EtherPad
Etherpad Pro on piratenpad.de
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| Developer(s) | Etherpad Foundation |
|---|---|
| Initial release | November 2008 |
| Repository | github |
| Written in | Javascript |
| Operating system | Cross-platform |
| Available in | English |
| Type | Collaborative real-time editor |
| License | Apache License 2.0 |
| Website | etherpad |
Etherpad (previously known as EtherPad) is a web-based collaborative real-time editor, allowing authors to simultaneously edit a text document, and see all of the participants' edits in real-time, with the ability to display each author's text in their own color. There is also a chat box in the sidebar to allow meta communication.
First launched in November 2008, the software was acquired by Google in December 2009 and released as open source later that month. Several services now use the Etherpad software, including PiratePad, board.net, Telecomix Pad, Framapad, Mozilla Pad (MoPad), PrimaryPad, and QikPad. Further development is coordinated by the Etherpad Foundation.
Anyone can create a new collaborative document, known as a "pad". Each pad has its own URL, and anyone who knows this URL can edit the pad and participate in the associated chats. Password-protected pads are also possible. Each participant is identified by a color and a name.
The software auto-saves the document at regular, short intervals, but participants can permanently save specific versions (checkpoints) at any time. Merging of changes is handled by operational transform. A "time slider" feature allows anyone to explore the history of the pad. The document can be downloaded in plain text, HTML, Open Document, Microsoft Word, or PDF format.
Automated markup of JavaScript code was made available shortly after the launch.
Etherpad itself is implemented in JavaScript, on top of the AppJet platform, with the real-time functionality achieved through Comet streaming. At the time of its launch, Etherpad was the first web application of its kind to achieve true real-time performance, a feat previously only achieved by desktop applications such as SubEthaEdit (for Mac), Gobby, or MoonEdit (both cross-platform). Existing collaborative web editors at the time could only achieve near-real-time performance.
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