Farmer's Weekly (South Africa)
Blowing in the wind
The Windy app from Windy Weather World measures a number of wind parameters and is a must for anyone who enjoys surfing, sailing, yachting, paragliding or fishing. I’m sure it will help farmers when they need to burn firebreaks too.
The pro version costs R375 a year or R890 for a lifetime licence, and you can sign up through your Facebook account.
Getting started
Using the pull-down menu, you can change the app settings such as speed, distance and air temperature to the units of measurement you desire, for example kilometres instead of miles.
A useful feature is ‘Nearest Spot’, which shows the closest spot recorded on the app. In my case, this is Wriggleswade, a well-known fishing spot near Stutterheim.
You can also generate a list of all the places you want to visit, and the app provides the distance to each.
The ‘Chat’ feature enables you to talk to locals who use the app and ask any questions that might arise.
Areas that do not have a ‘chat’ can be ‘activated’ by pressing the chat button.
The app then automatically generates an email to the developers requesting that this be added.
Avoi ding trouble
The Windy app boasts an accurate wind compass, wind map, wind speed meter, and shows wind gusts and wind directions, making it useful for wind sports enthusiasts, as mentioned.
The pro version has a forecast archive dating from 2012 to 2017, a high-definition wind map with barbs (speed and wind direction), offline mode forecasts of the user’s favourite spots, and nautical charts showing depth, ocean tides and currents.
It also has a storm tracker and wind alerts, which could just help you to stay out of trouble.
For more information, visit facebook.com/windyapp.co or twitter.com/windyapp_co.
Appgrooves.com rates Windy as one of its Top 10 weather apps (out of more than 350). Visit the site for a comprehensive review. • Greg Miles is a livestock farmer and Internet marketer. Email him at farmersweekly@caxton.co.za. Subject line: Online Farmer.