19 September 2009
Scouting Magazine Announces iPhone App for Boy Scouts
Posted by admin under: Uncategorized .
Say you’re on the bus talking to someone about your days in the Boy Scouts and they ask you about lashings or knots. There’s an app for that. The Boy Scouts of America’s handbook is now available as an iPhone app for $10. Sounds like the iPhone has now become a more essential backpacking item than the handbook because the phone is lighter. Technology marches on!
That’s right. The BSA just released its first-ever app for the iPhone or iPod Touch. For $9.99, you get a digitized, searchable edition of the handbook that fits right into your pocket. It’s the perfect example of the BSA’s new initiative to connect with Scouts through technologies they already use.
The app sounds great, but how does it work? We spent the past week testing it, so follow the jump to find out how it holds up.
Downloading and installation: As you might expect with an app that has the same amount of information as a full-color, 480-page book, the file is quite large. It weighs in at 89.9 megabytes. The downside to this is that it won’t download over a cellular connection—you’ll need to be logged onto a Wi-Fi network to get it.
The reason for its large size is that the handbook is stored entirely on your device instead of on a server, meaning you won’t need any kind of data signal to use the app. In other words, if you’re in the middle of a hike to Mount Phillips and need to look up how to splint a lower-leg fracture, you’ve got the answer even if the nearest cellular tower is miles away.
That’s important. Most of your questions will need to be answered when you can’t get to a phone. Otherwise, you’d just call 911.
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4 Comments so far...
Dan - Scouting News Says:
20 September 2009 at 1:26 pm.
I’m still trying to find someone who will write a full “honest” review on the iphone app. I even offered two people who posted their opinions on Scouts-L to pay the cost of the app.
What I’ve heard so far is that they tried but kind of failed. Instead of making it interactive its basically just an electronic version of the handbook. You can’t store requirement information, they recommend printing the requirements checkoff sheets, and some pages you have to scroll in order to read them.
Jake Curren Says:
9 December 2009 at 3:23 am.
It’s a book. Not a record keeper. not a video game. Just a book. I am grateful for it.
Kazooty Says:
24 January 2010 at 5:02 pm.
I’m intrigued by the hype that BSA places on the “app” for the BSA Handbook and now Scouting Magazine. Most units that I’m associated with (and I’m a District Chairman) don’t allow the use of electronic devices on outings. A second reaction is that the iPhone only works with AT&T, and in my rural area, that generally means that it doesn’t work at all. This would negate any interactive features, I think. The vision of a group of Scouts hiking in the woods, iPhones in hand, rockin’ to their favorite tunes and texting their friends while reviewing rank requirements in the Scout Handbook is a nightmare I think I’d like to avoid.
Will Richmond Says:
27 January 2010 at 11:27 pm.
This is a great app for Boy & Cub scout leaders alike. It gives you all the information that you need in the palm of your hand. I am the Cub Master & Pack leader of Pack 816 and it comes in very useful. It is one of my favorite apps on my phone.
