Create Obsidian Flashcards

Create a small set of useful retrieval prompts from the user's source. Keep the source accurate, preserve its meaning, and use only syntax supported by this repository.

Required context

Before generating or revising cards, read card design. Before writing cards into an Obsidian note, also read plugin syntax.

Use the source material supplied or selected by the user. If a claim is unclear or unsupported, do not silently turn it into a fact. Preserve the uncertainty or tell the user what is missing.

Workflow

1. Identify the user's learning goal and the part of the source in scope.
2. Find the durable ideas that are worth retrieving. Do not create cards for every sentence.
3. Check existing cards in the target note. Avoid exact and semantic duplicates.
4. Draft a clear cue and the smallest answer that fully satisfies it.
5. Choose the card type from the decision rules in plugin-syntax.md.
6. If the user asked for file changes, place cards near the relevant source section unless they requested another location. Preserve unrelated prose and frontmatter.
7. Re-read each card without relying on nearby prose. Fix ambiguous questions, answer leakage, accidental multiple targets, and missing context.
8. Report which notes changed, how many cards were added or revised, and any source claims that need the user's judgment.

If the user asks only for suggestions or a preview, do not edit files. Show the proposed cards in Markdown instead.

Plugin invariants

• Obsidian is the authoring source. Do not edit linked card content in Anki.
• Never create or change the managed flashcards frontmatter property.
• Never create, copy, or change ^q-xxxx or legacy numeric anchors. The plugin owns card identity and writes these values during update.
• Preserve existing generated metadata when editing around a card.
• Do not run an Obsidian-to-Anki update unless the user asks. Writing cards and changing external Anki state are separate actions.
• Use current v2 syntax. Do not produce v1 compatibility syntax.

Card quality

• Make the learner retrieve an answer before seeing it.
• Give each card one main retrieval target. A short supporting explanation is fine when it helps understanding.
• Include enough context for one stable answer, but do not include words that reveal the answer.
• Prefer a direct question over a vague cue such as “Explain this.”
• Ask for a relationship, reason, distinction, or application when the learning goal is conceptual. Do not reduce every concept to isolated terminology.
• Use reversed cards only when recall in both directions is useful.
• Keep cloze deletions small and meaningful. Avoid hiding many unrelated facts in one note.
• Use reminder cards for principles or practices that should return periodically, not as a substitute for a testable question.
• Prefer fewer strong cards over exhaustive low-value coverage.

Do not claim that a card is “scientifically optimal.” Retrieval practice and spacing have strong evidence, but the best cue and content still depend on the learner's goal and prior knowledge.