in our community I did a vote on categories vs latest as the default homepage.
The votes were almost exactly 50/50…
So I guess a way for the user to set this preference would be the best…
My question remains; what is the best setting to welcome and onboard newcomers?
The latest page gives them a nice (but I find somewhat confusing) overview of currently debated topics.
The categories page give a nice overview of the different categories that are being discussed; thus explaining the meaning and goal of the forum.