6 ms·

I had the same issue described in the article... how do you choose a community? It was the first question I had when looking into Mastodon, and a few minutes i

I had the same issue described in the article... how do you choose a community? It was the first question I had when looking into Mastodon, and a few minutes in I closed the tabs. I don't want to choose a community, I want a single place/domain I rely on, I don't care if the backend is decentralised, I want the entry as a new user to be as low as possible, I need to understand the product in a few sentences. They lost me as a potential user, I wonder how many more they lost. That entry barrier (just as with UX / registration forms) has to be as low as possible.

xaduha 3y ago
If you think in these terms you're better off staying on Twitter and that's completely fine.
- websitejanitor 3y ago
  Ordinary people will sign up for Bluesky instead of Mastodon. Removing friction is absolutely essential to growing a user base. Not everyone finds value in signaling how technical they are by overcoming/dealing with FOSS jank
ahelwer 3y ago
If choosing one of several instances requires too high of activation energy then that legitimately is a "you" problem. You've circumscribed your own abilities to such an extent that it limits you to centralized for-profit social networks. > They lost me as a potential user Since mastodon instances don't profit off of users (actually they cost money), this isn't really a tragedy. You're approaching mastodon with a customer mentality. This isn't a sale being made! Nobody is losing out on profiting off your time & attention! This is you choosing whether you want to keep feeding from the intentionally-insanity-causing trough of social networks that monetize attention.
- romwell 3y ago
  >If choosing one of several instances requires too high of activation energy then that legitimately is a "you" problem. No it's not. The reasons why were outlined in the article, but I'll re-iterate them: 1. Choosing a community has long-lasting consequences for the user: -a: Losing an account due to server being unstable or unable to keep up with growth is a risk; -b: Choice of community determines the user's ability to communicate with other users, due to the community whitelist/blacklist nature of moderation. Join a "wrong" community, good luck being seen by anyone; 2. Choice of a server is supposed to reflect the identity of the user, and they will be treated differently on the entire network depending on which community they join -a: The moderators of the instance you join can kick you off the entire network for violating the rules of that community, even if your activity is elsewhere; -b: In addition to other users not being able to interact with you at all if your instance is blacklisted by the admins of another instance, you will be judged by others depending on which instance you join - so you need to know what reputation the users of a community have on the network before joining the network -c: Instance admins have complete control over your account, including the ability to read your messages and kick you off the network because of things you say in your communications, so the user needs to know the reputation of the admins on the network before they join it >> They lost me as a potential user >Since mastodon instances don't profit off of users (actually they cost money), this isn't really a tragedy. Oh right, why does a social network need users for, after all? Are you kidding me? It is a tragedy for a social network if nobody uses it. Social network users aren't just customers - they are also the product, part of the value proposition. Both in their identities and the content they create. Mastodon has far less to offer by design, so it's a no-go for me. You can say "oh what a tragedy", but I'm easily in the top 1% of users on reddit with nonzero karma by either post/comment karma/number of comments/amount of text typed; so people like me are what keeps a platform alive. Because we give others a reason to log in. And since choosing an instance effectively means choosing an audience - yes, it is a hurdle for content creators in particular, and your dismissive attitude is an indicator that it's not an issue that is understood well by fans of the platform. Which is why it's doomed.
  - ahelwer 3y ago
    Some people are fundamentally product-brained and fail to metabolize the concept of federated social media. That's fine, it's better without them. > You can say "oh what a tragedy", but I'm easily in the top 1% of users on reddit with nonzero karma by either post/comment karma/number of comments/amount of text typed; so people like me are what keeps a platform alive. I'm sorry but I audibly laughed when I read this. Mastodon is where you go to hang out with friends, colleagues, and fellow hobbyists. You go there to have a good time and learn from others. People obsessed with building their personal brand or audience or upvote score embody much of what people hate about other forms of social media. The platform is much improved without them.

xaduha 3y ago

If you think in these terms you're better off staying on Twitter and that's completely fine.

websitejanitor 3y ago
Ordinary people will sign up for Bluesky instead of Mastodon. Removing friction is absolutely essential to growing a user base. Not everyone finds value in signaling how technical they are by overcoming/dealing with FOSS jank

ahelwer 3y ago

If choosing one of several instances requires too high of activation energy then that legitimately is a "you" problem. You've circumscribed your own abilities to such an extent that it limits you to centralized for-profit social networks. > They lost me as a potential user Since mastodon instances don't profit off of users (actually they cost money), this isn't really a tragedy. You're approaching mastodon with a customer mentality. This isn't a sale being made! Nobody is losing out on profiting off your time & attention! This is you choosing whether you want to keep feeding from the intentionally-insanity-causing trough of social networks that monetize attention.

romwell 3y ago
>If choosing one of several instances requires too high of activation energy then that legitimately is a "you" problem. No it's not. The reasons why were outlined in the article, but I'll re-iterate them: 1. Choosing a community has long-lasting consequences for the user: -a: Losing an account due to server being unstable or unable to keep up with growth is a risk; -b: Choice of community determines the user's ability to communicate with other users, due to the community whitelist/blacklist nature of moderation. Join a "wrong" community, good luck being seen by anyone; 2. Choice of a server is supposed to reflect the identity of the user, and they will be treated differently on the entire network depending on which community they join -a: The moderators of the instance you join can kick you off the entire network for violating the rules of that community, even if your activity is elsewhere; -b: In addition to other users not being able to interact with you at all if your instance is blacklisted by the admins of another instance, you will be judged by others depending on which instance you join - so you need to know what reputation the users of a community have on the network before joining the network -c: Instance admins have complete control over your account, including the ability to read your messages and kick you off the network because of things you say in your communications, so the user needs to know the reputation of the admins on the network before they join it >> They lost me as a potential user >Since mastodon instances don't profit off of users (actually they cost money), this isn't really a tragedy. Oh right, why does a social network need users for, after all? Are you kidding me? It is a tragedy for a social network if nobody uses it. Social network users aren't just customers - they are also the product, part of the value proposition. Both in their identities and the content they create. Mastodon has far less to offer by design, so it's a no-go for me. You can say "oh what a tragedy", but I'm easily in the top 1% of users on reddit with nonzero karma by either post/comment karma/number of comments/amount of text typed; so people like me are what keeps a platform alive. Because we give others a reason to log in. And since choosing an instance effectively means choosing an audience - yes, it is a hurdle for content creators in particular, and your dismissive attitude is an indicator that it's not an issue that is understood well by fans of the platform. Which is why it's doomed.
- ahelwer 3y ago
  Some people are fundamentally product-brained and fail to metabolize the concept of federated social media. That's fine, it's better without them. > You can say "oh what a tragedy", but I'm easily in the top 1% of users on reddit with nonzero karma by either post/comment karma/number of comments/amount of text typed; so people like me are what keeps a platform alive. I'm sorry but I audibly laughed when I read this. Mastodon is where you go to hang out with friends, colleagues, and fellow hobbyists. You go there to have a good time and learn from others. People obsessed with building their personal brand or audience or upvote score embody much of what people hate about other forms of social media. The platform is much improved without them.