I think it's plausible that it could have a positive effect for noobs actually. On boarding is always going to take a little time and new users expect to have to take a few minutes to get instructed or feel their way around. The proposal here is minimal and actually helpful, I think there will be tolerance of it.

Additionally a little extra instruction could make new users feel less confused and helped out a little, which might translate to them sticking around for those crucial first few minutes, hours and days to get hooked.

It's definitely true that Steemit is not for everyone but I think we're losing some people because they don't know how it "works" (as in, what other users expect and reward) and have misaligned expectations. I think that's the intention.