Helix Trainer

Master Helix editor keybindings through scientifically-optimized spaced repetition and gamified training.

Stop learning commands in isolation. Train real development workflows with FSRS-powered spaced repetition (20-30% faster mastery), daily quests, XP progression, and anti-farming mechanics that ensure genuine skill development.

[!IMPORTANT] 100% Offline & Privacy-First — No internet required, no telemetry, no cloud sync. All data stays on your machine in ~/.config/helix-trainer/

Features

Smart Learning System

• FSRS Spaced Repetition — 20-30% fewer reviews than traditional methods (research-proven)
• Interactive Review Sessions — Practice due commands with instant feedback and XP rewards
• Scenario Mastery Tracking — Three-tier progression (Learning → Proficient → Mastered) with graduated XP scaling
• Daily Quest System — Duolingo-style challenges with streak tracking
• Anti-Farming Protection — Session penalties prevent XP exploitation
• Profile & Statistics — Track your progress, view mastery levels, and see performance analytics

Game Modes

Three distinct game modes for varied training experiences:

• Arcade Mode — 60-second timed sessions with 3 lives and streak multipliers up to 5x
• Survival Mode — One life, escalating difficulty, endless challenge until you fail
• Daily Challenge — Fixed daily scenarios with consistent difficulty for fair competition

All modes feature:

• FSRS-Powered Selection — Prioritizes scenarios with commands you need to practice
• Audio Feedback — Sound effects for correct/incorrect answers and game events (toggle with M key)
• Streak Multiplier — Build combos for consecutive completions
• XP Integration — Per-scenario XP awards with streak bonuses
• Pause & Resume — Access profile/stats mid-game

Training Features

• Smart Scenario Discovery — Filter by category, difficulty, commands, or completion status with 6 sort modes
• Rich Metadata — Every scenario tagged with category, difficulty, taught commands, and practice focus
• Syntax Highlighting — Realistic Rust code snippets with proper highlighting
• Real Helix Accuracy — Uses official helix-core library (v25.07.1)
• 45+ Commands — Movement, editing, clipboard, undo/redo, repeat, surround, text objects
• 136 Training Scenarios — From basics to intermediate workflows with difficulty indicators
• 55 Daily Quests — Easy, medium, and hard challenges across all commands
• 100% Offline — No cloud, no tracking, all data stays local (~/.config/helix-trainer/)
• Arrow Key Navigation — Optional enable_arrow_keys_in_normal_mode configuration for cursor movement

Installation

[!NOTE] Requirements: Terminal with Unicode support. No additional dependencies needed for pre-built binaries.

From crates.io

cargo install helix-trainer

[!TIP] Use cargo binstall helix-trainer for faster installation without compilation.

Pre-built binaries (recommended)

Download for your platform from Releases:

Extract and run:

# Linux/macOS
tar -xzf helix-trainer-*.tar.gz
cd helix-trainer-*/
./helix-trainer

# Windows: extract .zip and run helix-trainer.exe

[!TIP] Verify checksums with sha256sum -c helix-trainer-*.sha256

Build from source

[!WARNING] Requires Rust 1.89+ (2024 edition). Install via rustup.rs

git clone https://github.com/bug-ops/helix-trainer.git
cd helix-trainer
cargo build --release
./target/release/helix-trainer

Quick start

helix-trainer

[!TIP] First time? Start with Daily Quests! The system intelligently selects scenarios based on your current skill level and schedules reviews using FSRS spaced repetition.

The interactive TUI guides you through:

1. Training Mode — Manual scenario selection with detailed feedback
2. Arcade Mode — Fast-paced mini-games with time pressure
3. Daily Quests — Fresh challenges every day
4. Progress Tracking — XP, levels, streaks, mastery progression
5. Performance Analytics — Review calendar, mastery stats

Example training session

Mode Selection
├─ Training Mode
│  ├─ Daily Quests (3 active)
│  │  ├─ ✅ Practice: Complete 3 scenarios
│  │  ├─ ⏳ Learning: Try 2 new scenarios
│  │  └─ 🔄 Review: 5 cards due
│  ├─ Scenario List (136 available)
│  │  ├─ Basic Movement (Mastered - 20% XP)
│  │  ├─ Word Navigation (Proficient - 50% XP)
│  │  └─ Delete Line (Learning - 100% XP)
│  └─ Profile / Statistics
└─ Arcade Mode
   ├─ 🎮 Arcade (60s, 3 lives)
   ├─ 💀 Survival (1 life, endless)
   └─ 📅 Daily Challenge

Commands supported

All commands powered by helix-core v25.07.1 for 100% accuracy.

Why this project exists

Traditional editor tutorials teach commands. Real development requires workflows.

Most Helix tutorials:

• Teach xd (delete line) in isolation
• Show w (next word) on synthetic text
• Stop at "congratulations, you know the basics!"

Real development requires:

• Navigate to failing test → jump to implementation → fix bug → stage changes → commit
• Refactor function across 3 files using LSP
• Debug by jumping between error logs and source code

Helix Trainer bridges this gap through:

Scientifically-optimized learning (FSRS)

• 20-30% fewer reviews than traditional spaced repetition
• 99.6% better accuracy than older algorithms (tested on 350M+ reviews)
• Identifies YOUR weaknesses and schedules smart practice
• Same algorithm as Anki 23.10+ (research-proven)

Scenario mastery system

Prevents XP farming while ensuring genuine skill development:

• Three-tier progression: Learning (100% XP) → Proficient (50% XP) → Mastered (20% XP)
• Session spam protection: Same-day penalties (100% → 70% → 30%)
• Bounded tracking: 10,000 scenario limit with validation
• Performance benchmarks: <1ms XP calculations, ~288 bytes per scenario

Gamification that works

Duolingo-proven mechanics:

• Daily quests with fresh challenges
• Streak tracking with loss aversion
• XP & levels (exponential scaling)
• Achievements for milestones

Privacy-first architecture

• No cloud services, no internet required
• All data stored locally (~/.config/helix-trainer/)
• No telemetry, tracking, or data collection
• Your learning stays on your machine

Technology stack

Contributing

Contributions welcome! See CONTRIBUTING.md for:

• Development setup and workflow
• Code standards and quality checks
• Pull request process
• Testing requirements

[!CAUTION] Zero-Tolerance Quality Standards: All PRs must pass clippy (with -D warnings), tests, and formatting checks. CI enforces these automatically.

Quick contributor setup:

git clone https://github.com/bug-ops/helix-trainer.git
cd helix-trainer

cargo +nightly fmt
cargo nextest run
cargo clippy --all-targets --all-features -- -D warnings
cargo build --release

Documentation

• CHANGELOG.md — Release history and version notes
• CONTRIBUTING.md — Contribution guidelines
• SECURITY.md — Security policy

FAQ

Acknowledgments

• Helix Editor — For the amazing modal editor
• Ratatui — For the excellent TUI framework
• FSRS Research Team — For the algorithm
• Anki — Inspiration for spaced repetition
• Kenney.nl — For CC0 sound effects

Inspired by Helix's built-in :tutor and decades of learning science research.

License

Licensed under MIT — see LICENSE for details.