Systems for making systems

I read a comment stating that git (a tool programmers use to collaborate on code, sort of like Word’s Track Changes) is not a version control system but a “system for creating a version control system.” That got me thinking about other such “metasystems” I use, and the frustration that arises when one expects a mere system and instead gets the meta thing. Anki Anki is a system for making a flashcard system. I’ve used this excellent program for about four years to memorize Korean vocab. But the first time I tried Anki, I downloaded a stock deck of Korean words and felt confused and overwhelmed. Studying with someone else’s Anki deck is a mistake, because it skips the most important part of spaced repetition learning: determining what you’re actually trying to learn and breaking it into flashcard-sized units. For example, if you’re using Anki to learn a language, how do you want to handle synonyms? (That might be a separate post.) Creating your own deck forces you to answer such…