So the best thing to do in preparation would be to get an OSM (OpenStreetMap) app that downloads all the cartographical data it needs in one go and so can be used even when off-line. But this will be useless to you if your phone needs to download the map of your surrounding area from the network. As we explore in The Knowledge, GPS will continue working for a period, albeit with diminishing accuracy. Once the mobile networks go down your smartphone will be useless for communication, but you can still use some of its advanced features for the time-being. Apps like Video Downloader and iBolt Downloader will help here. In the same way, YouTube provides a wonderful resource of ‘How To’ videos on crucial skills like starting a fire, spinning thread or constructing a generator – a selection of which I’ve collated together – but you’re going to want to save the clips onto your device’s internal hard drive before the internet fails. This will, of course, become useless as soon as the grid goes down and drags the world wide web with it, so it’d be sensible to also equip your device with a Kindle app and download some key books (see recommended Further Reading) to keep available with you in your pocket at all times, just in case. The RACHEL project is a superb curated repository of education material – science, mathematics and medicine – that are all freely downloadable as pdfs and would make a superb e-library if you’re serious about preparing. And if you want to download the whole of Wikipedia in one highly-compressed file to access completely off-line, you can’t do better than Kiwix. The Wikipedia app greatly eases reading and searching this phenomenal crowd-sourced vat of information, and is something I used an enormous amount for brushing up on general background info whilst researching for the book. Many of these would remain functional and useful even if technological civilisation were ever to collapse – post apocalyptic apps – and you could pick up a portable solar panel to recharge your device indefinitely after the grid goes down and you’re away from a diesel-powered generator. There’s a great selection of apps for both iOS and Android smartphones and tablets that you can use to further explore the themes of The Knowledge.
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