mastodon - Collegamento all'originale

It seems to be the norm on the #fediverse to elide context that would be crucial if the uninitiated are to have a hope of understanding. I'm referring here to posts which make comment on current affairs without introducing the events to the reader, opting instead to target as audience those people who are already ‘in the know’.

While this irritates me somewhat, I suppose it's a natural response to the artificially short text limits.

But what purpose do these text limits serve?

#fediverse
in reply to bemmesr

friendica (DFRN) - Collegamento all'originale

Poliverso - notizie dal Fediverso ⁂

@bemmesr Character limits are a brilliant idea to provide a comfort zone for ex-Twitter users, who make up the majority of Fediverse users.
No other software in the Fediverse has these character limits, and, in fact, none of these other software has had the success of Mastodon...
@bemmesr

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in reply to bemmesr

friendica (DFRN) - Collegamento all'originale

Poliverso - notizie dal Fediverso ⁂

@bemmesr in the mass market, the product that minimizes the user's cognitive effort almost always wins, even at the cost of being less powerful.
Users reward what solves a problem immediately, clearly, and without friction, not what offers maximum possibilities.
A simple product requires fewer decisions, is easier to understand, and provides an immediate sense of control. All of this increases perceived value and reduces choice anxiety.

This limitation has helped Mastodon achieve a clear positioning ("it's Twitter, but federated"), albeit a bit misleading (it lacks the features that make Twitter exceptional). Lemmy and Pixelfed had the same luck ("it's Reddit/Instagram, but federated").

More comprehensive software has a much more vague positioning ("Friendica: like Facebook, but even more so," "Misskey: like a social network, but with puppy ears"), which, however, is almost always a mistake in marketing.

The market rewards simplicity, clarity, and reduced cognitive effort, while complexity, even when it offers more possibilities, disorients the user and reduces adoption.

Mastodon, besides working well, being continuously updated, and having incredible app support, isn't successful just for this reason, but simply because it's easier to understand, easier to promote, and easier to use. In short, it has a clear positioning.

@bemmesr
in reply to Poliverso - notizie dal Fediverso ⁂

mastodon - Collegamento all'originale

bemmesr

@notizie it's interesting, though not surprising, that cognitive strain is detrimental to adoption of products. After all, who wants to work hard when they don't have to? From what you say I can understand some of the reasons why certain decisions were made, but personally I don't agree with them. Even as it stands, it's possible to see posts from other instances which exceed the usual character limit, so the supposed problem we're trying to avoid is there anyway.
@Poliverso - notizie dal Fediverso ⁂
in reply to bemmesr

friendica (DFRN) - Collegamento all'originale

Poliverso - notizie dal Fediverso ⁂

@bemmesr Of course, I agree with you, but equally obviously, neither you nor I represent the typical user 😅

And in fact, I'm writing to you from Friendica; I manage this instance in addition to a Lemmy instance and a NodeBB instance. And as if that weren't enough, I manage a Mastodon instance that not only has no character limits but also allows formatted text.

All this doesn't prevent me from being aware that I don't represent the typical user.

@bemmesr
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