usngapp.org Application
Instructions
and
Agreement For Downloading and Use
This Application is a Progressive Web Application (PWA) which uses web browser services to deliver the displayed information. In other words, it is not an “app” in the traditional sense that it is downloaded from an app store and exists as a self-standing piece of software on your mobile device. Instead, by simply entering usngapp.org in your mobile web browser, a browser window will open which displays the U.S. National Grid (USNG) coordinate of your current location. It does this by querying the mobile device’s internal Global Positioning System (GPS) / Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receiver chip, and then displaying that location information as a USNG coordinate in a modified browser window.
First use of this Application requires three things for it to work correctly:
This Application relies on your device’s GPS/GNSS receiver to work. As such, you will need to enable GPS/GNSS location on your device to calculate and display a valid USNG coordinate.
You must be in a location where your mobile device can “see” the GPS/GNSS satellite signals – near a window or outside, as examples.
You must have a valid Wi-Fi connection to the internet to initially enable the app.
After first use of this Application and display of a valid USNG coordinate, a Wi-Fi connection IS NOT REQUIRED. However, in addition to GPS/GNSS services being available, one of the following conditions must exist for the Application to work correctly without a valid Wi-Fi connection:
The Application has been added to the home screen of your Apple or Android mobile, or
The browser window displaying USNG coordinates is saved to your mobile device, or
The browser window displaying USNG coordinates remains open on your mobile device.
DISPLAYED INFORMATION
Both the numbers and the
status line at the bottom of the Application’s display provide an
indication of the quality of the GPS/GNSS coordinate:
Blue numbers have a high confidence.
Red numbers with a line through them, if any, indicate that they are a best guess given the accuracy reported by the GPS/GNSS receiver.
Faded red numbers – as the fading of a red number increases, it indicates a lower confidence in the number.
Orange status text at the bottom of the display indicates the current accuracy and if the GPS/GNSS fixes are too old.
Although efforts have been made to make sure the information from the GPS/GNSS receiver is recent and reliable, there are known cases where your device may display inaccurate location information as though it is valid. This typically occurs before the device has a good GPS/GNSS fix. For example, when the Application is first opened, cached location information is displayed instead of current data. Accordingly, please be sure to wait for your device to obtain a GPS/GNSS fix and to review the orange status text.
OTHER FEATURES
Copy - Be aware that the Copy function of the Application will only copy digits which appear in blue. As an example, the display may show a total of eight (8) digits, but if the last two (2) digits of the easting and northing appear red or red with a line through them, only six (6) digits will be copied and be available for pasting into other applications.
Refresh GPS Location (Search page) - On selection of the Search feature, the currently displayed USNG coordinate will be copied to the Search page. If you subsequently move without switching back to the main page, the coordinates on the Search page will not update. To refresh the displayed location information without returning to the main page, tap the “Refresh GPS Location” arrow.
Search for New USNG Coordinate (Search page) - This feature does not require the entry of a full USNG coordinate for it to work. Entering as few as two digits will cause the Application to generate an appropriately sized grid box in the Result display area immediately below the Search for New USNG Coordinate entry line. The number of digits entered will determine the size of the grid box, and the grid box that will be displayed will be the one with the entered coordinates which is closest to the Application user's current location. Correspondingly, the Result display will show the size of the new grid square in meters and the alternate latitude/longitude coordinates for that grid square. The bolded digits next to the lower left-hand corner of the grid square approximate the USNG coordinate found in the Search for New USNG Coordinate window. A mapped display of the USNG coordinate that was entered is available using any of the “Show on” map buttons.
CAUTION! - This Application only displays the latitude/longitude coordinate for a USNG location using the federal government’s National Search and Rescue Committee (NSARC) approved standard of Degrees, Minutes, Decimal Minutes! Clicking the “Show on Google Maps” feature will open a display which will primarily show latitude/longitude in the format of Degrees, Minutes, Seconds and Decimal Seconds, and secondarily as Degrees, Decimal Minutes. Although these other versions of latitude/longitude, which are not endorsed by NSARC, describe the same location, their use IS NOT INTERCHANGEABLE! If you absolutely must give someone a location using latitude/longitude, make sure the other party clearly understands which version of latitude/longitude is being used. There are incidents where this lack of understanding about which version of latitude/longitude was being used to describe a location, has led to the loss of life!
This Application is only intended for use on mobile devices. Using usngapp.org on desktop computers or other systems with fixed location connections to the internet will create erroneous display of information. This is because the Application is not sensing the location of the user, but it is sensing the location of the internet node connection; something which could be miles away.
This Application is only intended for use within the United States of America and its Territories. Although tests have validated excellent performance in multiple locations in Europe and Asia, individuals using this Application outside the borders of the United States and its Territories do so at their own risk.
As of March 31, 2024, earlier versions of this Application which were sometimes available in app stores have been deprecated and are no longer supported in any way.
Online resources available to help you learn more about the U.S. National Grid:
U.S. National Grid Institute: usngi.org
U.S. National Gird Information Center: usngcenter.org
U.S. National Grid Emergency Location Markers and other USNG products: usngstore.org
Send bug reports, questions, and comments to: info@sharedgeo.org
Last update of this Application occurred on: August 31, 2024.
These Terms and Conditions constitute a legally binding agreement made between you, (“you”, “your” or “user”) whether personally or on behalf of an entity (“you” “your” or “user”) and SharedGeo (“SharedGeo”, “we”, “us” or “our”), concerning your access to and use of the Unites States National Grid (USNG) Application (usngapp.org, the “Application”) and any of its related products and services (collectively, “Services”). You agree that by loading and using the Application, you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by all of these Terms and Conditions. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH ALL OF THESE TERMS and CONDITIONS, THEN YOU ARE EXPRESSLY PROHIBITED FROM USING THE APPLICATION AND YOU MUST DISCONTINUE USE IMMEDIATELY.
From time to time, supplemental terms and conditions may be provided when using the Application and such supplemental terms and conditions are hereby expressly incorporated herein by reference. We reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to make changes or modifications to these Terms and Conditions at any time and for any reason. We will alert you about any changes by updating the “Last Updated” date of these Terms and Conditions and you waive any right to receive specific notice of each such change. It is your responsibility to periodically review these Terms and Conditions to stay informed of updates. You will be subject to -- and will be deemed to have been made aware of and to have accepted -- the changes in any revised Terms and Conditions by your continued use of the Application after the date such revised Terms are loaded.
The information provided on and/or by the Application is not intended for distribution to or use by any person or entity in any jurisdiction or country other than the United States and its territories. Specifically, the Application is not intended for use in jurisdictions and/or foreign countries where such distribution or use would be contrary to law or regulation, or which would subject us to any registration requirement. Accordingly, those persons who choose to access the Application from other locations do so on their own initiative and are solely responsible for compliance with local laws, if and to the extent local laws are applicable.
Provided that you are eligible to use the Application, you are granted a limited license to access and use the Application solely for your personal, non-commercial use. We reserve all rights not expressly granted to you in and to the Application, Content and the Marks (see next section for Content and Marks definitions).
Unless otherwise indicated, the Application is our proprietary property and all source code, databases, functionality, software, designs, and graphics on the Application (collectively, the “Content”) and the trademarks, service marks, and logos contained therein (the “Marks”) are owned or controlled by us (or licensed to us), and are protected by copyright and trademark laws and various other intellectual property rights and unfair competition laws of the United States, foreign jurisdictions, and international conventions. The Content and the Marks are provided on the Application “AS IS” for your information and personal use only. Except as expressly provided in this Agreement, no part of the Application and no Content or Marks, may be copied, reproduced, aggregated, republished, uploaded, posted, publicly displayed, encoded, translated, transmitted, distributed, sold, licensed, or otherwise exploited for any commercial purpose whatsoever, without our express prior written permission.
The following open-source code
has been incorporated into this Application, and its inclusion is
hereby acknowledged:
usng-tools-js (MIT License – James Klassen, Copyright 2011-2024, jklassen@sharedegeo.org)
clipboard (MIT License - Zeno Rocha, Copyright © 2024, hi@zenorocha.com)
Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the “Software”), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED “AS IS”, WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.
We care about data privacy and security. This Application is a Progressive Web Application (PWA) which uses your location data to display your current location as a USNG coordinate. It does not store your location on your device, it does not store any coordinates sent to individual devices, nor does it send your location to anyone. It is designed to be a simple application which can be used to determine your location on the U.S. National Grid. Use of the clipboard function will store location information only to the extent it is used by you to initiate and execute a “copy-paste” action on the Application.
Please be advised the Application is hosted in the United States. If you access the Application from the European Union, Asia, or any other region of the world with laws or other requirements governing personal data collection, use, or disclosure that differ from applicable laws in the United States, then through your use of the Application, you are agreeing to the data policies of the United States.
This cookie policy (“Policy”) describes what cookies are and how they’re being used by the Application and any of its Services.
This Policy is a legally binding agreement between you and SharedGeo. If you are entering into this Policy on behalf of a business or other legal entity, you represent that you have the authority to bind such entity to this Policy, in which case the terms “User”, “you” or “your” shall refer to such entity. If you do not have such authority, or if you do not agree with the terms of this Policy, you must not accept this Policy and may not access and use the Application and Services. You should read this Policy so you can understand the types of cookies we use, the information we collect using cookies and how that information is used. It also describes the choices available to you regarding accepting or declining the use of cookies.
What
are cookies?
Cookies are small pieces of data stored in text files that are saved on your mobile, computer or other devices when websites are loaded in a browser. They are widely used to remember you and your preferences, either for a single visit (through a “session cookie”) or for multiple repeat visits (using a “persistent cookie”).
Session cookies are temporary cookies that are used during the course of your visit to a website, and they expire when you close the web browser.
Persistent cookies are used to remember your preferences within a website and remain on your desktop or mobile device even after you close your browser or restart your computer. They ensure a consistent and efficient experience for you while visit a website.
Cookies may be set by a website (“first-party cookies”), or by third parties, such as those who serve content or provide advertising or analytics services on a website (“third party cookies”). These third parties can recognize you when you visit a website and also when you visit certain other websites.
What type of cookies do we use?
Necessary cookies - Necessary cookies allow us to offer you the best possible experience when accessing and navigating through our Application and using its features. For example, these cookies let us recognize that you have read the terms of use for the Application.
What are your cookie options?
If you don’t like the idea of cookies or certain types of cookies, you can change your browser’s settings to delete cookies that have already been set and to not accept new cookies. Visit internetcookies.com to learn more about how to do this.
Please note, however, that if you delete cookies or do not accept them, you might not be able to use all of the features the Application and Services offer.
Changes and amendments
We reserve the right to modify this Policy or its terms related to the Application and Services at any time at our discretion. When we do, we will revise the updated date at the bottom of this page. We may also provide notice to you in other ways at our discretion, such as through any contact information you may have provided.
An updated version of this Policy will be effective immediately upon the posting of the revised Policy unless otherwise specified. Your continued use of the Application and Services after the effective date of the revised Policy (or such other act specified at that time) will constitute your consent to those changes.
Acceptance of this policy
You acknowledge that you have read this Policy and agree to all its terms and conditions. By accessing and using the Application and Services you agree to be bound by this Policy. If you do not agree to abide by the terms of this Policy, you are not authorized to access or use the Application and Services.
Contacting us
If you have any questions, concerns, or complaints regarding this Policy or the use of cookies, we encourage you to contact us at: info@sharedgeo.org
You may not access or use the Application for any purpose other than that for which we make the Application available. The Application may not be used in connection with any commercial endeavors except those that are specifically endorsed or approved by us.
You agree not to:
systematically retrieve data or other content from the Application to create or compile, directly or indirectly, a collection, compilation, database, or directory without written permission from us,
use the Application to advertise or offer to sell goods and services,
circumvent, disable, or otherwise interfere with security-related features of the Application, including features that prevent or restrict the use or copying of any Content or Software,
engage in unauthorized framing of or linking to the Application,
engage in any automated use of the system, such as using scripts to send comments or messages, or using any data mining, robots, or similar data gathering and extraction tools,
interfere with, disrupt, or create an undue burden on the Application or the networks or services connected to the Application,
attempt to impersonate another user or person or use the username of another user,
use any information obtained from the Application in order to harass, abuse, or harm another person,
use the Application as part of any effort to compete with us or otherwise use the Application and/or the Content for any revenue-generating endeavor or commercial enterprise,
decipher, decompile, disassemble, or reverse engineer any of the software comprising or in any way making up a part of the Application,
attempt to bypass any measures of the Application designed to prevent or restrict access to the Application, or any portion of the Application,
delete the copyright or other proprietary rights notice from any Content,
copy or adapt the Application’s software, including but not limited to Flash, PHP, HTML, JavaScript, or other code,
upload or transmit (or attempt to upload or to transmit) viruses, Trojan horses, or other material, including excessive use of capital letters and spamming (continuous posting of repetitive text), that interferes with any party’s uninterrupted use and enjoyment of the Application or modifies, impairs, disrupts, alters, or interferes with the use, features, functions, operation, or maintenance of the Application,
disparage, tarnish, or otherwise harm, in our opinion, us and/or the Application, and
use the Application in a manner inconsistent with any applicable laws or regulations.
WARRANTIES
WE MAKE NO WARRANTIES OR REPRESENTATIONS ABOUT THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE APPLICATION AND WE WILL ASSUME NO LIABILITY OR RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY (1) ERRORS, MISTAKES, OR INACCURACIES OF CONTENT OR LOCATIONS, (2) PERSONAL INJURY OR PROPERTY DAMAGE, OF ANY NATURE WHATSOEVER, RESULTING FROM YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE APPLICATION, AND (3) ANY INTERRUPTION OR CESSATION OF TRANSMISSION TO OR FROM THE GPS/GNSS SATELLITES AND/OR THE APPLICATION.
THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED “AS IS”, WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.
IN NO EVENT WILL WE OR OUR DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, OR AGENTS BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING LOST PROFIT, LOST REVENUE, LOSS OF DATA, OR OTHER DAMAGES ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE APPLICATION, EVEN IF WE HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. CERTAIN STATE LAWS DO NOT ALLOW LIMITATIONS ON IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF CERTAIN DAMAGES. IF THESE LAWS APPLY TO YOU, SOME OR ALL OF THE ABOVE DISCLAIMERS OR LIMITATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU, AND YOU MAY HAVE ADDITIONAL RIGHTS.
This Agreement shall remain in full force and effect while you use the Application. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OTHER PROVISION OF THESE TERMS OF USE, WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO, IN OUR SOLE DISCRETION AND WITHOUT NOTICE OR LIABILITY, DENY ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE APPLICATION (INCLUDING BLOCKING CERTAIN IP ADDRESSES), TO ANY PERSON FOR ANY REASON OR FOR NO REASON, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION FOR BREACH OF ANY REPRESENTATION, WARRANTY, OR COVENANT CONTAINED IN THESE TERMS OF USE OR OF ANY APPLICABLE LAW OR REGULATION. WE MAY TERMINATE YOUR USE OR PARTICIPATION IN THE APPLICATION OR DELETE YOUR ACCESS WITHOUT WARNING, IN OUR SOLE DISCRETION.
If we terminate or suspend your access for any reason, you are prohibited from accessing and using the Application under your name, a fake or borrowed name, or the name of any third party, even if you may be acting on behalf of the third party. In addition to terminating or suspending your access, we reserve the right to take appropriate legal action, including without limitation pursuing all available legal remedies and injunctive relief.
We reserve the right to change, modify, or remove the contents of the Application at any time or for any reason at our sole discretion without notice. However, we have no obligation to update any information on our Application. We also reserve the right to modify or discontinue all or part of the Application without notice at any time. We will not be liable to you or any third party for any modification, price change, suspension, or discontinuance of the Application.
We cannot guarantee the Application will be available at all times. We may experience hardware, software, or other problems or need to perform maintenance related to the Application, resulting in interruptions, delays, or errors. We reserve the right to change, revise, update, suspend, discontinue, or otherwise modify the Application at any time or for any reason without notice to you. You agree that we have no liability whatsoever for any loss, damage, or inconvenience caused by your inability to access or use the Application during any downtime or discontinuance of the Application. Nothing in these Terms of Use will be construed to obligate us to maintain and support the Application or to supply any corrections, updates, or releases in connection therewith.
The terms and conditions of this Agreement constitute the entire agreement and understanding between you and us. Our failure to exercise or enforce any right or provision shall not operate as a waiver of such right or provision. We may assign any or all of our rights and obligations to others at any time. We shall not be responsible or liable for any loss, damage, delay, or failure to act caused by any cause beyond our reasonable control. If any provision or part of a provision of these terms and conditions is determined to be unlawful, void, or unenforceable, then that provision or part of the provision is deemed severable from these terms and conditions and does not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions. There is no joint venture, partnership, employment or agency relationship created between you and us as a result of this Agreement or use of the Application. You agree that the terms and conditions will not be construed against us by virtue of having drafted them. You hereby waive any and all defenses you may have based on the electronic form of this Agreement and the lack of signing by the parties hereto to execute this Agreement.
In order to resolve a complaint regarding the Application or to receive further information regarding use of the Application, please contact us at: info@sharedgeo.org.
LAST UPDATED
This Agreement and its incorporated Policies were last updated on August 31, 2024.