… the artifact is placed among the tools the actor already uses, and the work they make in it may need to outlast the artifact, the provider or the actor's subscription. Where the work lives is decided before any feature is built on it.
Problem
When the work lives only on the provider’s server, the actor has it only while the provider allows: a closed account, a lost connection or a service that shuts down takes it away. A copy on the device does not settle this on its own. A file in a format only one program can read, or data held in browser storage tied to one website, cannot be taken anywhere else.
Solution
Keep the complete work on the actor’s device as the primary copy, usable without a network or an account, in a form another program can read. Show the actor where the work is and let them take it elsewhere. Where there is a server, use it to sync and back up the work, not as its home.
Continuation
The actor holds a complete copy of their work on their own device, can use it without a network or an account, and can take it to another program if they leave…
All connections
- Precedes
- Identity at the point of need — “Whether the work lives on the provider's server or on the actor's own device, under local-first ownership, decides which of those points need an identity at all.”
Resources & references
- Ink & Switch. Local-first Software
- localfirst.fm (2024). Apps vs files, with Gordon Brander, Peter van Hardenberg and Jess Martin