiple decks, but am tired of going back between all of them. Is there anyway to combine multiple decks into a single deck? I didn't find any feature to copy/paste cards etc.

http://groups.google.com/group/ankisrs/topics
That's Anki's official forum; the creator of Anki is constantly browsing it, I mean, he replies unbelievably fast considering he's developing the thing by himself.
Should be able to get a response there from him very quickly.

File>Export
File>Import

And re installation, it should be trivial now that Anki is in Cydia. Thanks to that and a 'local decks' button, switching decks should be fine too. All that is thanks to Richard.

Aijin Wrote:Why not just put the hiragana and katakana readings on the back of the cards?

Actually, I have an Anki question too, since I am still test-driving this whole SSR thing I made multiple decks, but am tired of going back between all of them. Is there anyway to combine multiple decks into a single deck? I didn't find any feature to copy/paste cards etc.

Make a new deck and import all your decks into the one file. SRS btw =)

ore_wa_ecchi Wrote:hmmmm.... guys i think this is a little unrelated but is there a feature in anki that shows the japanese romaji for the shown kanji? well i've learned about 200 kanji already in 3 days but the problem is i still don't know how to pronounce any of them...

Me thinks you need to read up on the heisig method =D We use the heisig method to remember the kanji (to be able to write them) . This make it much easier to learn words later on. Most people either learn the readings later with RTK2 or just learn the readings through exposure. Have a look on the main page and Khatz's AJATT blog for more info =D

thecite Wrote:I certainly wouldn't say setting up Anki Mini is dead simple, in fact, I consider it to be one of the most tedious installations of an 'application' you'll ever face on an iPhone/touch. Multiple decks is still a bit dodgy as well. But if you're willing to settle for one deck (probably enough for the scrap of time you'll have spare to use it on the go) or work on multiple decks for a while, it is an extremely usefool tool. I've found no problems with due reviews; the server, desktop client and anki mini all have the same reviews due for me, as long as you keep on syncing them all to keep them in unison.

As long as you follow the included instructions that come with Anki Mini, the install should be slightly tedious, but certainly not difficult to do.
That being said, I installed it with my Mac, which has terminal, so the method might be a bit harder on Windows etc. Download 'Diskaid' to transfer your deck at the end.

I think AnkiMini has received a new release since you did it. All you need to do now is go to Cydia and click AnkiMini in the programs list, and then hit install. No messing around with terminal required.

I tried using disk aid to get transfer my deck, but the path to where Anki stores decks appears to use a hidden folder. Its something like var/media/.anki And if I'm not mistaken .anki means its a hidden folder. So DiskAid can't see it, and I can't transfer my media there. Any suggestions? You can still get your deck onto it by using the online sync feature, so that part is not a problem.

Also I deleted the server deck and resynced, and now my reviews are all acting properly. Thanks for the tip vosmiura!

blackmacros Wrote:

thecite Wrote:I certainly wouldn't say setting up Anki Mini is dead simple, in fact, I consider it to be one of the most tedious installations of an 'application' you'll ever face on an iPhone/touch. Multiple decks is still a bit dodgy as well. But if you're willing to settle for one deck (probably enough for the scrap of time you'll have spare to use it on the go) or work on multiple decks for a while, it is an extremely usefool tool. I've found no problems with due reviews; the server, desktop client and anki mini all have the same reviews due for me, as long as you keep on syncing them all to keep them in unison.

As long as you follow the included instructions that come with Anki Mini, the install should be slightly tedious, but certainly not difficult to do.
That being said, I installed it with my Mac, which has terminal, so the method might be a bit harder on Windows etc. Download 'Diskaid' to transfer your deck at the end.

I think AnkiMini has received a new release since you did it. All you need to do now is go to Cydia and click AnkiMini in the programs list, and then hit install. No messing around with terminal required.

I tried using disk aid to get transfer my deck, but the path to where Anki stores decks appears to use a hidden folder. Its something like var/media/.anki And if I'm not mistaken .anki means its a hidden folder. So DiskAid can't see it, and I can't transfer my media there. Any suggestions? You can still get your deck onto it by using the online sync feature, so that part is not a problem.

Also I deleted the server deck and resynced, and now my reviews are all acting properly. Thanks for the tip vosmiura!

where can i read it online...?

I installed AnkiMini and have to conclude that iAnki is better unfortunately. For some reason I can see my decks on the server but I can't download them to the iPod. The bar at the bottom of the screen (which you normally see when using Safari) is also in the way. iAnki does not have this.

Nii87 Wrote:I installed AnkiMini and have to conclude that iAnki is better unfortunately. For some reason I can see my decks on the server but I can't download them to the iPod. The bar at the bottom of the screen (which you normally see when using Safari) is also in the way. iAnki does not have this.

Not sure what you mean about the bar, but if you're using an iPhone your syncing problem might be because you're trying to sync over 3G. I don't know if this is intentional (if it is, its annoying) but I've found that I can only sync on wifi. Trying it over 3G usually results in a "error wrong username or password" error.

Nah, I'm on an iPod, so only wifi here. I mean at the bottom of the screen, there are the navigation buttons (back, forward, bookmarks) are in ankiMini but not iAnki. Admittedly its a small gripe, but that's quite a large chunk of screen real estate!

Regardless, my normal decks seem to work, but my RtK one doesn't. Since I'm almost finished with RtK1 I'll be able to use another deck after anyway, so ankiMini will work for me!

What advantages does ankiMini have anyway? I can edit the font size and stuff with iAnki and that's a pretty big plus for me. Can ankiMini do audio/video/images?

I've had a bit more time to work on iAnki lately and there are quite a few improvements, so I definitely recommend trying it out.

I think this is the status quo on the pros of each one.

[AnkiMini]
+ has Damien's support
+ can play media
+ can carry lots of decks at the same time
+ sync to the Anki server

[iAnki]
+ doesn't need a jailbreak
+ reviews load faster
+ font scaling
+ furigana

Fast reviewing is pretty important to me.
Also I found the font size can be an issue if you review both on PC & AnkiMini. This shouldn't be very hard to change though.

In terms of stability, iAnki is standing on a more shaky platform. However, I don't think I've lost a review with iAnki in six months of use. As long as you dont try to sync more cards than the iPhone can take, it is ok.

I'm willing to try AnkiMini now, but I have an ipod touch 2G and I heard the jailbreak ist really difficult esp. for people who have no clue at all about these kind of things (like me). Is it true?
I would only jailbreak my ipod for AnkiMini anyway.

yup it`s easy, i did it to my iphone with next to no issues.

I`m pretty fluent with computers, but the software you use to jailbreak them with

S~P~E~L~L~S It out for you anyway. so no need to worry!

Loren-Paul

Oops, it seems AnkiMini can't play media on 3.0 OS. If that's what you're after you may have to wait a bit.

chochajin Wrote:I'm willing to try AnkiMini now, but I have an ipod touch 2G and I heard the jailbreak ist really difficult esp. for people who have no clue at all about these kind of things (like me). Is it true?
I would only jailbreak my ipod for AnkiMini anyway.

No, it's dead simple if you are literate. The steps are something like:
0. run redsn0w software
1. connect ipod to computer
2. turn off ipod
3. hold down the hold button for x seconds
4. hold home button for y seconds
5. done

The software in step 0 prompts you for each step.

It's just that I read some horror stories about people that couldn't use their ipod anymore after trying it, so ... well, yeah.

EDIT: Oh, before I forget. I tried to google "jailbreak ipod touch 2g" and that's when all those horror stories showed up.
Could anybody link me to a "safe" site?

@vosmiura: Basically I love your iAnki, really, but I NEED more than one deck and more than just a few cards per synchronisation. That's all :/

chochajin Wrote:It's just that I read some horror stories about people that couldn't use their ipod anymore after trying it, so ... well, yeah.

EDIT: Oh, before I forget. I tried to google "jailbreak ipod touch 2g" and that's when all those horror stories showed up.
Could anybody link me to a "safe" site?

@vosmiura: Basically I love your iAnki, really, but I NEED more than one deck and more than just a few cards per synchronisation. That's all :/

It's called bricking, and it's always a risk when you mess with firmware. Same for DSes, PSPs etc. Basically, as long as you follow the steps correctly, a catastrophy has to happen for it to brick.. it's basically only possible for a few seconds and it only happens if your battery dies/runs out of power. Or possibly if your iPod hangs, which it really shouldn't unless it's already broken.