What's a good freeware real-time collaborative writing tool?

November 6, 2005 11:10 AM

Is there a free application (web-based or otherwise) available that lets you type something with other people? Not Writeboard - something where you can actually see other people typing and erasing with you in real time.
posted by Laugh_track to computers & internet (8 comments total)

For mac, SubEthaEdit is good. I'm not familiar with similar applications for the PC.
posted by necessitas at 11:21 AM on November 6, 2005

What you want is a "collaborative editor". Wikipedia has a bunch of links to them. If you're on a Mac, SubEthaEdit, as necessitas says. Otherwise, probably Gobby or MoonEdit is what you want.
posted by pocams at 11:41 AM on November 6, 2005

ICQ did(does?) this.
posted by devilsbrigade at 11:51 AM on November 6, 2005

Microsoft's old favorite NetMeeting had application sharing, and I believe there's a decent form of application sharing built into the new MSN messenger. You could also use XP's built-in "request assistance" functionality, wherein a user can connect to your system and control certain functions.
posted by disillusioned at 12:04 PM on November 6, 2005

Just install VNC. (There are many flavors, I prefer tightvnc.)

One person runs the word processor then starts the VNC server, the other runs the VNC client and connects to that person's computer. Now you both see what's on the screen and you can both use the mouse and keyboard. Normally this situation of fighting over who's going to mouse/type is not what you want (and VNC has options for dealing with this) but in your case it seems like exactly what you want.

With this you use whatever word processor you want - notepad, Word, whatever. It would help a great deal to have some kind of out of band communication though, so you might consider using something like skype so that you can both communicate while sharing the KB+mouse.

VNC can work through a Java-enabled web browser - so you don't even have to install the VNC client. But you will have to install the VNC server on one of the two ends.
posted by Rhomboid at 2:36 PM on November 6, 2005

Try this: Jybe. It's a collaborative web browser tool, and you can see what the other person is typing.
posted by marc1919 at 6:23 PM on November 6, 2005

on unix there is "talk" and also "kibitz". The later actually gives them control of your shell. The former is the original "instant messanger". Talk seems to have come with my mac. kibitz should be standard on unix.
posted by about_time at 3:49 AM on November 7, 2005

http://www.imaginationcubed.com/LaunchPage
posted by ykjay at 11:59 AM on November 9, 2005