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Honest question: why would you want to download a video from YouTube? The main use case I can think of is you want to watch videos offline on a mobile device bu

Honest question: why would you want to download a video from YouTube? The main use case I can think of is you want to watch videos offline on a mobile device but don't want to pay for a YouTube Red subscription.

kevincox 11y ago
Mostly offline use. It's nice to be able to include them in a presentation. Rarely archiving is useful, especially if you think a video might get taken down. Also sometimes you want to grab a clip, for example if you are including it in a larger video. I don't do it very often (except for mobile watching without burning quite as much battery) but I see a number of use cases.
tombert 11y ago
Well, not wanting to pay for a Youtube Red subscription is one possibility, another is that you want to access Youtube using only open source software, and another is to bypass ads. I actually do pay for Youtube Red, but I like to download my Youtube videos because a) my internet connection is a bit spotty, and b) I like to keep as much as I can open source.
zhte415 11y ago
offlberty.com Sometimes one may be in area of good connectivity, but often not. This is commonplace in countries with limited internet access.
ufo 11y ago
I have shitty internet and there are many times of the day when its hard for me to watch videos without them always buffering. youtube-dl lets me download the videos on the background so I can watch them later at a decent resolution and without all the buffering. youtube-dl is also helpful for other video serivces. For example, twitch.tv doesn't have as good of a CDN on my country as youtube does so youtube-dl is sometimes the only way for me to watch a twitch.tv VOD at decent quality (even in those days when I can watch youtube videos just fine).
mrgoldenbrown 11y ago
Also, YouTube red is only available in some countries.
steauengeglase 11y ago
a.) Long car trips across many state lines with poor coverage and/or limited data plans. b.) People who work in offices or live in places that block YouTube, so they just run the script from some kind of VPS. Honestly, those are the only scenarios I've seen in the wild. It's not like we are still living in the days of Napster.
slang800 11y ago
In addition to offline use, YouTube videos frequently get taken down due to bogus copyright claims (see: http://www.cartoonbrew.com/law/internet-creators-pressuring-youtube-respect-fair-use-laws-137274.html http://www.cartoonbrew.com/law/internet-creators-pressuring-...) or even nuked by their creator (like the "InternetAristocrat" did). I frequently backup entire channels using youtube-dl just to avoid the chance of that content getting destroyed.

kevincox 11y ago

Mostly offline use. It's nice to be able to include them in a presentation. Rarely archiving is useful, especially if you think a video might get taken down. Also sometimes you want to grab a clip, for example if you are including it in a larger video. I don't do it very often (except for mobile watching without burning quite as much battery) but I see a number of use cases.

tombert 11y ago

Well, not wanting to pay for a Youtube Red subscription is one possibility, another is that you want to access Youtube using only open source software, and another is to bypass ads. I actually do pay for Youtube Red, but I like to download my Youtube videos because a) my internet connection is a bit spotty, and b) I like to keep as much as I can open source.

zhte415 11y ago

offlberty.com Sometimes one may be in area of good connectivity, but often not. This is commonplace in countries with limited internet access.

ufo 11y ago

I have shitty internet and there are many times of the day when its hard for me to watch videos without them always buffering. youtube-dl lets me download the videos on the background so I can watch them later at a decent resolution and without all the buffering. youtube-dl is also helpful for other video serivces. For example, twitch.tv doesn't have as good of a CDN on my country as youtube does so youtube-dl is sometimes the only way for me to watch a twitch.tv VOD at decent quality (even in those days when I can watch youtube videos just fine).

mrgoldenbrown 11y ago

Also, YouTube red is only available in some countries.

steauengeglase 11y ago

a.) Long car trips across many state lines with poor coverage and/or limited data plans. b.) People who work in offices or live in places that block YouTube, so they just run the script from some kind of VPS. Honestly, those are the only scenarios I've seen in the wild. It's not like we are still living in the days of Napster.

slang800 11y ago

In addition to offline use, YouTube videos frequently get taken down due to bogus copyright claims (see: http://www.cartoonbrew.com/law/internet-creators-pressuring-youtube-respect-fair-use-laws-137274.html http://www.cartoonbrew.com/law/internet-creators-pressuring-...) or even nuked by their creator (like the "InternetAristocrat" did). I frequently backup entire channels using youtube-dl just to avoid the chance of that content getting destroyed.