Just like email, you do not need to create multiple accounts to talk to people from other servers, unless they have blocked one another. I am confused, I find it likely that HackerNews readers would know this. Perhaps you're making a point?

> So... don't know if that will ever replace Reddit. You really have to be a bit tech-savvy, and most users of the internet aren't.

I'm sure this is a familiar argument to most of us here. People usually focus on technical solutions, making it easier, one-click, fool-proof. I fear that is a game corporations and centralised services have an advantage in.

I have an alternative. It's not an easy solution, but a social solution to this would be to have "family sysadmins". Someone in the family who is at least slightly tech-savvy, helping the other members of the family set up their accounts. There is no need for the average person to understand federation or to be tech-savvy in this case. In other words, "help your family and friends with their IT stuff instead of putting them in the control of big corporations".