Serious history buffs won’t be satisfied, but for the rest of us dabblers, the US-History app is a worthwhile sleep aide.
It’s about an hour-long PowerPoint-styled YouTube video dictating dates and short descriptions of United States’ history from 1492 to 2009. Presidencies, military actions and other events that affected the nation are presented in this voice-over app. It’s not in-depth, but it is like a book-on-tape version of an American history outline.
Do you remember the Iran-Contra affair? Do you know what happened with Libya in the 1980s? What do your recall about President Gerald Ford? The US-History app can refresh your memory.
What this app will not do is provide a complete explanation of events for people who have no prior knowledge of them.
The narration is slightly more exciting than the lecture given by the economics teacher played by Ben Stein in the film “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” and a few of the historical high points are questionable, such as the introduction of the iPhone in 2007. Is that really on the same level as the beginning of World War II?
Still, the US-History app, released by Sequens in Sept. 2009, is a decent outline on tape, and will put you to sleep with information that is more worthwhile than the latest Hollywood gossip.
All together, such a bare-bones review of U.S. history feels more comfortable in the 99 cent range, as opposed to its current $1.99 price tag. But if you feel like getting a quick brush-up on your history lessons, the US-History app is the best solution.
