Flash'em is a general purpose flash card utility that allows you to create flash cards with up to 3 "sides" each and then test yourself on those cards. This is ideal for languages like Japanese where you might have the kanji, hiragana, and english meaning, although it's use isn't limited to Japanese. Each side has it's own font. When testing, you mark the cards that you know, and then keeps testing you until you know them all.
The program is freeware, so feel free to distribute the archive.
FEATURES:
* You can create and edit flash card files from the program or use a text editor (sides are separated by tabs).
* You can test yourself on the cards in either random or sequential order until you know all of the cards.
* You can merge several files together into memory to do a test on all of them at once.
* Plays cool sounds when you get them all right.
* You can paste in words from MacJDic.
* When testing, words on each side show up in biggest font that will fit in the field on the screen.
* Includes some sample Japanese flash card files
The program should be pretty easy to figure out, but here are some things that might not be obvious.
MAX FONT SIZE:
When Flash'em is testing you, it tries to display the text in the largest font possible. To do this, it has to start with the largest size, and keep trying sizes until it fits. This takes a bit of time, so to speed things up, or if you don't like the big fonts, you can select the biggest font size that Flash'em will try to use to display the font.
FILE FORMAT:
The flash card files are stored as text files with each card on a line, the sides separated by tabs. You should be able to edit them with any text editor.
SORTCUTS:
There are a few shortcuts you can use when testing. Space is the same as Next, and you can use 'Y' and 'N' for yes and no. You must be using a roman keyboard to use these shortcuts.
PASTING FROM MACJDIC:
(This is only of use when using Japanese and the program MacJDic)
You can easily add a word from MacJDic into Flash'em. This is done by selecting the line in the output window MacJDic you want to paste in, including the 'word:' in front of the definition, all the way to the return, and then selecting 'Paste from MacJDic' from the Edit Menu in Flash'em. The kanji, hiragana, and meaning of the word will be pasted in.
FLASHCARD FILES INCLUDED:
The flash cards I've included are all Japanese related. You can just throw them away if you want. The Heisig Kanji List has all of the 'meanings' and kanji from Heisig's Remembering the Kanji volume 1 (it doesn't have the readings). I got these from a database file posted by Antti Karttunen. I left them all in one file because I haven't had time to divide them up into chapters or anything. Also, I've included some files Dave Walton made from the first few chapters of Jorden's Japanese: The Spoken Language.
BUGS AND PLANNED IMPROVEMENTS:
It takes a while to start up. I think it is because of the 3 separate font menus under Preferences.
The first time you click on the menu bar, it takes a while for the menus to appear.
I would like to add inline input and have it automatically switch to the correct keyboard when editing.
I don't like the '-'s in the empty fields.
It doesn't deal with low memory situations very well.
REQUEST FOR FLASHCARD FILES:
If you make any flash card files that you think other people might want, please email them to me so that I can maintain libraries of them and help distribute them.
