
Ask HN: Essential apps for real life extreme situations? - plolio
What are some essential apps that everyone should have for real life extreme situations, such as war outbreaks or sudden long term disconnectivity from the internet?<p>Assuming one has a small solar module or other means to charge his&#x2F;her phone of course.<p>I know of the &quot;Offline Survival Manual&quot; from ligi and some First Aid apps. But are there any reliable apps for creating mesh networks for communication in case networks are down?
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ktpsns
Don't want to be pessimistic, but I guess all "high tech", especially
customers "internet of things" and mobile devices, will be the first thing to
become unusable bricks in the doomsday scenario. Better keep pen and paper at
hand... Or at least a reliable printer and your old solid notebook ;-)

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catacombs
This.

In the event of a worldwide, cataclysmic event, probably the first thing
that'll go is the Internet and electronic devices. Not immediately but within
a couple weeks.

The best thing is to rely on things that don't need an Internet connection.
Morse code might be worth learning because it requires the smallest medium to
send a message.

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jpindar
Google maps allows you to save maps for offline use, but I'm sure there are
other similar services, or you could just download some images.

The emergency alerts on broadcast TV and radio wouldn't reach most people
today, so it's worthwhile to have the emergency alert apps from such
organizations as the Red Cross, FEMA, and CodeRED; and possibly your local
newspapers and TV stations. I live near a nuclear power plant, so I am also
subscribed to a local grassroots organization that monitors it. Some
organizations also have SMS alerts, which might work when the general internet
doesn't.

Broadcast radio is still important though, so if your phone supports it, get a
real radio tuner app. Nextradio works for fm radio. Since these use your
headphone cable as the antenna, one feature to look for is the option to play
audio through the speaker despite the headphone being plugged in.

I'd be interested in any radio apps that work for other bands. There are many
that claim to receive NOAA radio, police radios etc. but AFAIK they are all
internet streams. (Still worth checking out ahead of time.)

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stevesearer
For maps, I use Gaia GPS for hiking which has a nice collection of
downloadable maps to use while offline.

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Jugurtha
I may be off topic or misunderstanding the question, but apps wouldn't be on
my essential list for _real life extreme situations_.

I'd say physical fitness: the ability to lift things, pull one's own weight
(not bench press an equivalent mass, but actually pull one's body over
obstacles): chin ups or equivalent. Jump, grab wall, pull body over wall, get
to the other side.

The ability to run fast for a period of time. The ability to run at moderate
speed for an extended period of time. The ability to walk for a long period of
time. (real life situation: noWhether we like it or not, if we don't have
these we're more like a burden and rely upon those who love us to
survive.Whether we like it or not, if we don't have these we're more like a
burden and rely upon those who love us to survive. transportation and no
comms, shrug it and walk 20 miles during the night to get home).

The ability to lift someone and walk/run with them.

The ability not to eat for extended periods of time without panicking or going
insane (i.e: not needing to eat every couple of hours, or three meals a day or
becoming intolerable). Does help to have gone a day or two without eating
before just to know one can do it.

Basic self defense (hand to hand).

Knowing how to handle firearms helps (safety, clean, disassemble, reassemble).
Shooting right helps.

"Survival stuff" (ability to make fishing instruments with basic items, traps,
etc. Ability to skin animals helps). Being handy and resourceful in general
(good with hands, manufacturing things and tools, fixing stuff).

Having stashed or acquired valuable things to use to buy things or barter.

Mental resilience, morale control, positivity and determination, and the
ability to radiate this onto others help tremendously.

In the absense of these, we are a burden and depend on those who love us,
appreciate us, or just are in a good mood for our survival.

------
peterbozso
FireChat:
[https://www.opengarden.com/firechat/](https://www.opengarden.com/firechat/)
It's great for the communication scenario you described.

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ktpsns
Is it really that great for the doomsday scenario? If a person is in the same
room and Bluetooth works, I don't need any special app for sharing files. If
it is remote, I don't see how spawning a wide area mesh network should be even
possible with the most recent generation of smartphones. The sending power is
just too small.

