Howlr

General

What devices is Howlr available on?

For now, Howlr is only available for Android and iOS.
In the long run, a web version is also in the drawers.

The app is stuck on a blue screen, did it crash?

No. This blue screen is the app trying to download stuff from our servers. On 4G or fast Wi-Fi, it shouldn't last more than a couple seconds.
If it stays stuck there, try with another network (switch Wi-Fi / Cellular).
If it still stays stuck, email us and we will figure things out.

I'm getting a reload pop-up on the home page, why?

This means we have made some improvements to the app that do not require a global app update but just a quick re-download of the front-end bundle.

I have a question or want to talk to someone about something regarding the app, what do?

You can e-mail us at contact@howlr.im
We will usually reply within the next 12 hours, tops.

Is there ever gonna be a premium feature or ads?

No. Never. That is something we promised. We hate ads on apps and we hate premium stuff.
We will only work through Patreon and donations. This way, the ones who wanna support us can do it, and we don't have to force ads on everyone!

Account

Can I use Howlr on multiple devices?

Yes, you can. Howlr is solely Telegram dependant. If your other devices are logged into the same Telegram account as your main device, then Howlr will log you into the same account.

Can I use Howlr if I don't have Telegram?

No. Not for now at least. We use Telegram to create your account and log you in, and to securely track banned users.
More login options will be added in the future.

I don't want to allow the app to use location, is it still gonna work?

Yes it will. But since the whole point of the app is to locate people around you, and let people know you're around, we still need location.
In this case we will use the location provided by your cellular network. Keep in mind that it can be very inaccurate.

I heard Howlr can access my contacts and my calendar, is it true?

No it's not true, the first version of Howlr declared more permissions than required because we used the default set of permissions used by Expo, the framework we use to build Howlr. However any "dangerous" permission requires a validation from the user within the app and Howlr never asks for access to contacts or calendar.
Since version 3.0 of Howlr on Android we trimed down the number of permissions to remove most of the unnecessary ones.

I also heard you had ad-trackers and stuff like that, is it true?

It is true, but we don't use them and we will never use them. Howlr is build on the open-source Expo framework, it is an awesome tool to build complex apps and to deploy them easily. Expo comes with a very wide range of functionnaly, some of them include ad-related things, reporting tools, etc. You can see an exhaustive list of them in the Expo documentation.
With the exception of Sentry (a bug reporting tool) we don't use any of them even though they are still packed within the app. The people at Expo are working on making it possible to remove them entirely (see this thread) but in the meantime it's just dead code within Howlr that is never executed.

Profile

Can I add NSFW pictures in my gallery?

No. Your gallery and your avatar are in public space. Everything must stay clean. You can still send NSFW pictures within the chats tho.
Every single public picture is transfered to the moderation team as soon as it is posted and then accepted or rejected, usually within an hour tops.

Someone has an inappropriate profile or gallery picture, what can I do?

You can go on their profile, and report them through the top right button.
We will review the case and delete the picture if necessary.

Chats

I want to chat with someone but the app says "Waiting for User", what does that mean?

The way Howlr works is simple: You send a chat request to someone, and they decide if they accept the request or not. As long as they haven't accepted it, you won't be able to message them.
This is in place for people who prefer not receiving too many messages from everyone all of a sudden.
You can choose to automatically accept chats in the settings of the app.

All my chat log with someone has disappeared, why?

That means they have deleted their chat with you.