Does ankiweb.net have a way to view flashcards in read-only mode?
I want to share some private flashcards but I’m worried they’ll be shared publicly or the file will be downloaded and distributed. They are mine so I can place a copyright on them.
If not, are there alternative website that can do this? I know AnkiApp also has the sharing feature so this won’t work.
If there are not alternatives that offer read-only mode, is that something that is allowed to be developed? I know Anki is open-source.
Also, is selling Anki decks legal? I’ve seen some websites like AnkiHub which sell the apkg files and didn’t know if this was legal or not.
I don’t think it has some read only functions, for the shared system is not really implemented yet. As for selling, I guess it is okay — I bought something about 3 language decks on dedicated sites and happy with them. Like, why not to pay for the efforts someone made to save our time? It is not against the rules, unless you are selling someone else’s work.
Anki does not protect decks from sharing and there are probably no plans to develop such features. Because Anki is optimized for personal use not for companies or schools. If you want to do so you will have to develop your own browser app etc.
To sell decks you must own the copyright to the images and text, or have permission from the rights holder. If your deck is improperly uploaded to AnkWeb with images and text copyrighted to you contact the official Anki and they will remove it.
Anking(Ankihub) invests a lot in media files for their decks and excludes illegal content so they have permission from the rights holders or use images they have created. Technically Ankihub does not sell Anking decks they sell collaboration services and support.
There are almost no development resources or support for sales. Because Anki is developed by many volunteers for free. If it is a free deck you are more likely to get support and resources from the community because anyone can share the deck. Browser apps compete with Anki.
When an individual sells a deck, they basically just put their deck behind a paywall. Since Anki is a learning app, most Anki users tend to be serious and do not like to share illegal content. No damage will happen if decks are shared they don’t sell decks in bulk like a bestselling novel. Or they just don’t care because they are just selling illegally or selling copies of free decks.
As clarification, and as Shigeyuki noted above, Ankihub sells membership plans that include access to Ankihub as a service, which includes communal editing and upkeep of decks as well as rolling updates (and other stuff)
Content you’ve created yourself is yours to do with as you please, including selling it. Anki cannot prevent users from redistributing that content to others however, as it’s an open source app, and any copy protections could be trivially bypassed.