Getting Started

Think of decks as folders for organizing flashcards by subject.

1. Tap the Decks tab (second icon at the bottom)
2. Tap the + button in the top-right corner
3. Give your deck a name (e.g., "Biology 101" or "Spanish Vocab")
4. Choose an icon and color (optional)
5. Tap Create

The fastest way to create flashcards is with AI.

How to Generate:

1. Open the deck you just created
2. Tap Generate with AI (sparkle icon)
3. Paste or type your study material (lecture notes, textbook excerpts, etc.)
4. Tap Generate Flashcards

Example Text to Try:

Photosynthesis is the process by which plants convert light energy into chemical energy. It occurs in chloroplasts and produces glucose and oxygen as byproducts. The process requires water, carbon dioxide, and sunlight. Plants use the glucose for energy and growth.

What Happens Next:

• AI analyzes your text (takes 5-10 seconds)
• You'll see 5-15 flashcard previews
• Each card has a question (front) and answer (back)
• Review the cards — edit any that need tweaking
• Tap Add to Deck to save them

Now for the fun part — time to study!

Start a Study Session:

1. Go to the Today tab (first icon at the bottom)
2. The Topos Coach card shows your personalized recommendation — how many cards are due and whether you're on track to keep your streak
3. Tap Start today's review to begin

How Studying Works:

See the question (front of card):

• Read it and try to recall the answer in your head
• When ready, tap Show Answer

See the answer (back of card):

• The card flips to reveal the answer
• Rate how well you remembered it:

• Again — Forgot completely (card shown again soon)
• Hard — Struggled, but got it (review in ~1 day)
• Good — Remembered easily (review in ~3-7 days)
• Easy — Too easy (review in ~7-14 days)

What happens:

• The app calculates the perfect time to show this card again
• Cards you struggle with appear more often
• Cards you ace appear less frequently
• This is spaced repetition — proven to boost long-term memory

topos includes powerful memory techniques from cognitive science.

Memory Hooks (AI-Generated Mnemonics)

1. Go to Settings tab (fourth icon)
2. Toggle Memory Hooks (AI) to ON
3. Next time you generate cards, each will include a vivid mental image
4. During study, tap the brain icon to reveal the memory hook

Elaboration Prompts

1. Go to Settings
2. Toggle Elaboration Prompt to ON
3. During study, after revealing an answer, you'll be asked: "What does this remind you of?"
4. Type a personal connection (e.g., "Photosynthesis reminds me of grandma's garden")

This technique dramatically improves retention.

Memory Palace (Method of Loci)

The Memory Palace is an ancient technique for memorizing ordered information. topos lets you build one by scanning your real physical space with AR.

Build with AR Scanner (Recommended)

1. Go to the Palace tab (third icon)
2. Tap + and give your palace a name (e.g., "My Living Room")
3. Choose Scan with AR
4. Slowly move your camera around the room — yellow dots appear on detected surfaces
5. Tap any surface to drop a location marker
6. Add 7–9 locations for best results (the app guides you)
7. Tap Done — your palace is saved with real-world spatial anchors

Build Manually

1. Go to the Palace tab and tap +
2. Choose Add Manually
3. Add locations in order (e.g., "Front Door," "Living Room," "Kitchen")
4. Assign flashcards to each location
5. Tap Start Walk-Through to study spatially

Best for: Anatomy, speeches, ordered lists, language phrases