# Make it more obvious when "Sticky Fields" are active **URL:** \ **Category:** Suggestions\ **Created:** [July 9, 2025, 2:51pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754 "2025-07-09T14:51:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Anon\_0000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Anon\_0000](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/Anon_0000)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 2:51pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/1 "2025-07-09T14:51:28Z")
# Issue Every once in a while there are users that think Anki is bugged because the content of their field in the **Add** dialog stays after adding the card. They don’t realize that they turned on the _Sticky Field_ option. The most recent one I saw is this one: [[BUG] upon adding basic and reversed cards · Issue #4192 · ankitects/anki · GitHub](https://github.com/ankitects/anki/issues/4192). # Proposed Solution If the button alone isn’t obvious enough, then we need to add an additional cue for the user. I am thinking of adding a string saying “sticky” next to the sticky icon, if sticky is active (nothing otherwise). As a general idea (that certainly isn’t PR ready), I created a sample implementation in [DO NOT MERGE – POC · GithubAnon0000/anki@78e904f · GitHub](https://github.com/GithubAnon0000/anki/commit/78e904fbd69f3836fcae37370db4a4adc3416ca5). Here’s what it looks like with above commit: ![anki](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/uploads/anki2/original/3X/b/c/bc5d10817161a10ed3e60dedb090c851c3b1a87d.png) I’m not saying it should look this way. This is just an example which might help solve the issue. ---
**Author:** ![sorata](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.ankiweb.net/sorata/32/34115_2.png) [@sorata](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/sorata)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 3:50pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/2 "2025-07-09T15:50:36Z")
If we have to show text, probably should show it at one place instead of with every field. ---
**Author:** ![Anon\_0000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Anon\_0000](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/Anon_0000)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 3:54pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/3 "2025-07-09T15:54:35Z")
> [@sorata](#): > > instead of with every field. But “sticky” is a per field setting ---
**Author:** ![sorata](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.ankiweb.net/sorata/32/34115_2.png) [@sorata](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/sorata)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 3:55pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/4 "2025-07-09T15:55:52Z")
But for the issue you’re trying to solve, it’s enough to know that at least one of the fields are sticky. ---
**Author:** ![Anon\_0000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Anon\_0000](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/Anon_0000)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 4:02pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/5 "2025-07-09T16:02:41Z")
In that case something like a bottom bar could be used. It could show something like “Sticky: One or more fields are sticky.” and maybe have a clickable link to the in-app / online manual for an explaination. ---
**Author:** ![llama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8baadc/32.png) [@llama](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/llama)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2025, 5:06pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/6 "2025-07-09T17:06:30Z")
> [@Anon\_0000](#): > > I am thinking of adding a string saying “sticky” next to the sticky icon IMO “sticky” is still within the realm of technical jargon and isn’t intuitively linked to “this field isn’t cleared after a note is added” Maybe after a note is added, have it temporarily show a popover over the (first) sticky pin that says something along the lines of “sticky field was retained”. This lets users know what happened (sticky) and what caused it to happen (the sticky pin) ---
**Author:** ![Danika\_Dakika](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.ankiweb.net/danika_dakika/32/17815_2.png) [@Danika\_Dakika](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/Danika_Dakika)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2025, 12:37am UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/7 "2025-07-11T00:37:01Z")
> [@llama](#): > > Maybe after a note is added, have it temporarily show a popover over the (first) sticky pin that says something along the lines of “sticky field was retained”. This lets users know what happened (sticky) and what caused it to happen (the sticky pin) I like that idea, but I fear that regular users of the feature would grow weary of seeing that every time they added a note. > [@Anon\_0000](#): > > This is just an example which might help solve the issue. I have to agree with you that there just isn’t very much difference in a great big “Add note” window between pinned and unpinned. [It’s a pin, so I can’t help but think of it as pinning, even as I acknowledge that’s not what we call the feature. I’m not wedded to any particular wording. But if “sticky” is jargon-y, as has been mentioned … we could change the name too. 😉] It’s essentially “lit up”/“unlit” (in dark theme, at least), and I’ve always loved how minimalist it is! ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/uploads/anki2/original/3X/d/5/d52f2d8827767baf6283475dd7f8d632e7b3828b.png) But if it needs to change – is there a still-minimalist solution that could draw the eye better? What about an outlined space around it that inverts the color so it stands out more? Possibly even rendering that in an _actual_ color – like the blue we use for some important buttons? > **Obviously the wrong icon ...** > > – and it shouldn’t necessarily even be a circle, but pictures make more sense than my description. Sort of like: > > ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/uploads/anki2/original/3X/f/8/f843011aa6713f1bff23f3735014d8104a935a9b.png) Or is the issue not the visibility of the icon (which might be the right change for a user that deliberately turned it on, and then forgot) – and more that users accidentally click it and don’t notice? Perhaps _the process_ could be made more visible, like with a “field pinned/unpinned” popup when it is clicked. > **I mean the lower-left corner type of popup ...** > > (or is that called a popover?) that doesn’t interfere with anything. We already use that to inform users that something important just happened invisibly, like: > ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/uploads/anki2/original/3X/8/3/839043007f8ca2aa564d8cef06abc7c25f6e30ed.png) ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/uploads/anki2/original/3X/4/7/471b6512592b0ebeb76ac7fad2aeb813326dd823.png) ---
**Author:** ![ZornHadNoChoice](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.ankiweb.net/zornhadnochoice/32/28874_2.png) [@ZornHadNoChoice](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/ZornHadNoChoice)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2025, 1:51am UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/8 "2025-07-11T01:51:20Z")
Any kind of a constant reminder is going to be distracting/annoying to regular users. I think a better option is to detect if the user is confused about a pinned field and display an appropriate hint. One way to do this is to check if the user has deleted most/all of the contents of a pinned field (after it was prefilled) 3 times in a row. ---
**Author:** ![Danika\_Dakika](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.ankiweb.net/danika_dakika/32/17815_2.png) [@Danika\_Dakika](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/Danika_Dakika)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2025, 5:34am UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/9 "2025-07-11T05:34:44Z")
I wasn’t suggesting a “constant” reminder – just a one-time notification when the action happens. > [@ZornHadNoChoice](#): > > One way to do this is to check if the user has deleted most/all of the contents of a pinned field (after it was prefilled) 3 times in a row. Is that tracked somewhere, though – the changing/non-changing of a field? Is it even possible to track? ---
**Author:** ![ZornHadNoChoice](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.ankiweb.net/zornhadnochoice/32/28874_2.png) [@ZornHadNoChoice](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/ZornHadNoChoice)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2025, 8:55am UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/10 "2025-07-11T08:55:04Z")
> [@Danika\_Dakika](#): > > just a one-time notification when the action happens. I don’t have a field always pinned so, to me, I would be constantly reminded each time I pin/unpin a field. ---
**Author:** ![BrayanDSO](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.ankiweb.net/brayandso/32/12323_2.png) [@BrayanDSO](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/BrayanDSO)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2025, 10:22am UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/11 "2025-07-11T10:22:00Z")
You can add a subtle outer glow to pinned fields ---
**Author:** ![Sunong2008](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b487fb/32.png) [@Sunong2008](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/Sunong2008)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2025, 12:18pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/12 "2025-07-13T12:18:15Z")
I think this is a good idea. We can change the text box color of the field after it is pinned, and make the pin icon display the same color. This may be a still-minimalist solution, and it is easy for users to understand what is happening (because the same color is used). ---
**Author:** ![talya](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.ankiweb.net/talya/32/28217_2.png) [@talya](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/talya)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 3:02pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/13 "2025-07-15T15:02:51Z")
how about marking as “sticky” and when you hover over it you get an explanation? ---
**Author:** ![ZornHadNoChoice](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.ankiweb.net/zornhadnochoice/32/28874_2.png) [@ZornHadNoChoice](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/ZornHadNoChoice)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2025, 10:30am UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/make-it-more-obvious-when-sticky-fields-are-active/63754/14 "2025-08-07T10:30:31Z")
Here is another “bug” report about pinned fields: [Answer input not going away automatically. · Issue #19052 · ankidroid/Anki-Android · GitHub](https://github.com/ankidroid/Anki-Android/issues/19052).