Using FSRS Helper to reschedule cards

Anki FSRS
1

The FSRS Helper’s add-on page says using the Helper to reschedule cards “is not necessary anymore,” since Anki now has “Reschedule cards on change” built in.

There’s no mention of the advantage of rescheduling with the Helper (ie it doesn’t unnecessarily enlarge the size of your collection). Wondering whether Jarrett feels that this difference doesn’t matter?

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2

This is a great question, and I’d like to piggy-back on it to get another bit clarification – from @L.M.Sherlock [Jarrett], @jakep , and others who have worked on the re/scheduling and load balancing functionality.

As far as I know, these are the methods for rescheduling. #1 is built-in and creates an entry in the revlog – #2-5 come from the add-on and do not.

  1. Options > Reschedule on change [for a preset]
  2. Main window > Tools > FSRS Helper > Reschedule all cards
  3. Decks list > :gear: menu > FSRS Helper > Reschedule all cards [for a deck and its subdecks]
  4. Browse > Cards > FSRS: Update memory state and reschedule [for selected cards]
  5. Main window > Tools > FSRS Helper > Auto reschedule cards reviewed on other devices after sync

On top of OP’s question [question A], I’m hoping to get clarification on –

B. Are there differences between those 5 methods for what parts of the Load Balancing / Smart Fuzz functionality are used?

C. Since 2, 3, and 5 don’t mention “update memory state” – does that mean they don’t, and just reschedule the cards with the currently saved memory state?

\[Excerpts from a brief discussion on Discord a couple weeks ago.\]

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They all based on the same smart fuzz rule. But the add-on’s rescheduling results would be different from the built-in rescheduling due to random generator. It’s hard to keep the Python random generator consistent with the Rust random generator.

Only 4 and 5 update the memory state.

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4

That’s incredibly helpful, thank you!

But since I just hijacked this thread, what about Mike3’s original question –

Do you have a position on the pros/cons of rescheduling with the add-on (#2-5) vs. with the built-in reschedule-on-change (#1)?

5

I only recommend using the add-on. It doesn’t increase the collection’s size, doesn’t need to open the preset screen, and efficient enough.

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6

Great, thanks. And I assume it’s better to update the memory state when rescheduling than not update it.

7

It will slow down the rescheduling significantly.

8

As L.M.Sherlock said, updating memory states makes the process much slower. Fortunately, updating the memory states when rescheduling is not necessary unless you

  • review on other devices having an older FSRS version (this case can be handled with the Auto reschedule cards reviewed on other devices after sync option)
  • move cards between decks (which causes the cards to lose their stored memory states)
  • update FSRS parameters using some add-on that directly modifies the config (I don’t think such an add-on exists)
9

Suggested edit to one sentence on the add-on page to point out difference from built-in “Reschedule cards on change":

Existing: However, this is not necessary anymore, as Anki has a built-in feature “Reschedule cards on change”.

New: Rescheduling with the Helper does not add to the size of your collection, unlike Anki’s built-in “Reschedule cards on change.”

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