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Please don't repeat the same mistake as Linux (lemmy.world)

submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by mathlad@lemmy.world to c/fediverse@lemmy.world

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The main reason for the Linux operating system not seeing widespread adoption is because of its multitude of distros. Ubuntu, Debian, Arch, Mint... there are just so many choices, just like how when someone asks how to join the Fediverse people will response with "which instance?"

Who the fuck cares about instances and whatnot when an average grandma just wants to make a post on knitting in a supportive community? It really turns people off and without niche communities, there is no way Lemmy will grow any further than its current state.

Without niche communities, what are we going to talk about? Memes? Just programming-related stuff? (I can just surf stackoverflow for that) It can be fun for a while but without diversity, the site will just devolve into boredom and circlejerks. I love this place to death and really want to see it grow, but man, seeing how confusing it can be for an average user makes me anxious for changes.

edit: paragraphs & grammar

edit 2: I'm not saying the Fediverse should be something else. Just like someone here said it better than me, Fediverse can be as complicated under the hood as it wants, but the end user does not need to know that. It must be presented in a way as simple as possible, with plenty of signs and helpful directions.

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[-] elekitty@sh.itjust.works 17 points 1 year ago

Please don't do the one thing that it's meant to do?

What you'll end up with is Threads, do you want Threads?

[-] Die4Ever@programming.dev 6 points 1 year ago

maybe the better way is to tell the person where to signup, not ask them which instance they want to join, you choose for them

[-] DmMacniel@feddit.de 1 points 1 year ago

You mean like join-lemmy.org? Also taking away the option to choose / choosing for them is a very dangerous idea.

[-] Die4Ever@programming.dev 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I don't mean a website, I mean a friend. When I tell my friend to join Lemmy I should just link them direct to an instance for them to join instead of giving them 1000 choices

If the website does want to help you choose then maybe it could just use a simple flow chart or ask some questions to narrow down the choices

[-] Aux@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

It shouldn't be a s dangerous idea. It doesn't matter what email service you're signed for - you can still communicate with any one in the world. It should be the same for Lemmy. Lemmy UI should be improved to better search and present communities from all over the Fediverse. And join-lemmy should have a random link to a single registration page on a random instance. That will not only make the process better for end users, but will also manage the load between instances, making the whole network more resilient.

[-] DmMacniel@feddit.de 2 points 1 year ago

A link to a random instance would be counter productive, since most have a specific focus and some even prefer certain languages. The onboarding process of peertube could be a great way for lemmy I think.

[-] Aux@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

Fair enough. In any case, Lemmy today is not user friendly.

[-] mathlad@lemmy.world -5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Of course I don't want Threads. I'm just saying the user is being bombarded with information at the first step, which is bad product design.

[-] elekitty@sh.itjust.works 6 points 1 year ago

I don't disagree that the Fediverse has an image problem; the sign-up stage could be killing legitimate interest from the average user - I found the instances confusing too when starting out on Mastodon and Lemmy.

But obviously I don't think anybody wants a Threads-type solution.

Maybe, to add on to what u/Die4Ever said about pointing users to an instance, the solution could be to have some sort of sign-up page that isn't tied to an instance. Using a bunch of user-selected inputs (e.g. location, interests, etc.), it selects the best matching instance and the account is created on that instance. This could relieve the confusion at sign-up.

IDK just spitballing.