I really don’t use the official #Mastodon iOS app so I hadn’t seen this change but I took a look and I was quite surprised 😯 by this. Mastodon, and the #Fediverse by design, are supposed to be decentralized. That’s what makes them so great.
But, on the official Mastodon app, the join mastodon.social button obviously gears ones, especially those new to Mastodon, to that instance. The “join other servers” button can easily be missed.
@kylewritescode@fediversenews I think it’s a good practice. Many people don’t want the hassle of having to choose a server. There’s a saying, “Don’t make me choose, but let me pick.” When there is an overwhelming amount of choices, designers can reduce the decision overload by having a default choice but still allow users to refine further if desired.
@kylewritescode@fediversenews FWIW I see the far bigger risk to the fediverse right now as being too many people drop off at the "pick a server" step. I'm confident that decentralization will persist, as it should.
@davidslifka@fediversenews There has to be a better way to guide newcomers through that process. To ease the anxiety of picking a server. Like a tutorial of why that’s there, what’s the reason, etc. 3rd part apps have it.
@kylewritescode the question is, which process? I posit we are shooting ourselves in the foot with onboarding if we don’t include all Fediverse options as well as Masto. People are winding up on Masto and only months in realizing that it wasn’t actually the best fit for them. And while you can move from one to another, the loss of data remains real.
@kylewritescode@davidslifka@fediversenews 3rd party apps have the luxury of being niche tools self-selected by people who have likely already tried the official app and wanted more features. Power users, basically.
I get what you’re saying — and maybe this could be improved a bit — but the “pick a server” thing is a major impediment for some people, and once you get to the point of needing a tutorial you’re going to lose a lot of people.
It’s clear that they are making the choice easy for new users who will get stuck on this step, the button itself is the same size as the default option. Not tucked away somewhere obscure.
Nobody who might want to use a different server will be stopped, and there is a (similarly prominent) “Learn more” button for people who need help.
@kylewritescode@fediversenews i believe this was in response to the feedback that newcomers often feel overwhelmed by having to choose an instance. So it was suggested that a 'landing platform by default' would lower the threshold, and @Gargron has mentioned wanting to pick this up for this reason (in an interview?)
@greenback@fediversenews@Gargron Yeah I remember that but there has to be a better way implemented other than this. Better way to ease the anxiety of newcomers to pick a server to better fit their needs, hobbies. Tutorial within the app that guides them through the process. 3rd party apps do this.
@kylewritescode@fediversenews@Gargron Interesting! I wonder if the mere fact of having to make a decision leads people to drop off, but any support like seems useful
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