Why does Voiden not have "Teams"?

Instead of building roles, we built around Git - your team structure and collaboration is already there.

Voiden, a free, offline API workspace, says no to SaaS "Teams" features because they're bloated, expensive, and break developer workflows. Git is the real collaboration engine. It's free, familiar, and tied to your codebase.

The Problem: SaaS "Teams" Features == Overhead and Lock-In

Devtools in general, but also API tools, still push "Teams" features as the answer to collaboration. Shared workspaces, real-time edits, cloud-synced dashboards… Sounds great, right? Wrong.

For devs, SaaS solutions around devtools create more problems than they solve.

• Per-seat greed: Adding a teammate means another license fee. Scaling from five to fifty devs? Your budget's toast, and managing access becomes a part-time job.
• Codebase silos: These tools trap your API specs in their cloud platforms, disconnected from your repo. Syncing them feels like duct-taping mismatched systems.
• Version chaos: "Real-time" collaboration invites chaos. Multiple devs editing a spec can cause overwrites or conflicts, with no clear version history to fall back on.

Not convinced? Well, picture this:
For the sake of example, let's imagine that there is an API platform named SaaSman.
Your team's rushing to update an API spec before a sprint deadline, and SaaSman locks out a dev due to a forgotten license tier, and another's changes get lost in a sync error. Hours vanish on fixing permissions and recovering work. That's not collaboration. That's a nightmare. SaaSman's greed could have just cost you a release.

Voiden's Approach: Git as the Collaboration Backbone

Instead of mimicking SaaS tooling, Voiden leans on Git for collaboration.

Why introduce charts nobody asked for, to account for a feature nobody needs, when Git, your trusted and battle-tested tooling, is fully able to handle collaboration without the overhead?

SaaS features add overhead. Git cuts through it.

Here's why:

• Free and scalable: Git is free and scales without restriction. "Add" teammates without worrying about license fees or access tiers.
• Repo-integrated: API specs live as .void Markdown files in your repo, versioned alongside your code. No external platforms or manual syncs required.
• Traceable changes: Git's commits and PRs log every edit to your API specs, preventing overwrites.

You already collaborate on your codebase with the help of some version control systems. Voiden extends that workflow to APIs, letting you define, review, and merge specs using the same tools.

Workflow: Collaborative APIs with Git

Voiden's choice to skip teams and go for the simple solution is neither ideological nor philosophical. It's just practical.

By building on Git, collaboration on APIs becomes a natural extension of your existing workflow, giving you full control over it.

Here's how it works:

Step 1: Define APIs in Markdown

Create API specs in .void Markdown files, stored in your repo (e.g., apis/users/spec.void). These files are lightweight, human-readable, and Git-friendly.

Step 2: Collaborate via Git PRs

Commit your .void files and open a pull request. Teammates review changes using GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket, just like they review code. No proprietary "Teams" interface. Just familiar PR comments and diffs tracking every change.

Step 3: Merge and Publish

Once approved, merge the PR to update the API spec. Git's history ensures every change is traceable, and the spec stays in sync with your codebase. Deploy without SaaS sync errors in sight.

This workflow skips the chaos of tools like SaaSman, where "Teams" features force you into their ecosystem. Git keeps it simple, free, and developer-first.

Why This Wins?

The Git approach isn't a workaround. It's a better way (arguably THE BEST way) to collaborate on all things dev, APIs included.

What sets it apart:

• Zero cost: Git scales to any team size, free of charge. No budget fights, no license tiers, no per-seat charges, just code-like collaboration.
• Offline and secure: Keep sensitive API specs in your repo, not a third-party cloud. Work anywhere, anytime, without sync dependencies.
• Code-synced precision: Git's versioning ties your API specs to your codebase, with every change tracked and reversible.
• No learning curve: Use Git, Markdown, (in-app) system terminal, and skills you already have. No learning curve for yet another SaaS dashboard.

SaaS tools like SaaSman lock you into their world. There are paywalls, silos, and sync errors included. Voiden frees you to spec, test, and document APIs in the same way you deal with your codebase, with Git as the backbone.

Getting Started

Ready to ditch SaaS "Teams" chaos? Here's how to start with Voiden:

• Install Voiden: Download the offline app from voiden.md and set up an API repo.
• Create your first .void file: Start with a single API spec.
• Collaborate via Git: Commit your spec, open a PR, and let your team review it using your existing Git tools.

Join our GitHub Discussions to share feedback and shape Voiden's future.
Download Voiden and start building APIs the right way.