It's an unspoken assumption that the general population lacks the technical skills, or interests, to join Scuttlebutt. So if we want more of our friends to join this network, we'll have to find less complex ways for them to do so.
The general population can handle technical complexity, though. Think about when the web was first introduced, and the steps necessary for getting online back then:
- Call an internet service provider to come and install the internet in your home.
- Make sure your computer has a modem installed. If not, buy and install a modem.
- Connect this modem to your phoneline, then to your computer.
- Click the small network icon to open the network screen.
- Make sure no one else in the house is on the phone or needs to use the phone.
- Click connect.
- Listen to a series of alien machine noises.
- Learn to recognize the pattern of these melodies. If the computer gets stuck upon a certain melody, or if one familiar one doesn't seem to come, it could indicate a problem with the connection. At this point, move through your troubleshooting steps(not included in this example).
- When the melodic pattern is finished, you are online and ready to start up your browser for the next series of steps.
Despite this technical complexity (and the requirement of additional hardware) the general population were able to get online and usher in a new technological age. Comparatively, our steps are much simpler, but our potential is equally exciting.
The hurdle we face today is not lack of skill, it's depression. It's an alienation from our technical side, and an exhaustion with our devices, that discourages any hope of the new.