alt Hacker NewsEver since I was a scout in the 90s I've been considering how to get in contact with them about discouraging use of the square knot.
The way that loading it crosswise causes it to shift into a double half hitch, turning from a "hold fast" knot to a slipknot... That's funky behavior and should disqualify it from being among the first few knots people learn. If you're using it for its advertised purpose, it's downright dangerous, and the square/granny confusion is just needless pain to discourage a newbie.
If you wanna tie two ropes together and have a less finicky experience, use a fisherman's knot. Which is basically a pair of overhands, each around the other rope.
It's a much more reliable knot for trying two ropes together, lacks the annoying gotchas of the square knot, and for a long list of reasons I won't bore you with here it is a better foundation for learning other knots. (It's no good for drawstrings though, too reliable, no quick release).
The reef knot (square knot in Scouts lingo) is a good binding knot. It's a terrible bend. Scouts teach it as a bend, for some idiotic reason.
Reefing a sail or tying a parcel, a reef knot the role will fulfill. But joining two ends one should only use bends, And a reef knot's a sure way to kill.
⸻Stuart Grainger, ex-Master Mariner, 1985. Referenced from "The Complete Book of Knots" by Geoffrey Budworth.