I'd noticed that on my iPod. I assume it's to limit the amount of memory
required.
Bill
On 24/11/2013, at 12:03 PM, John Leonard <> wrote:
> Another observation, it seems odd that you can't resize the plates (ie open
> pinch to zoom in). This isn't a problem on the ipad, but certainly is a
> problem on the iphone.
>
> John Leonard
>
>
> On 23 November 2013 14:11, Roger Giller <> wrote:
>
>> I'm with you Peter,
>> The operative term is "Field" guide. I'd much rather have a small "gadget'
>> in my shirt pocket than try to carry a book, even one of the "compact"
>> editions. That means a backpack or shoulder bag, just something else to
>> annoy you and get in the way as you try to sneak into a better spot for a
>> view.
>> Roger.
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Peter Shute
>> Sent: Friday, 22 November 2013 5:30 PM
>> To: Tony Russell
>> Cc: Birding-Aus
>> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Pizzey & Knight Digital Edition review
>>
>> Gadget or book, I don't care. I just want some way to have a field guide
>> with me all the time. The Morcombe/Stewart guide has freed me from even
>> having to think about packing one, let alone carrying it.
>>
>> People rave about the calls, but they were just an unexpected bonus. The
>> big
>> thing for me was just access to what I'd normally find in a field guide,
>> even when I'm not birding. Access to another one is something I've been
>> looking forward to.
>>
>> Peter Shute
>>
>> Sent from my iPhone
>>
>>> On 22 Nov 2013, at 3:01 pm, "Tony Russell" <>
>> wrote:
>>>
>>> Well said David, you sort of agree with most of my own thoughts. I think
>>> that mostly the old ways of birding are still the best. Nothing like
>> getting
>>> out there and learning from others. Gadgets are mostly unnecessary and
>> just
>>> lead to lazy thinking. All one needs are a scope, binoculars , and a
>> field
>>> guide (book).
>>> T.
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From:
>>> On Behalf Of David
>> Adams
>>> Sent: Friday, 22 November 2013 12:52 PM
>>> To: Birding-Aus
>>> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Pizzey & Knight Digital Edition review
>>>
>>>> I personally don't use any of these electronic gadgets for bird IDs,
>>>> in
>>> fact
>>>> I wouldn't know how to switch one on, let alone cart the thing around
>>>> with me. Isn't it better to really get to know your birds?, then
>>>> these thingamajigs are not needed. Having to carry binoculars is bad
>>>> enough as
>>> it is.
>>>
>>> Gadgets aren't for everyone but one more great tool for getting to really
>>> know your birds. Below are a list of good ways that I've tried, use
>>> regularly, seen others do or heard about:
>>>
>>> * Put a seed tray near your window and watch what comes in closely. (How
>> so
>>> many of us first saw birds as children, I'd assume.)
>>>
>>> * Go out with binoculars and watch birds from a hide, shore, etc.
>>>
>>> * Go out with a guide or group and learn from others. I can't think of
>>> anything more effective.
>>>
>>> * Take others out and show them what you know.
>>>
>>> * Write about what you know, meaning field notes on behavior and field
>>> identification. I don't learn much from saying "I saw a Square-tailed
>> Kite
>>> today" but I would from writing up how I would try and distinguish a
>> Little
>>> Eagle from a Whistling Kite.
>>>
>>> * Sketch or paint what you see! Probably the best technique of all for
>>> individual study...I'm sadly wretched at it. Even still, just making the
>>> effort to transcribe visual details visually can be a real help in
>> improving
>>> your "seeing".
>>>
>>> * Buy better optics ;-) Man, I wish I'd gotten good binoculars sooner.
>>>
>>> * Use a camera to snap pictures and then go home and study the results.
>>> I've gotten a lot from this:
>>>
>>> -- It's very helpful for harder groups as you can often narrow down
>>> something like a pair of peeps to one of 2-4 species. From there you can
>>> study the guides and figure out what field marks are relevant for the
>> next
>>> time.
>>>
>>> -- Huh. I. Could. Have. Sworn. It. Had. Two. *White*. Wing-bars. And. A.
>>> *Yellow*. Bill. Yeah, a picture can keep you honest. A fish-watching
>> friend
>>> said that with the fishes, it is incredibly easy to remember colors in
>>> reverse - she pops up to the surface and narrates a description to try
>> and
>>> get it fixed in her head.
>>>
>>> * Build a database and collect images, sounds and text about the birds. I
>>> don't think this technique is broadly useful but since I'm a programmer,
>> I
>>> end up putting a lot of time into this several times a year.
>> (Particularly
>>> before a trip to a new place.) Apart from helping to learn species, it's
>>> helped me *enormously* learning larger taxonomic and biogeographical
>>> relationships. Anyone can make themselves a series of folders to collect
>>> info about a species, if they like that sort of thing.
>>>
>>> * Go out into the field and wait until you can match sounds to birds.
>> (I'm
>>> really not great at calls..but I slowly get better.)
>>>
>>> * Sonograms...or so I'm told...I've managed to get a copy of "The Sound
>>> Approach to Birding" but it's still sitting on the desk.
>>>
>>> * Get and use an app. Why not? When I first saw a good birding app, I
>>> realized they're the future. They're better than paper:
>>>
>>> -- Integrated sounds.
>>>
>>> -- Plates *and* photographs. I've never loved an all-photo paper guide
>> but
>> I
>>> love my apps with pictures.
>>>
>>> -- Off-line access. (Well, paper has that...)
>>>
>>> -- A structured information space. A lot of phone/tablet apps are, well,
>>> sort of pointless but not apps that create a nice, tight information
>> space.
>>> With a birding app, you can move through data hierarchically, laterally
>>> (like similar species or groups of related birds), geographically (if the
>>> app has the data), or non-sequentially (search for a bird.)
>>>
>>> -- Particularly useful when you travel to a new country where you don't
>> know
>>> the birds. You can study up before you arrive and have a good idea about
>>> calls of common birds and what various groups look like, what habitat
>> they
>>> prefer, etc. Yeah, apps are great for this...paper guides too.
>>>
>>> There are a few advantages to paper guides that are hard to beat:
>>>
>>> -- No batteries.
>>> -- Not so expensive.
>>> -- I find it easier to flip through a paper guide somehow. Particularly
>> for
>>> a country where I don't already know the birds. There's something
>>> hard-to-replace about feeling "wow, 16 plates for raptors!" that just
>>> doesn't come across electronically.
>>>
>>> I'm hoping to get the new iPad Mini because I suspect that it is the
>>> ultimate birding gadget. I still buy, use and carry paper guides...but
>> I'm
>>> reluctant to travel anywhere that doesn't have an electronic guide. And,
>> I
>>> carry fewer paper guides than I used to.
>>>
>>> With all of that said, to each their own. If you find electronic guides
>>> useful, great. If not, that's fine too. Also, no all electronic guides
>> are
>>> created equal any more than paper guides are of identical quality.
>>> ===============================
>>>
>>> To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
>>> send the message:
>>> unsubscribe
>>> (in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
>>> to:
>>>
>>> http://birding-aus.org
>>> ===============================
>>>
>>> ===============================
>>>
>>> To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
>>> send the message:
>>> unsubscribe
>>> (in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
>>> to:
>>>
>>> http://birding-aus.org
>>> ===============================
>>
>>
>> ===============================
>>
>> To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
>> send the message:
>> unsubscribe
>> (in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
>> to:
>>
>> http://birding-aus.org
>> ===============================
>>
>
>
>
> --
> John Leonard
> Canberra
> Australia
> www.jleonard.net
>
> I want to be with the 9,999 other things.
> ===============================
>
> To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
> send the message:
> unsubscribe
> (in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
> to:
>
> http://birding-aus.org
> ===============================
===============================
To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
send the message:
unsubscribe
(in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
to:
http://birding-aus.org
===============================
|
