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FediThing's posts Post Back to profile
FediThing 🏳️‍🌈

Just a little bit frustrating to read people saying "the Fediverse should have starter packs" when I've spent the last four+ years hand-curating recommended accounts to follow on @FediFollows and fedi.directory

I'm not the only person doing this kind of initiative, the Trunk directory (communitywiki.org/trunk) was the first, and the Fediverse.info directory by @dansup (fediverse.info/explore/people) is an automated way for people to add themselves to suggested lists.

We already have these things on the Fedi, people just need to ask around and discover them, and let their friends know about them.

#Fediverse

12 November at 11:46 | Open on social.chinwag.org
15 comments
Nat Mierau

@FediThing @FediFollows You ARE the starter pack :blobcheerbounce:

All of the folks helping people find others in the fedi are very appreciated

12 November at 11:50 | Open on mstdn.social
Thoralf Will 🇺🇦🇮🇱

@FediThing

It will remain this way unless those recommendations pop up automatically in the default client.

Only nerds will read through wiki pages or the like to find lists.

The average user expects the client to display recommendations all by themselves.

There is no point in discussion here. It's just the way it is.

@FediFollows @dansup

12 November at 11:57 | Open on soc.umrath.net
FediThing 🏳️‍🌈

@thoralf

"There is no point in discussion here. It's just the way it is."

Oh thank you, that's a wonderful way to respond to volunteers who are trying to provide free services for he sake of the community.

You seem to be saying "give up, go home, don't bother, only centralised networks are worth anything."

12 November at 12:00 | Open on social.chinwag.org
Thoralf Will 🇺🇦🇮🇱

@FediThing Would it help you if I would lie to you and tell you to just continue the way it is?

I really appreciate your work. I like it.

But if you really want to reach new users (which I assume you want), you need to find a way to get the content into the clients itself.

12 November at 12:04 | Open on soc.umrath.net
FediThing 🏳️‍🌈

@thoralf

If you go down the path of even having default clients, you will end up enshittifying and the whole point of the Fediverse would be lost.

Anything that centralises this place takes away the point of it existing.

12 November at 12:06 | Open on social.chinwag.org
FediThing 🏳️‍🌈

p.s. The very first sentence on fedi.directory has been on there for years before bluesky and reads:

"This is a human-curated small selection of interesting accounts to help you get started on Mastodon and the Fediverse. "

How is that not a starter pack?

12 November at 11:58 | Open on social.chinwag.org
Emma (IPG)

@FediThing your (very cool, i've recommended it before) website is very much the same idea as a "starter pack" but what people are complaining about is it's not built in, people still have to go out of their way and find it, and the average joe can't just build their own unlike bsky starter packs

we don't really "have starter packs on fedi" because people can build websites that link to other people... we need to actually have it as an easy feature anyone can use to match

12 November at 12:03 | Open on wetdry.world
OkazuYuri

@FediThing @FediFollows @dansup Thank you for your efforts in that regard.

What people mean, of course, is that they wish Mastodon made it easy, like Bsky does.

That innovation, along with block lists may well be what make Bluesky the predominant social. It's #2 right now behind FB.

12 November at 12:00 | Open on mastodon.social
FediThing 🏳️‍🌈

@EricaFriedman @FediFollows @dansup

That really isn't what they're saying. They're saying they think starter packs don't exist at all.

12 November at 12:04 | Open on social.chinwag.org
El Duvelle

@FediThing @FediFollows @dansup
First, thank you for your work on this! We all really appreciate it!

The problem with something that "people just need to ask around and discover" is that it requires effort and initiative on the part of the user. The reason why people seem to love those Starter Packs is that it requires no effort. This is another example where Mastodon / the fediverse requires more effort than their competition and it is one of the things that drive people away.

If there was a way to convert your curated accounts into public Lists that people could follow in one-click, that would be really great. Until then it just makes sense from a human point of view that people will prefer a "starter pack" to having to go to a separate website, look for a theme they like, then, copy paste individual account names into their mastodon app and click follow (*100 times or more). 😕

@FediThing @FediFollows @dansup
First, thank you for your work on this! We all really appreciate it!

The problem with something that "people just need to ask around and discover" is that it requires effort and initiative on the part of the user. The reason why people seem to love those Starter Packs is that it requires no effort. This is another example where Mastodon / the fediverse requires more effort than their competition and it is one of the things that drive people away.

12 November at 12:00 | Open on neuromatch.social
FediThing 🏳️‍🌈

@elduvelle

That's not what people are saying though.

They're not saying Fedi starter packs should be one click. If they were, I'd agree with them, it would be great.

They're saying Fedi starter packs don't exist at all.

12 November at 12:03 | Open on social.chinwag.org
El Duvelle

@FediThing
I guess it depends if you consider that the one-click is a defining feature of a starter pack or not; I would say it is. But I also agree with you that we should advertise the Fedi directory and other similar things more, since that's the only thing that we have for now.

12 November at 12:07 | Open on neuromatch.social
Natasha Nox 🇺🇦🇵🇸

@FediThing @FediFollows @dansup Understandable! Unfortunately having it tightly integrated is a huge perk, and Eugen isn't even properly working with PRs to make Mastodon better as it seems… 😔
Having the main entry point of new users (app stores) under control of a BDFL ("benevolent dictator for life") who's rather bad at his job is a huge problem. Third party projects like yours will most likely not gain sufficient reach without his support.

12 November at 12:02 | Open on chaos.social
dona | commissions open!

@FediThing Thank you for making those 💕 I hate bsky starter packs, this is a much better way to do it.

12 November at 12:05 | Open on mastodon.art
Sonhasherd

@FediThing @FediFollows @dansup

I recently joined and had a little trouble at first. Thank you for helping me get started.

12 November at 12:06 | Open on a2mi.social
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