# Beekeeping, there's an app for that?



## Bens-Bees (Sep 18, 2008)

I recently switched to an iphone and am having fun finding all kinds of odd apps, and got to thinking that there's got to be a few beekeeping apps out there. I already found one called "Honeybees!" but it costs $2 and looks to be made for people that haven't yet begun beekeeping... but that might just be the previews of it. I might buy it just because, but I haven't decided for sure yet.

So my question is this, does anybody else have any beekeeping related phone applications they use and would recommend (or recommend against)?


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## melliferal (Aug 30, 2010)

Most bee-related apps in the App Store are trivia or learning apps - including, I believe, the one you mentioned. 

There is a website called Beetight, which is an online hive record-keeping site. The site has a smartphone-compatible page that it calls an "app", although it isn't really an app, you just use your mobile browser to access the page. You can keep fairly comprehensive records on it, and it is tied into your Facebook account; but unless you have WiFi in your apiary (I understand that some people do not, oddly enough), it's going to cost you some data charges. Unless you got one of those nifty unlimited plans, in which case I am insanely jealous.

I recall stumbling upon an app that I _think_ was an actual on-phone hive record tool, but IIRC it wasn't an English-language app, it was German or something.

Basically - no, there's no app for that. It's uncool. I have an iPod Touch that I would love to be able to get a beekeeping app for.


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## brac (Sep 30, 2009)

So on a related note, how you gonna get the propolis off the touch screen?


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## Bens-Bees (Sep 18, 2008)

> how you gonna get the propolis off the touch screen?


Same way I do with my hive tool I imagine... a little turpentine shouldn't hurt the glass anymore than it hurts my hive tool... might disolve any plastics it comes into contact with however... hmm... maybe I should re-think that plan... oh well I'm sure I'll find something that works. I intend to use the camera anyway, so I'd better find a way.



> I recall stumbling upon an app that I think was an actual on-phone hive record tool, but IIRC it wasn't an English-language app, it was German or something.


Ich spreche Deutsch, aber nicht so gut. But since English is a Germanic language, I wonder if the program could be converted to english rather quickly... hmm.

I also wonder what the process for developing an app is... might not be that difficult to put something together.


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## flatfootflukey (Jun 15, 2010)

there is an app called "the app incubator" 
you use it to send in your ideas for an app along with some other info like who would be the target consumer,age group and so on and if its a good idea their IT guys will develop it. you get the credit for it and a small percentage { and i would imagine its a SMALL percentage }


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## crazytranes (Apr 7, 2009)

brac said:


> So on a related note, how you gonna get the propolis off the touch screen?


Put the iPhone/iPod Touch in a sandwich baggie prior to heading out to the apiary? That's what I would try.


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## TripleH (Jun 5, 2010)

Hi,
You might also look into http://www.hivetracks.com It is fairly new free software for tracking your hives. The developer is always looking for suggestions and is still in the creative process. I imagine that he has plans to make it smartphone friendly.
Best,
Tim


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## melliferal (Aug 30, 2010)

TripleH said:


> Hi,
> You might also look into http://www.hivetracks.com It is fairly new free software for tracking your hives. The developer is always looking for suggestions and is still in the creative process. I imagine that he has plans to make it smartphone friendly.
> Best,
> Tim



I love the graphical interface on that site. And the "hive builder" tool. It's way too cool. If they could make an app that interfaces with it I will make sure every beek I know hears about it.


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## jorre (Jun 22, 2015)

If you're not afraid to try something new, I've launched https://www.mybeekeeper.com earlier this month after using it privately. The app is optimised for mobile usage on any platform (iPhone/Android/...) and I'm using it to track inspections from right near my hive. 

If you'd like me to add a certain feature, just let me know and I'll see what I can do while keeping the app as simple as possible.


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## Hops Brewster (Jun 17, 2014)

I help out in apiaries miles from the nearest cell signal. No wi-fi, no data uasge, no app.


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## matthewstiles (Jun 4, 2013)

jorre said:


> If you'd like me to add a certain feature, just let me know and I'll see what I can do


Bulk inspections by yard and ability to export or print history bulk move hives to other yards


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## jorre (Jun 22, 2015)

Hops Brewster said:


> I help out in apiaries miles from the nearest cell signal. No wi-fi, no data uasge, no app.


I get that. For now I'd suggest using something like Beetight, if that still works offline? There's a trade-off when developing these kinds of apps and in this case, I went for simplicity, security and optimisation for smartphones (with internet). I develop apps as well, and I'm sure that the developer of beetight is cursing when he has to release updates when iOS releases another app-breaking update. The same goes for Android and Windows, it's hardly sustainable.

It's a problem I'd like to tackle without the hassle of the app stores, let me think about a possible solution;


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## jorre (Jun 22, 2015)

matthewstiles said:


> Bulk inspections by yard and ability to export or print history bulk move hives to other yards


Can you explain what you mean by bulk inspections? Do you do lots of inspections in one go with many equal results? 
Are you moving around hives for pollination? 

Thanks for the feedback, it's insightful to see how you guys work and on what scale!


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## matthewstiles (Jun 4, 2013)

jorre said:


> Can you explain what you mean by bulk inspections? Do you do lots of inspections in one go with many equal results?
> Are you moving around hives for pollination?


Yes with the "one go... equal results" and possibly in the future with pollination.

It's also a common complaint I've heard about these apps from others. individual inspections seem not as common once you start building up significantly in hive numbers.


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## kilocharlie (Dec 27, 2010)

brac said:


> So on a related note, how you gonna get the propolis off the touch screen?


Make an app for that and I'll sell you some e-toilet paper. :waiting:

How about an app that calculates how fast I'll go broke for having become a beekeeper? :s

I do notice that the "beekeepers" who own iPhone 6's, drive SUV's and wear Prada, Gucci, Oscar De La Renta, Armani, etc., are usually hobbyists with perfect white hives and 2 colonies that fit nicely in one brood box each and talk about catching swarms, whereas folks with 5 flatbeds who wear racing T-shirts and coveralls to social gatherings tend to have 500 colonies that boil out over 3 deep brood boxes (and we're lucky to have internet access twice a week). Yep, there are exceptions, but the trend always struck me as more eminent than most eminent domain cases.


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

>> You might also look into http://www.hivetracks.com. It is fairly new free software ..

Note that Hivetracks is no longer free (unless you registered earlier). For new registrants, Hivetracks has a required fee that is tied to how many hives you manage with their system, currently capped at a maximum of $60 annually.


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## dgrc (May 4, 2015)

mybeekeeper looks interesting but:

What's the fee? 30 days free looks like a fair trial period but that first hit of heroin was free, too.

Privacy policy? I give the app my personally identifying information and then what happens with it?

Security? How safe is the data I give the app? How hackable is the database?

Privacy part two. Who has permission to see the data I upload? What are they allowed to do with it?

Is there a way to export my data in case I want to use it outside the app? And what happens to my data if I stop using (=paying for) the app?


Is it an app or a smartphone-friendly website? What permissions does it need?

Why isn't it sold through an app store? I'd like the added security that it's been reviewed and approved by Google, Apple, Amazon, etc.

Do I have to be connected when I'm entering data or can I be offline and sync later?

As you might have guessed, I work in IT and address these sorts of questions all the time. The core functionality of this "app" looks appealing but for me, the devil's in the details.


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## Dmlehman (May 30, 2015)

I am curious, does selling through Google Play actually impart any added review? I was under the impression that working through Google is ridiculously easy and involves a minimal, if any review. The Apple Store on the other hand, is rigorous enough to discourage people from trying to slip garbage past their sentries.


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## TroyDM (Jul 15, 2014)

I didn’t keep a log of anything on my first year. Now I keep records of my hive inspections and everything I do, religiously. I just use Evernote. Its a free note taking app. I have it on my mac, PC, and my phone. I use it for everything from work, home, grocery lists, and beekeeping. Other than general notes, I’m not sure what else anyone would want to know about beekeeping. I’m sure hive tracks is cool, but I can’t see spending money on something when all I do is take notes…


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## dgrc (May 4, 2015)

Dmlehman said:


> The Apple Store on the other hand, is rigorous enough to discourage people from trying to slip garbage past their sentries.


Apple is indeed miles ahead of Google in that regard. Google's policing is more reactive than proactive.


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## Harley Craig (Sep 18, 2012)

jorre said:


> If you're not afraid to try something new, I've launched https://www.mybeekeeper.com earlier this month after using it privately. The app is optimised for mobile usage on any platform (iPhone/Android/...) and I'm using it to track inspections from right near my hive.
> 
> If you'd like me to add a certain feature, just let me know and I'll see what I can do while keeping the app as simple as possible.



that is really cool. Is there a way to add when a flow starts and stops with the ability to track historical data. it would be wicked cool if over time it would calculate the avg flow date for different apiary locations and could send alert or reminder Check flow in xxxx yard


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## jorre (Jun 22, 2015)

Hi dgrc, those are good questions, let me answer them for you in the quote below:



dgrc said:


> mybeekeeper looks interesting but:
> 
> What's the fee? 30 days free looks like a fair trial period but that first hit of heroin was free, too.
> *The fee is 29€ for a whole year and an unlimited number of hives. That's around half a jar of honey monthly.
> ...


I hope that answers your questions, but please let me know if you have any more! I wish everybody was as intelligent as you are when it comes to picking a software solution, wether you choose to use MyBeekeeper or not. One should ask these questions to every software company they deal with, but that may not always be possible. 

Hope you like the app!

Joris


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## jorre (Jun 22, 2015)

Dmlehman said:


> I am curious, does selling through Google Play actually impart any added review? I was under the impression that working through Google is ridiculously easy and involves a minimal, if any review. The Apple Store on the other hand, is rigorous enough to discourage people from trying to slip garbage past their sentries.


I've developed apps for both and my experience has been that both review processes are easy. Apple is more thorough when it comes to their brand guidelines but really, there is so much crap to be found in the app stores that the review process is more of a check to see if you app starts or not. It's also a way for them to charge developers money more than anything else. But that's just my experience .


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## jorre (Jun 22, 2015)

I use Evernote premium for lots of things and I choose to pay for it because I know it's the only way to keep an app like that a float in the next couple of years. My beekeeping 'godfather' uses paper and that works fine for him. Not for me though, that's why I built the app and decided to make it public after a couple of colleagues asked to use it as well. Just use whatever works best for you!



TroyDM said:


> I didn’t keep a log of anything on my first year. Now I keep records of my hive inspections and everything I do, religiously. I just use Evernote. Its a free note taking app. I have it on my mac, PC, and my phone. I use it for everything from work, home, grocery lists, and beekeeping. Other than general notes, I’m not sure what else anyone would want to know about beekeeping. I’m sure hive tracks is cool, but I can’t see spending money on something when all I do is take notes…


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## jorre (Jun 22, 2015)

Harley Craig said:


> that is really cool. Is there a way to add when a flow starts and stops with the ability to track historical data. it would be wicked cool if over time it would calculate the avg flow date for different apiary locations and could send alert or reminder Check flow in xxxx yard


Not sure what you mean by flow date? What kind of data would you like to see? If it's something that's useful to many beekeepers I'll definitely consider adding that to the app!


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## dgrc (May 4, 2015)

Possibly a duplicate, my connection right now is unreliable. These are great answers, thank you. I'll be signing up as soon as I get back to civilization.


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## Phesic (May 8, 2015)

I'd like an app that allows you up upload data to a server so it could be used when not in an area with a signal. I'd also like to see something that allows you to mark location and important blooms so that nectar flows could be tracked per year. Something with alerts for these flows year to year would also be interesting and contain a lot of useful data.


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## dgrc (May 4, 2015)

Phesic said:


> ...I'd also like to see something that allows you to mark location and important blooms so that nectar flows could be tracked per year. Something with alerts for these flows year to year would also be interesting and contain a lot of useful data.


That's where data sharing across users could be really useful. With enough data, from enough sources, we could all help each other.


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## jorre (Jun 22, 2015)

dgrc said:


> That's where data sharing across users could be really useful. With enough data, from enough sources, we could all help each other.


I'd like to learn more about this, because that sounds really interesting. I'm a beginning beekeeper so I've lots to learn but if I understand correctly, you'd like to know where certain bloom is happening so you can put your hives near the source right?

What would be a good way to mark such bloom? Location + type of plant + period of nectar flow? Something along those lines?


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## jorre (Jun 22, 2015)

Phesic said:


> Something with alerts for these flows year to year would also be interesting and contain a lot of useful data.


I'm a beginner when it comes to keeping bees so excuse my stupid questions . Can you give me an example of such an alert? Right now, the way I see it is that you're looking for something like "Heads up! Plants XYZ are in bloom right now near your hive!"?


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## dgrc (May 4, 2015)

jorre said:


> ...if I understand correctly, you'd like to know where certain bloom is happening so you can put your hives near the source right?...


Something on the order of "I saw nectar source A start blooming at location Y on date mm/dd/yyyy"
"I saw nectar source A stop blooming at location Z date mm/did/yyyy."

More What's coming my way?" than "Where should I move my hives?" At least for we hobbiests.


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## chillardbee (May 26, 2005)

crazytranes said:


> Put the iPhone/iPod Touch in a sandwich baggie prior to heading out to the apiary? That's what I would try.


That is a great tip, thanks. just up graded to a 5s and I want to keep it clean.


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## Phesic (May 8, 2015)

I would like something that divides the US (or wherever) into zones, and then has a bloom notification. Right now my calendar has April 14th as a reminder to look for dandelion blooms for the Illinois area which is what I've heard traditionally marks the beginning of flow for our area. However, further south should already have blooms available for bees before then. An app that has a list of flowers and the ability to mark where you are and the bloom date would be useful, particularly if it refers to a larger database. The forums here do it, but something mobile would be a nice to have.


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## IAmTheWaterbug (Jun 4, 2014)

I'd settle for a simple app that can transcribe dictated notes while I'm out at the hives, without having really short maximum recording times or time-out periods, and without having to touch my phone.

So, ideally, just before I put on my gloves I'd touch Record and put the phone in my pocket. 

45 minutes later I take my gloves off and stop the dictation.

The app will have skipped all the stuff where I'm not actually talking, and gives me a few kB of typed text with timestamps, along with the original audio (so I can correct transcription errors). It would be even better if the app (optionally) uploaded the transcript to the cloud and/or synced it to my PC or Mac so I could do the editing there, including:

1) Global search / replace for specific vocabulary. 
2) Combine two timestamps into one
3) "tag" notes with hive ID, etc.


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## kanikka (Feb 16, 2015)

This isn't a log type app but it might be helpful for a new beekeeper... Bee Health App: http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$Department/deptdocs.nsf/all/prm15490


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