FlashLearn is a lightweight cross-platform desktop application for learning with flashcards.
The application uses simple CSV files as flashcard sets and is intentionally designed to be general-purpose. It can be used for learning foreign languages, but it works just as well for technical terms, definitions, or virtually any other question-and-answer content.
The project originally started as a small side project while also serving a practical personal purpose. The goal was to create a simple flashcard application without accounts, cloud services, or a complicated built-in system for creating flashcard sets. Instead, flashcards are loaded directly from CSV files.
FlashLearn v1.0.0 is currently available for Windows and Linux.
A flashcard set consists of a CSV file with two columns. Each row represents one flashcard.
A simple example:
Hello,Hallo
Maybe,Vielleicht
Sun,Sonne
Thanks,DankeAfter starting FlashLearn, a CSV file can be selected or loaded via drag and drop. The application reads the flashcards and displays the file name and the number of detected cards.
A learning session can then be started immediately.
FlashLearn supports three different question directions.
The content of the first column is displayed and the user is expected to enter the corresponding answer from the second column.
The content of the second column is displayed and the user is expected to enter the corresponding answer from the first column.
FlashLearn decides individually for each card which of the two directions to use.
For example, when learning vocabulary, this allows the same flashcard set to be used for both German-to-English and English-to-German practice.
FlashLearn includes configurable repetition logic.
Incorrectly answered cards can appear again during the same learning session, while correctly answered cards can be temporarily moved further back in the session.
Three settings are currently available:
Defines the minimum number of other cards that should appear before an incorrectly answered card can be shown again.
Defines approximately how many cards may appear before an incorrectly answered card should be shown again.
Defines how long a correctly answered card should preferably remain hidden before appearing again.
These values can be adjusted through the settings window. The question direction can also be selected there.
During a learning session, FlashLearn displays one card at a time.
The answer is entered directly into the input field and can be submitted either by clicking Check or pressing Enter.
FlashLearn compares the entered answer with the expected answer and immediately displays the result.
A correct answer is highlighted in green.
An incorrect answer is highlighted in red, and both the entered answer and the expected answer are displayed.
This makes it immediately clear what was entered and what the correct answer should have been.
Throughout the session, FlashLearn also displays the current learning progress and a graphical progress bar.
After all available cards in the session have been processed, FlashLearn displays a summary.
The summary includes:
- Number of cards processed
- Number of correct answers
- Number of incorrect answers
- Accuracy percentage
The same flashcard set can then be studied again, or a different CSV file can be selected.
FlashLearn is designed to handle simple CSV files with as little manual preparation as possible.
Supported text encodings include:
- UTF-8
- UTF-8 with BOM
- Windows-1252
Supported delimiters include:
- Comma
- Semicolon
- Tab
This allows different simple CSV files to be used without requiring them to be manually converted into one specific format beforehand.
FlashLearn combines a web-based user interface with a Python-based desktop application.
The main technologies used are:
- Python
- HTML
- CSS
- JavaScript
- pywebview
Python handles tasks such as CSV processing and desktop integration.
The user interface and a significant part of the learning logic are implemented using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
pywebview displays the web interface inside a native desktop window.
FlashLearn is therefore not a hosted web application and does not require an external web server for normal use.
FlashLearn v1.0.0 has been successfully tested on Windows and Linux.
A Windows installer is available.
The installer installs FlashLearn as a regular desktop application and can create the appropriate shortcuts.
The Linux version is currently distributed as a portable x86_64 archive.
After extraction, the complete FlashLearn directory must remain intact because the executable depends on the included internal files.
The current Linux version has been successfully built and tested on Arch Linux x86_64.
Other Linux distributions have not been explicitly tested for version 1.0.0.
Normal users do not need to manually build FlashLearn with Python.
- Download the latest
FlashLearn-Setup.exefrom the GitHub Release. - Run the installer.
- Start FlashLearn.
- Download
FlashLearn-v1.0.0-linux-x86_64.tar.gzfrom the GitHub Release. - Extract the archive.
- Enter the extracted FlashLearn directory.
- Start FlashLearn.
For example:
tar -xzf FlashLearn-v1.0.0-linux-x86_64.tar.gz
cd FlashLearn
./FlashLearnAlternatively, FlashLearn can be run directly from the source code or built manually.
Detailed build instructions are available in BUILD.md.
The repository is structured approximately as follows:
FlashLearn/
├── Inno/
│ └── FlashLearn.iss
├── assets/
│ └── flashlearn.ico
├── web/
│ ├── app.js
│ ├── index.html
│ └── style.css
├── BUILD.md
├── LICENSE
├── README.md
├── main.py
└── requirements.txt
Contains the configuration for the Windows installer.
Contains application resources such as the FlashLearn icon.
Contains the user interface implemented with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
The entry point of the desktop application and the Python backend.
Contains the Python dependencies required by the project.
Contains instructions for creating Windows and Linux builds.
FlashLearn v1.0.0 includes:
- CSV-based flashcard sets
- CSV file selection
- Drag-and-drop CSV loading
- Automatic card count detection
- A → B question direction
- B → A question direction
- Random question direction
- Configurable repetition logic
- Direct answer checking
- Visual feedback for correct answers
- Visual feedback for incorrect answers
- Display of the correct answer
- Learning progress indicator
- Session statistics
- Restarting the same flashcard set
- Selecting another CSV file
- Settings window
- Dark user interface
- Responsive design
- Fullscreen mode
- Windows support
- Linux x86_64 support
- Windows installer
- Portable Linux build
FlashLearn is intentionally designed to remain a relatively small and straightforward application.
The project was not created with the goal of becoming a large learning platform with user accounts, cloud synchronization, or complex course management.
Instead, the main focus is to provide a quick and simple way to turn existing question-and-answer data stored in CSV files into usable flashcards.
This makes FlashLearn suitable not only for traditional vocabulary learning, but also for virtually any other type of question-and-answer learning material.
Current version:
FlashLearn v1.0.0
Currently successfully tested on:
- Windows
- Arch Linux x86_64
Prebuilt versions are available through GitHub Releases.
This project is licensed under the MIT License.
You are free to use, modify, distribute, publish, and use this software commercially, provided that the original copyright notice and license text remain included.
See the LICENSE file for the complete license.
Developed by Vipe.
FlashLearn was originally created as a small side project and as a simple tool for personal learning, and was later released as an open-source project.
If you find this project useful, feel free to fork it, improve it, or adapt it to your own learning workflow.