Prioritise beginners, ease-of-use, and advice on card creation

[badlydrawnrob]

⚠️ Don't scare beginners off! (think like a kid)
Starting off programming and having to deal with compilers is annoying!
Most people are "rip and run", meaning very little engagement, so I've got to guess at how it's received.

Forcing users to download a bunch of shit, and feeling like you don't know what you're doing is a big problem. Racket lang has an easy IDE, with a good book, and teachpacks. It's a nicer experience. Or Thonny which means you don't have to install Python.

Strip things back and aim for simplicity, less code, more info about how to create cards (without having to read a 100 page document!) — all aimed at beginners to intermediates. Make sure the entry into the flashcards is as simple as it can be.¹ Simplify initial README so it's easier to digest. Show it, don't say it! Remember some of the books you've read that are too fussy worded and academic. Reduce!

• Add some gifs and videos.
• User pain points.
• Easy install.
• Ditch the professional docs.

The problem with allowing advanced card creation is that it takes a lot of explaining, and it'll put beginners off (potentially). If you're advanced enough, you should have no trouble figuring it out, really. Anki flashcards need to be to-the-point, only hold a very specific problem, with specific code, that can be viewed in 30 seconds or less.

When you get to a more advanced level, sometimes Anki isn't the best medicine. Files that isolate the problem with comments can be better, but it can always be adjunct with Anki flashcards (and a link to the file).

• Add a couple of tags such as internal or external so you don't scare off beginners #148
• Testing out the new compiler #110 (for intermediate users 🧑‍🎓)
  • A really great feature, but might be overwhelming for beginners.

Issues should be handled better, keeping them simple enough to not scare beginners off (think kids) and ones that are "for my eyes only" kept hidden somehow. Try to encourage some kind of interaction for those who use the tool regularly.

Footnotes

1. The last release was FAR too verbose and I think put people off. It had considerable less downloads than previous versions. ↩