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Michał "rysiek" Woźniak · 🇺🇦's posts Post Back to profile
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Tim Chambers

@strypey @rysiek @FediThing

Anyone is free to defederate anyone, but everyone can ask "to what end?"

Defederation is a fundamentally self-defeating tactic to fighting centralization. And when does it stop? The top 3 largest servers etc? Top 10?

Much better: focus on growing the middle and lower end serers than blocking the big.

15 May 2023 at 14:25 | Wall-to-wall | Open on indieweb.social
4 comments
FediThing replied to Tim

@tchambers @strypey @rysiek

There's a danger is that the more m.s grows the more the network effect will kick in.

I'm often having to deal with people on @feditips who think m.s is better because it's where everyone is going anyway.

There could be a feedback loop where growth causes growth.

Also, as m.s gets bigger there's more chance of it being sold to someone worse. Eugen might change, or get bored, or get an offer he cannot refuse (not mafia, but just a lot of money 😁 ).

15 May 2023 at 14:59 | Open on tech.lgbt
FediThing replied to FediThing

@tchambers @strypey @rysiek @feditips

Growing middle and low ends is what used to happen on the old onboarding, where it asked people to choose a server.

It no longer does that, and people are no longer being driven to middle and low ends.

That alone should be cause for concern.

15 May 2023 at 15:01 | Open on tech.lgbt
Tim Chambers replied to FediThing

@FediThing @strypey @rysiek @feditips

The proper use of "network effects" should be to rally the thousands of mid-range and smaller servers to grow, and to encourage users to migrate to them from M.S. not to balkanize or fragment the Fedi.

Onboarding doesn't only happen at the JoinMastodon level unless folks don't push it at the local servers.

BTW: the new onboarding now only apply to the mobile app, right, the web UI is unchanged? And don't most use other apps now (Ivory, icebubes etc)?

15 May 2023 at 15:06 | Open on indieweb.social
FediThing replied to Tim

@tchambers @strypey @rysiek

As far as I can tell, vast majority of new people sign up on the official app. That's why I am so concerned.

At least on feditips, most new people who talk to me are unaware there even are any other apps. Many aren't aware they can use website at all, they call Mastodon "the app" or "this app".

As far as I can tell, the membership flow is now this:

1. Hear about a social network
2. Look it up on their phone's app store
3. Install the official app
4. Sign up via the official app

People have been trained by years on Twitter, Facebook, Insta, Tiktok etc to think that the concepts of social network and apps and official apps are all one and the same thing.

This is why I think commercial platforms started to shut down or severely restrict APIs for third parties, to encourage this official app flow.

@tchambers @strypey @rysiek

As far as I can tell, vast majority of new people sign up on the official app. That's why I am so concerned.

At least on feditips, most new people who talk to me are unaware there even are any other apps. Many aren't aware they can use website at all, they call Mastodon "the app" or "this app".

15 May 2023 at 15:10 | Open on tech.lgbt
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