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Hello Global Tea Hut members! As many of you are aware by now, the Global Tea Hut app is up and running and has already facilitated countless connections through tea and modern technology! It has been so inspiring these last two months to watch people create events and groups, submit pictures and videos, and interact in a really beautiful and responsible way through the feeds and other app features. Though there are some bugs to work out and improvements to be made within the app interface, the general feeling is that everyone praises this new medium for connection!
"Our shared experience is quite valuable. Even though we come from many different countries, cultures and tea practices, we are bound by this magazine and community. It's our constant among the ever different lives we lead."
"I love being inspired by the tea photos and seeing how everyone celebrated their relationship with tea that day. I feel as if I am invited into their world and get to savor a sip with them as well."
"I felt such a strong connection to the Global Tea Hut family from the moment I joined. I've connected with many fellow Chajin via other forms of social media and bonded over a shared love of tea and ceremony. The app takes it to a whole new level. Having a place just for our love of this practice is beautiful. Seeing everyone's photos, hearing everyone's stories and watching us connect in person warms my heart and reaffirms why I'm a part of this familial community."
"I get to talk to fellow Chajin everyday! I love that this app is putting all of us in contact with each other, all over the world - allowing us to get to know one another better, share our knowledge and experiences and even get together with Global Tea Hut members you didn't know before!"
"The app is such a great step towards bringing the community together, getting a look at others' tea-lives, sharing information and pictures, getting answers to all the questions you ever had, and best of all, finding other Chajin nearby to meet up for tea."
"Getting a glimpse into the lives of Global Tea Hut members from around the world and how their lives are impacted by tea is what I enjoy most about the app."
We would love to have all Global Tea Hut members interacting through this new medium, so please read on and start connecting with thousands of other tea lovers like you!
The Global Tea Hut app is designed for your iPhone or Android and is a member-only private network, allowing Global Tea Hut members to interact and connect in a safe environment, free of Internet noise, advertisements and other online nonsense. Some of its features include feeds where you can post pictures, comments and videos; events where you can invite other members or join one yourself; and groups so you can engage with like-minded tea lovers! You can also play an "ice breaker" game (iced-tea breaker) to meet new members, start polls, follow other members' posts and send private messages. You can search by location, name and interest, so whether you're at home or on the road, you can always see other members near you. Don't be shy here - this is what the app is all about! Reach out and invite someone over for tea. Though you may have never met before, you'll already have so much in common as Global Tea Hut members, and nothing facilitates connection better than tea. Through tea, make friends! And through the app, share tea!
You'll first need to download the app on your smartphone from the Apple store or Google Play. We also provided a QR download code as part of the June gift, which will redirect you to the appropriate download site. Once downloaded, you'll need to register a new account by typing in your email address and password. The password is: teahut2017. It's the same for all members. Please know that unless you are a Global Tea Hut member and we have verified your email address, you won't be able to register for the app using the password. This is part of what makes it a safe and private experience, and just one more great reason to sign up for Global Tea Hut!
Many members have multiple email addresses. We have first verified the email address associated with your Global Tea Hut subscription. If you would like to have a different one verified, please contact us at globalteahut@gmail.com.
After you've registered using your email address and password, you'll need to make a profile for yourself with a new password that will allow you to sign in securely from your smartphone. Because this is a member-only app, we're asking everyone to list their location when creating their profile, because one of the main features of this app is a search-by-location function that will facilitate more tea gatherings. Currently, if you turn off the location services on your smartphone, your location will show up as "Earth" on the Global Tea Hut app and members won't be able to search for you. You don't need to worry about draining your battery because under the Global Tea Hut app settings, you can change location to "While using the app," which means the app only uses your location when one of its features is visible on screen. We're currently working on alternatives to this because we understand not everyone has their location service on all the time.
After that, it's pretty straightforward! There's already lots of activity and a content-rich environment to search through. Post a comment and introduce yourself to the Global Tea Hut community, check out the already existing groups and events or start your own, see other members near you and search for those afar, or just enjoy the feed of beautiful comments and tea photography, liking them as you go along!
We know not everyone in our community uses a smartphone, like Wu De, for example! There are options, however, to use this app from your desktop or laptop computer. It requires a simple software download, and you'll be able to use the app from your computer. An image of the app will be displayed on your monitor and you'll be able to navigate all the features with your cursor. It's pretty useful even if you have the phone app because typing is so much faster on a keyboard. There are a few different options online. We have tried Bluestacks and Arc Welder. While they are both a little buggy compared to the smartphone version, they definitely work well enough to really enjoy this app from your home computer or laptop. This should help some of you become more active on the app!
Since this app is very much in its beginning stages, we hope to continue refining it to create the best experience possible for our members. We have received lots of feedback on how to improve the app, and updates have already been made as a result. Please continue to let us know how you think things can be improved. There is even an app group within the app itself, where you can post questions or make suggestions. We know there is still a lot of room for improvement, and the app development team is eager to work with us on this.
Here is a list of some of the future upgrades planned so you have something to look forward to!
As an incentive to increase member activity, we would like to offer some bonus teas to members who generate a lot of quality content on the app. Post a daily picture with an inspiring poem; do your best to answer user questions; generate meaningful groups, events or polls that get other members involved; or in any other way you see fit to add to this online community in a beautiful and loving way. We'll make our decisions as fairly as possible and send out some extra tea in your next Global Tea Hut envelope!
We want to make sure everyone understands the Global Tea Hut policy for using the app, which is simple and very much in the same spirit that governs our magazine, Center and community:
Thanks so much for your kindness and tolerance!
