There are different opinions on Beehaw’s registration process. I kind of see how some people would find it dissuasive, specially after most of us are coming from Reddit. But I still think it’s very practical, at least for the time being.
Btw, this is only my opinion as a new user, I don’t know any of the admins/mods. Link to my original comment.
The registration process and their statement on wanting a community based on kindness, respect, etc is why I signed up on Beehaw in the first place. No trolls and such to deal with, dealt with that enough on R*ddit. So, I like it lol
I probably wrote “too much” as I was thrilled to find a place which is working towards kindness and community :)
My general rule of thumb is that things tend to go better if every owner, admin or mod team utilises the approaches which work best for them. If an instance is functioning well, I’m going to start from a place of trust that what they’ve made a good choice for themselves and the existing community. It’s up to me to decide if it’s also a reasonable choice for myself or if somewhere else would be a better match.
I never read the policies before signing up. I just answered the question like a human being would and was accepted within the hour.
Frankly, I think there’s more effort required of the mods than is required of the registrant, but I do appreciate a community with an opinion.
I just went through the registration process and I really liked it. It didn’t go smoothly because of technical problems (the spinning wheel of doom), but this can be fixed.
The fact that users have to read, think and write about the beehaw philosophy makes it far easier to avoid trolls.
Vetting users with a questionnaire is a good idea, allows admins to see who they should let in. What and how a person answers the questions tells a lot about the applicant.
It was quick and easy. It also gave me a bit of comfort knowing that they’re at least doing some vetting to ensure we aren’t overwhelmed with bots, trolls, or other messed up individuals.
I wasnt expecting it. But it made me think about my motivation for joining above and beyond “an alternative to Reddit”. It took a couple of minutes thought while standing in the post office queue! Instead of mindlessly auto completeing another registration page, I actually spent a fraction of my day thinking about why i was doing it. I found it quite fulfilling.
I was just accepted yesterday. I have social anxiety, so a younger, less self-aware version of myself would never have even submitted it. But thank goodness I’ve gotten better at this type of thing. Instead of over-analyzing and writing a huge essay, I timeboxed my response. Thankfully, it seems to have worked.
From what I can tell, I really do align with what the admins are after, here. I hope that it continues to work well.
A lot of comments from people with social anxiety; as someone with social anxiety and aspergers, figured I may as well throw my thoughts into the ring.
I’ve been through the “approval process” dance a few times now, both for Mastodon and Lemmy and honestly, I don’t really find it that bad. The secret is internalizing that mods have so many applications to get through, so they won’t really scrutinize your language or overanalyze it to too much. I know easier said than done, but really, the fact that you’re putting any amount of thought into it is probably more than most people.
Honestly, I think approvals is a good system and should be the norm for social media sites; it slows down trolls/bots ability to make accounts, and IMO is better than all the alternatives. Email is problematic, capchas aren’t really accessible, and screw Instagram requiring you to take a photo of yourself when you sign up. One site I signed up for actually wanted you to ask another user to “vouch” for you as not a troll which means talking to scary strangers.
I think there is a “cultural” miscommunication though. A lot of us are deeply ingrained in “fediverse culture” where this sort of thing is the norm, and so we intuitively understand that it should only be a sentence or two.
However, if you look at where non-fediverse people have seen this type of requirement before? Job applications, university applications, that sort of thing. I think this is why people think that they need to write long, intricately detailed posts saying why they deserve to join what feels like an exclusive club.
I think Beehaw could make it clearer that they are only looking for about three sentences demonstrating that you’ve read the documents (actually, do you need to fully read the documents? It’s a bit unclear), and that you aren’t being “graded”. Out of interest though, would “I just want to lurk and read posts” be acceptable as an answer to the third question?
Thanks for sharing your experience! Before I read your comment I thought it would just keep some people away who wouldn’t adhere to the rules anyway. Having ADHD myself it was just another task to struggle with, nothing out of the ordinary. I put it on my list and did it at a time i could concentrate on it sufficiently.
I think Beehaw could make it clearer that they are only looking for about three sentences demonstrating that you’ve read the documents (actually, do you need to fully read the documents? It’s a bit unclear), and that you aren’t being “graded”.
we did make a few edits so hopefully this is more clear. i don’t want to “give the game away” though so to speak, so unfortunately i’ll have to be mum on the first bit besides what i just said.
Out of interest though, would “I just want to lurk and read posts” be acceptable as an answer to the third question?
we’re pretty generous as long as their whole application isn’t only “i’m gonna lurk” or something.
Hold on. Does instagram actually make you take a photo of yourself to sign up now? lol And some people complaining about having to answer three questions…
It did for me! I made an account a few months ago, and it immediately suspended me and asked for a phone number. I gave it that and then it asked for a photo of me holding a piece of paper with my username.
Think it might have been because I did the cardinal sin of not using a gmail or hotmail email.
But creating an account using my Facebook account and single sign on works, so ehhh.
Screw all these companies wanting access to your phone number… Bleh.
Beehaw’s registration process is quite easy, asking you only to write a few words on why you want to join (which could just be “it seems like a nice instance”), in comparison to other registration processes I’ve seen and done.
I’ve been through registration process where to guarantee that you’ve read the rules and anything required would hide words in the post containing that essential content and then asked you questions of which the answers where those words. Sometimes with the addition on asking you why you wanted to join.
This (Beehaw’s registration process) is nothing in comparison
In my experience, a community with even the most basic and rudimentary filter to join has consistently higher quality people in the community. Kinder, more active, and better posts. A bigger community does NOT mean a better one, often the inverse has been true ime but blah blah analogies aren’t evidence.
I like that the mods are prioritizing healthy growth over just growth. It’s easy to look at number go up and get excited, then to open the flood gates. And whenever a community does that, a bunch of people whom are not wholly interested in the point of the community swoop in and push out the invested crowd.
The only downside would be wanting to answer something more personal, but making a throwaway account isn’t exactly easy with this system. That’s, really, the only downside I can immediately point to.
The process to ask simple questions like these is not a barrier for users looking for honest conversation.
That is one of the facts I did choose Beehaw, because it shows the will for maintain a non-toxic community.
Same. The fact that there’s a bit of reading to do and a few screening questions was a selling point for me personally.
There were rules to read? Can I leave my shirt off?
It’s not like you have to write an essay. I just wrote a couple of sentences and was accepted almost immediately. Took me all of 1 minute total to apply and could post within the hour.
I come from a different point-of-view that I support the question portion, but I did find it hindered me slightly. Only because of my own anxiety, not because it’s a bad idea.
I mostly wanted to reply how the handling of my application was really personable, in case anyone else is lurking and finds it intimidating, like I did for a week or two. It’s not a college thesis and I imagine those running beehaw want more people to make the place more bustling.
I think the little question bit being there will lead to a better environment overall. I’m outing myself, but back in my roleplay forum days the ones with a bit of an application process had better quality engagement. Ymmv, of course.