A new open-source digital writing and publishing platform has been launched by non-profit group Sourcefabric.

Booktype allows for collaborative editing and writing of books that can be easily outputted to on-demand print services and eReaders such as the Amazon Kindle, Nook, iPad, and more with a few simple clicks.

No extraneous formatting, no writing the same book in 5 different apps; everything one needs for publishing digital copy is provided in the one tool.

Booktype project lead Adam Hyde is excited by the possibilities the tool will create: “You can work with people distributed all over the world to access the skills and knowledge needed to create the books you want. Booktype changes everything.”

“We’re hoping it’s really going to open up publishing for independent publishers but also for organisations that don’t traditionally see themselves as publishers.”

Amongst the features offered by the free tool are: -:

Drag-and-drop interface

Simultaneous editing, live chat and messaging tools

Add images, text formatting, and more

Quick output to pdf, epub, mobi, odt and html formats

Export books ready for Amazon, iBooks, Lulu.com and other print-on-demand or ebook stores

Collaborative tools to engage proofreaders, editors and contributors

Individual book history, versions, clones, editing permissions and license management

Unlike Apple’s recently launched iBooks Author, Booktype isn’t an end user application in the traditional sense. Booktype needs to be installed on a web server and is accessed through a web-browser.

The technical know-how needed to set it up may put off the casually interested, but for pan-location communities looking for a one-stop, all-in multi-user tool the effort required will seem minimal in light of the benefits it offers.

An online demo is available to give interested users a taste of the features and functionality offered by the service (requires account sign up).

For more information on BookType head to the official website @ sourcefabric.org/en/booktype