@atomicpoet @fediverse @Coolmccool That's not what people are asking - they're asking "How does it work *for me*?".
"Like email or phones" again still only explains in the abstract, that you can connect with anyone in the same way as those things. It still doesn't explain how to use it or how it solves the things people would like to solve.
People are asking for a driver's license & you're telling them how a combustion engine turns gasoline into mechanical motion.
@atomicpoet @fediverse @Coolmccool That's what I mean - I think you're missing the point. I don't think anyone is expecting every developer to also be able to explain the usefulness of the fediverse to casual users, but some of us do feel, I think, that there's a lack of fundamental recognition that developer explanations are beside the point as far as most regular people are concerned, which can cause the unwelcoming impression for non-devs that we hear people talk about fairly regularly.
@atomicpoet @fediverse @Coolmccool It doesn't, not even close. It's way too abstract, even for me - I absoutely guarantee you, nobody looking for an alternative to keeping up with friends on Insta or Facebook will be able to connect what you just said to that need / desire, let alone make a decision based on it.
@atomicpoet @fediverse @Coolmccool I think you're missing the point - it's not "what is PF/Masto/whatever", it's "how do they relate to each other, exactly, in a way I can understand & benefit from?" I've been in fedi for a few years & have, in fact, been asking the stupid questions, but I still don't quite understand either...
@atomicpoet @fediverse @Coolmccool Yes, I did - did you not read the rest of the thread? At no point did I say "explain it to me" & neither did Cool, your answer to whom I originally responded to - in fact, I said specifically that I don't expect you to explain it to laypeople if you're on the dev side. All I'm asking is for you - and just as importantly, other readers of this thread - to recognize the explanation gap, that we may become a welcoming place for everyone, not just developers.