Looking for a collaborative notes app
Looking for a collaborative notes app
Hi all, I need your expertise please :)
tldr: I'm looking for something to create and share lists with my wife, but that also allows her to edit them, preferably with a WYSIWYG editor, on both our Android devices and Windows and Linux computers. To complicate things, I help to run a small music festival, and some sort of collaboration tool would be helpful there too. Joplin looks great, but I can't figure out the collaboration without using their server.
The longer version is, I'm taking my family to visit the in-laws, and was making a list of things we need to take. I have complicated medical needs, and my kid is autistic, so there are things that we cannot forget. I realised that a list that we can both work on would be better, and would be something that we could use in the future for things like medical appointments.
While I was looking for some software, I realised that it would also be helpful for the music festival committee.
I'm looking for something that we can edit on any device, and have the changes show up immediately on any other logged in device. I want anyone with permission to be able to edit the document too. Ideally it needs a WYSIWYG editor, and needs to be simple to use once it's set up.
Joplin looks great, but it's not clear whether collaboration is only available through Joplin Cloud, or whether it's available with a self hosted server.
Etherpad and Padland look good, but Etherpad doesn't currently have mobile support, and I can't tell whether Padland is standalone or needs Etherpad to work.
I'm happy to self host something, but the simpler it is to run and use, the better :)
Thanks for reading through all of that :D
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I have been on a similar search.
I don't think Joplin does real-time collaboration, if that is the kind of collaboration you're looking for. If you don't expect you and your wife to edit documents at the same time, it may work for you. For me, I almost exclusively want to real-time edit lists with my partner.
My current system gets around real-time collaboration needs by using 3 obsidian notes in a shared obsidian vault. For example, my partner and I each have a grocery list with a dataview showing the other's list in their own. That way my partner can edit their list and I can see what they're editing while doing the same on mine, thus avoiding collisions. Then, I have an in-store grocery list view that joins the two lists and groups by isle, and we just check off things on a single phone as we put them in the cart.
I would LOVE to get away from this system.
Hedgedoc 2.0 will have an Explore Page when it comes out, and with that, I think it will solve my use case. It has a good-enough mobile interface, and markdown isn't terrible.
For the music festival, have you considered something more robust like a wiki?
That way my partner can edit their list and I can see what they're editing while doing the same on mine, thus avoiding collisions.
Even though you say you want to ditch this system, this is really as clever and thoughtful as it is creative and incredibly determined (in terms of sticking to FOSS to achieve this). You're inspiring!
Unfortunately, Obsidian isn't FOSS, but I do sync it with my own server and it does store everything in plain-text, so when something better comes along it will be easy enough to switch.
Thanks for the kind words, though!
Oh... I didn't know Obsidian isn't FOSS... Hmm, all I can think of is just some sort of read-only file on the other side's end, and opening the two of them in split-screen...
Thanks for replying :)
It doesn't have to be real time, but it would make things a lot easier. We're both trying to get diagnosed with ADHD, and we tend to forget things until something reminds us, so if we get a reminder about a note, we'd both be likely to act on the reminder immediately so that we don't forget again. (It's a fun situation >.< ).
My current system gets around real-time collaboration needs by using 3 obsidian notes in a shared obsidian vault.
Again, with the probable ADHD, that sort of workflow would never work for us. I can understand why you want to get away from it.
Someone else mentioned Hedgedoc, so I'm having another look at it. I mistook it for an online document tool, so I definitely need to read through the site again.
For the festival, I'm mostly thinking of things behind the scenes, like if I need someone to write up some text for the website, I could add it to a note or todo list, and they could see it there, rather than me waiting to send a message in the morning, and them sending one back when they think it's a reasonable time.
Again, with the probable ADHD, that sort of workflow would never work for us. I can understand why you want to get away from it.
I have ADHD. Setting it up took some time and effort, but I haven't had to mess with it since.
To be honest, it sounds complicated, like the sort of thing where I'd miss a step and confuse myself. That might just be me though 🙈