A sequel to the rant above:

If you are new "here" – it's not a "here" because it is no place, and it is not a "here" because the differences between Twitter and the fediverse are negligible – don't look for an instance that fits your "interests". With that attitude you reiterate the silo you're coming from.

Instead of selecting an instance according to interests or topics, select them according to the tools and possibilities they provide.

If you want content warnings, go to Mastodon. If you need to be able to block and mute other people by yourself, choose a Mastodon instance, not a gnusocial instance. If you want to write longer notices, look for instances that allow for a higher character-number than the usual 500 that Mastodon instances provide. Etc., etc.

Which, on the other hand, means: People in the #fediverse did a terrible job preparing for the arrival of people moving from Twitter to the fediverse (as always).

They either provided lists of topical servers https://joinmastodon.org/en/servers or came up with tech criteria like protocols https://fediverse.party/en/tools/ that are way too advanced for the clicky-layperson.

What we should have done (and should have provided) is an overview and summary (two different things!) of the features between which new users may want to choose.

Remember: Instances are not gated communities (topics) but doors into conversations (tools). The latter requires a different approach and attitude.