I use Gentoo, I love it, I get to decide what goes on my system, I get to choose to use OpenRC instead of systemd, no bloated software and broken repository (fuck ubuntu for that)

I don't think one need a good idea of what an instance is to use lemmy. It js just like reddit but without reddit mods and decentralized.

By easing the access through abstracting some of the more complicated ideas like instance but focus on the aggregated part, it is possible for your regular people to access.