Permanent’s Etherpad Prototype is Ready!

Earlier this year, Permanent embarked on an exciting experiment. Would it be possible to seamlessly integrate a collaborative text editor into Permanent.org? We’re excited to announce that yes, it absolutely is possible, and we’re close to implementing it in Permanent.org!

Generously funded by Grant for the Web, this project successfully integrated Etherpad into Permanent.org, allowing anyone to save and sync a collaborative notepad to their existing Permanent archive. The integration is currently a prototype, and we’re eager to share it with our community. If you’re interested in trying out the integration, sign up to be an Etherpad prototype tester.

For many of us, collaborative text documents are disposable: They’re useful in the context of a meeting, but are quickly forgotten. At Permanent, we don’t think this is always the case. Every document, just like every photo, family tree, or home video, is worthy of preservation as a part of our digital legacy. Our new Etherpad integration makes preserving that work simple and accessible. 

Etherpad integration will give our users a new way to organize and describe their archives. Some of our users already add notes or finding aids to their archives to describe the contents of the archive. Our new Etherpad integration will give all users a built-in way to achieve this. Moreover, contributing to Grant for the Web’s vision directly aligns with Permanent’s vision where people, not corporations, control their own choices, be it about their data, web presence, or legacy. We are proud to have reached this milestone, and we’re looking forward to continuing our partnership with Grant for the Web to continue to evolve the web’s economic model. Follow our progress and learn more about the technical details behind this work on the Grant for the Web Forem.

Are you interested in testing out Permanent’s new Etherpad integration prototype? Sign up to be an Etherpad prototype tester to learn more!