it's been better marketed, and people struggle with the concept of federation and picking a server. and I guess the invite-only, artificial exclusivity strat has actually paid off for them initially, unlike for Google+.

also, a matter of culture. I've seen many newcomers complain about how some long time users act as HOA, reminding everyone to act according to the long-standing rules. many people of colour have experience many forms of racist behaviour, too, which has driven some communities away.

oh, and the federation/defederation business sometimes gets way too messy, which [cynic mode on] makes it difficult for people who want their Personal Brand™ to gain as many followers as possible over the entire network.

[–] TexasDrunk@lemmy.world 14 points 1 day ago

people struggle with the concept of federation and picking a server

This is a HUGE reason. I didn't know when I first signed up for Lemmy that I was on what is essentially a tankie instance. I didn't know when I signed up for Pixelfed that I wasn't going to be able to see shit because the first server I signed up for wasn't really federated with anyone and I've mostly given up on it. I still can't see a bunch of stuff on Mastodon without switching through several accounts with no rhyme or reason.

I've said before that I obviously like it here because I'm using the services, but it's not easy. Most people don't know about the fediverse, and most of those that do want to be passive about maintaining their social media. Most of the fediverse is built for nerds.

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