Why we built ss editor as one stupid-simple HTML file
We had a choice. We could build yet another 60 MB Electron screenshot tool. We said no to all of it. ss editor is ~42 KB. One single HTML file.
The choice
We could slap React + 400 dependencies on it. We could add cloud sync, accounts, AI auto-captions, "smart" cropping. We could make it "the ultimate annotation experience™".
We said no to all of it.
ss editor is ~42 KB. One single HTML file. You open it (even from file://), paste or drop an image, draw arrows/rects/text/blur, hit copy or save. That's literally everything. No install. No login. No telemetry. No server roundtrips. No dark-pattern upsell modal.
Why go this extreme?
1. Instant. Zero friction between "I need to screenshot something" and "done". Most people try it in under 5 seconds and never leave.
2. Trust. You can read the entire source in 60 seconds. There is no hidden analytics script. There is no fetch() call. There is no IndexedDB sneaky storage. You can save the file locally and use it offline for the next 15 years.
3. Forkability. Hate our blur implementation? Change three lines. Want circle annotations? Add them in 10 minutes. Want it to auto-upload to your own S3? You already own the code.
4. Anti-bloat religion. Every extra kilobyte is violence. Every dependency is a liability. Every account creation flow is a user you just lost.
The tradeoffs
Yes, there are tradeoffs. No persistent history. No cloud backup. No collaboration. If you need those things, use a different tool. We're not trying to be everything. We're trying to be the fastest way to annotate an image and get it out of your way.
We think most people — especially developers — actually want this. They want a tool that disappears after they use it. Not one that sends them a re-engagement email three days later.
What's next
ss editor stays a single file. Forever. We might add features but we won't add a backend, accounts, or telemetry. If we break that promise, fork it and call it something else.
Try it at sseditor.pages.dev.