Why Otso

You create across many places, but platforms change, rate limits move, and export tools are an afterthought. Otso helps you keep a durable, portable archive you control, while still meeting people where they are.

Own the source, share widely

• Your site holds the canonical copy. POSSE cross‑posts link back to it.
• PESOS imports bring old posts home so you can search and reuse them.
• Webmention connects conversations without ceding ownership.

Local‑first reliability

• Works offline with SQLite and file assets; easy to back up or sync.
• Snapshots and idempotent commands make big operations safe and reversible.
• Projections are rebuildable, so damage is contained and recoverable.

Standards and interoperability

• Micropub + IndieAuth for publishing and auth; Microformats2 for semantic HTML.
• Plays nicely with IndieWeb tools and other ecosystems.

Understand and control your data

• Transparent, event‑driven internals—see what happened and why.
• Clear privacy rules: public, unlisted, private, secret.
• No secrets in indexes; credentials live in env or OS keychain.

Why not “just Markdown in git”?

Git + Markdown is great for static content. Otso handles streams of activity, imports from APIs, media management, visibility rules, and cross‑posting—with a small database that makes queries and enrichment fast. You can still keep Markdown projections for portability, but a real store gives you power and safety.

• Own your data in a durable local‑first store.
• Publish anywhere while keeping your site as the source.
• Built on open standards (Micropub, IndieAuth, Webmention).
• Extensible plugins and safe operations.