For newcomers

At the bottom of each post there is the word "comments". If you click on it you will see comments made by followers, and if you follow the instructions you may also comment and I always welcome that. I have found many people overlook this part of the blog which is often more interesting than the original post!

My blog nick-name is SIR HUGH. I'm not from the aristocracy - my middle name is Hugh which relates to the list of 282 hills in Scotland compiled by Sir Hugh Munro in 1891. I climbed my last one (Sgurr Mor) on 28th June 2009

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Wednesday, 30 September 2020

NHS Covid app

 I have tried to download the NHS Covid 19 app.


The result:



I searched the Internet and find that IPhones 6 and older cannot use the app along with many android models. Hancock has been interviewed and seems to be in denial about the fact  there are, at my guess I admit, probably millions of people who do not have sufficiently up to date mobile phones. Why can't there be some honesty in making these things clear to the public - it is an insult to our intelligence? If they had launched the app informing people that this limitation exists and giving some indication about what was being done about it it may have been received with more respect and the Government may Have retained more credibility. It is just another example of throwing the less fortunate  under the bus. Only those who can afford it can benefit from the app.


Posted by at

17 comments:

  1. bowlandclimber30 September 2020 at 13:32

    I'm relatively IT illiterate, as you know, but there must be some way of making this app work on older versions of phones.
    I have an old Samsung working with Android and it accepts the app no problem. Is it Apple who are at fault for always trying to get their users to update their phones.
    Anyhow I'm not surre you will be any the worse off without it given the chaotic introduction of government ideas.
    Don't worry I'll give you a ring if I turn positive.

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  2. afootinthehills30 September 2020 at 15:09

    I heard it reported many times on Radio 4’s ‘Today’ that the app would only work on iPhone 6S onwards. Seems one flaw amongst many in the shambles that is unfolding. It appears on the surface that it is less of a shambles here in Scotland, but it isn’t.

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  3. Sir Hugh1 October 2020 at 08:43

    BC and Afoot - I accept the fact there there may be technical difficulties in making this thing work universally. My main complaint is the way all this is NOT put across.

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  4. bowlandclimber1 October 2020 at 14:57

    The government has of late not explained many things. When I say the government I really mean Boris or mote likely Cummings acting without due parliamentary scrutiny. The speaker of the house,Sir Lindsay Hoyle a man I respect,has highlighted these problems at PM question time so maybe we will start to get some clarity in the important decisions coming up. If not the public will loose what little confidence they had in the government and I fear more serious repercussions.

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  5. Sir Hugh2 October 2020 at 08:50

    BC - I have similar foreboding - the Brexit thing is looking grim but we hear little about it.

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  6. AlanR2 October 2020 at 15:47

    The chances are that the iPhone 6 hasn’t got the memory capacity to upgrade to iOS 13.5. Unfortunately I’m in the same boat. It’s a stupid situation. Just another thing on the list that didn’t get thought through properly.

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  7. bowlandclimber2 October 2020 at 18:42

    ... and how much did your iPhone 6 cost?

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  8. needlesshaste3 October 2020 at 08:55

    The original app did not work well because it aimed to operate on phones up to ten years old and so could not accurately or reliably identify contacts and was opposed by privacy campaigners: the current version requires the greater functionality of more recent phones to perform its many functions. The balance had to be struck between an app that everyone could use but which was of little use, and one which had the necessary functionality and would be effective amongst the cohorts most likely to be using the scanning feature and tracking capability.
    For vulnerable groups, who more readily conform to guidance, the basic behavioural and hygiene practices, both recommended and mandatory, provide the protection: the app itself gives no such benefit.
    This is one of the difficult balances to be struck in the fight against the spread of the infection.
    This is has been made clear in both official and media information: the apparent lack of such information reported in this blog is probably most likely to be due to the medium used not prioritising matters other than the creation of fear and confusion and the politicisation of all aspects of the epidemic from the outset, rather than providing the full information in a clear and accessible form.

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  9. afootinthehills3 October 2020 at 11:32

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  10. afootinthehills3 October 2020 at 11:33

    Needlesshaste - I don’t think I’ve ever read such an arrogant, condescending comment on someone else’s blog. Deplorable.

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  11. bowlandclimber3 October 2020 at 14:08

    We come back to the original premise - the world beating app doesn't work.

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  12. AlanR3 October 2020 at 14:59

    BC. Nothing, when the wife got an upgrade I got her old phone. Its a great phone and I am reluctant to get a different one.

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  13. AlanR3 October 2020 at 15:00

    BC. Neither does track and trace even if you can "scan in".

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  14. bowlandclimber3 October 2020 at 15:02

    Alan R. Stick with it. Brilliant.

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  15. Sir Hugh4 October 2020 at 09:02

    Needlesshaste - I support use of the app which is demonstrated but the fact that I tried to download it.

    What I am complaining about is the way it was launched. I read the on-line BBC News every morning and I read the on-line version of a responsible newspaper also each morning. I also watch the BBC Six o' Clock News on TV and then the ITV News at Ten almost every day and I was not aware of the fact that the app would not work with iPhone 6 or less (I have a 6.) You are suggesting that the medium (media?) that I use is not properly informing so do I have to subscribe to New Scientist to keep myself informed on what is a matter of urgency to the whole population including Sun readers? I am not sure which media you are getting your information from. On top of all this I saw Hancock being interviewed later and he was suggesting in a cavalier manner, as one who presumably has no need to worry about his personal finances, that folk should spend several hundred pounds updating their phones. That is the attitude that gets up my nose. At the age of 80 I am not sure which of your "cohorts" I have the misfortune to fall into, but presumably that one where you suggest it's matter of do it yourself and hope for the best.

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  16. afootinthehills4 October 2020 at 11:30

    Sir Hugh - A fine reply. I thought you had the iPhone 6S plus though.

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  17. Sir Hugh4 October 2020 at 13:00

    Afoot - You are correct, I do have the 6sPlus so the app should work. Strange. I will retry.

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