As it stands now on many clients, if we do not have a relay in common, we cannot communicate, even if we follow one another. This new approach allows clients to look at the profile of the user you're following, contact their relays, and display their notes. It means that essentially we can all use our own relays and not have any relays in common, but still communicate. It's a little slow to get started, but once it's all loaded, it's fine.