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/
- 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
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
- 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-corelibrary (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/)
Note
Requirements: Terminal with Unicode support. No additional dependencies needed for pre-built binaries.
Download for your platform from Releases:
| Platform | Architecture | Archive |
|---|---|---|
| Linux | x86_64 | helix-trainer-*-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu.tar.gz |
| Linux | x86_64 (static) | helix-trainer-*-x86_64-unknown-linux-musl.tar.gz |
| Linux | ARM64 | helix-trainer-*-aarch64-unknown-linux-gnu.tar.gz |
| Linux | ARM64 (static) | helix-trainer-*-aarch64-unknown-linux-musl.tar.gz |
| macOS | Apple Silicon | helix-trainer-*-aarch64-apple-darwin.tar.gz |
| macOS | Intel | helix-trainer-*-x86_64-apple-darwin.tar.gz |
| Windows | x86_64 | helix-trainer-*-x86_64-pc-windows-msvc.zip |
| Windows | ARM64 | helix-trainer-*-aarch64-pc-windows-msvc.zip |
Extract and run:
# Linux/macOS
tar -xzf helix-trainer-*.tar.gz
cd helix-trainer-*/
./helix-trainer
# Windows: extract .zip and run helix-trainer.exeTip
Verify checksums with sha256sum -c helix-trainer-*.sha256
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-trainerhelix-trainerTip
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:
- Training Mode — Manual scenario selection with detailed feedback
- Arcade Mode — Fast-paced mini-games with time pressure
- Daily Quests — Fresh challenges every day
- Progress Tracking — XP, levels, streaks, mastery progression
- Performance Analytics — Review calendar, mastery stats
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
| Category | Commands |
|---|---|
| Movement | h j k l w b e 0 $ gg ge gh gl gs [p ]p ^ |
| Find/Till | f F t T Alt+. |
| Match Mode | mm (brackets) ms (surround) md (delete surround) mr (replace surround) |
| Text Objects | ma/mi + w W ( [ { < " ' ` p |
| Selection | x X v ; , % s S C K |
| Editing | i a I A o O r c d J > < ~ R |
| Clipboard | y p P |
| Search | / ? n N * |
| View | z zz zt zb zm zj zk |
| Undo/Redo | u U |
| Repeat | . (repeat last action) |
| Count Prefix | 3h 5j 2w (execute N times) |
| Insert Mode | Text input, Backspace, arrow keys, Esc |
All commands powered by helix-core v25.07.1 for 100% accuracy.
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:
- 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)
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
Duolingo-proven mechanics:
- Daily quests with fresh challenges
- Streak tracking with loss aversion
- XP & levels (exponential scaling)
- Achievements for milestones
- 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
| Component | Library |
|---|---|
| TUI Framework | ratatui |
| Terminal I/O | crossterm |
| Async Runtime | tokio |
| Editor Core | helix-core |
| Spaced Repetition | fsrs |
| Audio | rodio |
| Syntax Highlighting | syntect |
| Large Text | tui-big-text |
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- CHANGELOG.md — Release history and version notes
- CONTRIBUTING.md — Contribution guidelines
- SECURITY.md — Security policy
Why not just use :tutor in Helix?
:tutor is excellent for one-time learning. Helix Trainer adds:
- Spaced repetition for long-term retention
- Gamification for daily habit formation
- Progress tracking and analytics
- Multiple game modes for varied practice
They're complementary tools, not competitors.
Why FSRS instead of traditional spaced repetition?
FSRS is 20-30% more efficient (research-proven on 350M+ reviews). It's the same algorithm Anki switched to in v23.10+. We use the best available learning science.
Can I use this offline?
Yes, 100% offline. No internet required, all data local, zero telemetry.
Is this only for Helix?
Yes, Helix-specific. While many commands have similar names, Helix uses a different selection-first model. This trainer is designed specifically for Helix editor workflows.
How do I toggle sound on/off?
Press M on the mode selection screen to toggle audio feedback. Sound settings persist across sessions.
- 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.
Licensed under MIT — see LICENSE for details.