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I use the same youtube plugin mentioned in the article, and watch many videos at 2.5x-3.0x speed, for the exact reason that you state. There is a lot of "filler

by daenz 5y ago

I use the same youtube plugin mentioned in the article, and watch many videos at 2.5x-3.0x speed, for the exact reason that you state. There is a lot of "filler" content that I either a) already know or b) is not relevant to what I'm trying to learn. I'm really just trying to get through that content quickly. When I get to some really dense portion though, I will turn the speed down to 1x to learn it.

thepasswordis 5y ago
Which addon are you using for youtube?
- Topgamer7 5y ago
  Enhancer for Youtuber
  - michaelcampbell 5y ago
    This is a game changer.
- razh 5y ago
  Ilya Grigorik's Video Speed Controller? https://github.com/igrigorik/videospeed https://github.com/igrigorik/videospeed
- gonehome 5y ago
  I just modify it directly in the console (I have to search to look up the command every time).
  - CompuHacker 5y ago
    Hit the Up arrow key in the console; in Firefox at least, command history persists across sessions. For reference; $('video').playbackRate=3.33 The playback engine mutes audio below 0.25x and above 4x, not configurable.
- vbezhenar 5y ago
  "<"/">" buttons decrease/increase playback speed (up to 2.0).
- zoul 5y ago
  For Safari there’s Dynamo, too, that lets you skip ads apart from changing the speed: https://dynamoformac.com/ https://dynamoformac.com/ (I am the author.)
- daenz 5y ago
  https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/youtube-playback-speed-co/hdannnflhlmdablckfkjpleikpphncik?hl=en-US https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/youtube-playback-s... But I suspect they're all mostly similar
- jholman 5y ago
  I wrote a bookmarklet. Works on all non-iframe audio and video. javascript:void%20function(){document.querySelector(%22video,audio%22).playbackRate=parseFloat(prompt(%22Set%20the%20playback rate%22))}(); Here's a non-interactive version javascript:void%20function(){document.querySelector(%22audio,video%22).playbackRate=2.7}();
gumby 5y ago
> When I get to some really dense portion though, I will turn the speed down to 1x to learn it. An alternative that often works is to open the transcript and simply read it. If you find something unclear you can click to jump to that point. Coursera classes have this feature too. Obviously doesn't work for everything, but it's especially useful when you want to know more about a subject you already know about (say a programming language you've used but never formally learnt). If I can't do this I usually just close the tab -- the information rate of a video is typically quite low.
- saghm 5y ago
  I've noticed that I'm fairly unusual in my generation (late millennial) in that I strongly prefer to consume information through reading compared to listening or watching. My brothers and friends and girlfriend all love stuff like podcasts or casual YouTube watching, but I find that the increased effort needed to arbitrarily change speed or skip around always makes me end up not retaining or enjoying the content I consume as much.
  - tempestn 5y ago
    It depends on the type of information, for me. I love podcasts (history, policy, some news) but when I'm trying to research a topic or find instructions on something, or that kind of thing, I also vastly prefer text. Kind of drives me crazy when the most relevant source I can find is a 15 minute youtube video explaining something that could be distilled into a paragraph of text.
    - Thlom 5y ago
      Same. Especially Youtube videos explaining and showing something really simple that takes like 5 seconds but they go on for 10-15 minutes. I suspect it has something to do with Youtubes algorithms that encourages creators to make long videos.
      - pbhjpbhj 5y ago
        In part. There was definitely a 10 min target time for a long while. However, a lot of TV shows - particularly USA ones seem to needlessly repeat everything like there running a lecture for amnesiacs. Here's what we're going to say in the first part, here's the first part, we say what we said we would, now a recap, then a break so we review the whole first part ... now we're 10 minutes into the show and we've seen about two minutes of unique footage. It's harrowing -- I'll take overdrawn explanations in preference to that.
elil17 5y ago
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/sponsorblock/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/sponsorblock/ This lets you skip filler content automatically for many popular videos.
- nextlevelwizard 5y ago
  It is more that these days everything is a video. Even things that should be two to three paragraphs of text or maybe a picture or two.
  - aspyct 5y ago
    I agree with this, though it depends on what you're learning and what you already know. For example, I do not care for videos about code. I'm experienced in that domain and I want to get right into the meat of things: scroll to the appropriate paragraph, see the example I'm looking for, and move one. I could see why a beginner would need a slower pace with more "filler" explanation and background information. Videos are a nice format for this, because they allow one to just sit back like we did at school and take in the information. But that's only considering programming. Other domains are better suited to videos. For example, visual arts in general: painting, photography, filmmaking... I couldn't imagine explaining a picture with words only, or a human interaction with pictures only. Perhaps when I have more experience, but for now, I like videos.
    - nextlevelwizard 5y ago
      It is just sad when I you search for "how to do X in Linux" you get a video in search results first and only second some article where you can actually copy-paste the commands
    - fouric 5y ago
      > I could see why a beginner would need a slower pace with more "filler" explanation and background information. But that's what links are for - allowing you to deduplicate information by merely providing a link to some other content instead of replicating it entirely. Moreover, you don't know each beginner's background or desired pace. "Fixing" a certain set of information into the video is worse than providing the appropriate links that allow the beginner to read exactly what they're unfamiliar with, and videos hard-code the pace in a way that written material is not - they're the opposite of what a beginner needs. > Videos are a nice format for this, because they allow one to just sit back like we did at school and take in the information. The article specifically addresses this - passive consumption (which better describes videos than reading) is scientifically shown to be less effective for learning than active consumption: > One study[1] found that active learning makes students think they’re learning less even when they’re actually learning more. That’s one reason why, even though they’re less effective, lectures have persisted for so long. > Other domains are better suited to videos. The parent comment ("It is more that these days everything is a video.") wasn't taking any issue with the fact that some things are represented as videos, but that everything is. Of course most filmmaking education (modulo some stuff like maybe an introduction to optics) is best done by video - but nobody is complaining about that. Also, in terms of education, these subjects, while they exist, are a minority. The majority of stuff you learn in school is better done in a non-video format. Not a text format - diagrams and interactive simulation are incredibly valuable for understanding. But, specifically, video is almost exactly the opposite of a good format for learning most things. [1] https://www.pnas.org/content/116/39/19251 https://www.pnas.org/content/116/39/19251
bajsejohannes 5y ago
In addition to what you're saying, it can also be _harder_ to watch something at 1x speed. I've found that at 1.25x-1.5x my mind is more engaged. If it's too slow, I start thinking about other things and end up getting less from the video.
- khariel 5y ago
  To me this is fairly dependent on how fast the speaker speaks. Most of the times 1.25x works well. Sometimes 1.5x is too fast.
  - michaelcampbell 5y ago
    I find this true on podcasts; I'm normally a 1.3-1.5x person listening to podcasts, except "No Such Thing as a Fish". That one I go slower on, just because they seem to talk quite quickly, comparatively.
- nextlevelwizard 5y ago
  I think the slowness of the videos is for non-english speakers. Meaning people who can understand english to a point, but aren't using english every day. Some years ago when I used to play games there was these awesome guides to some hard challenges a guy made where he was speaking pretty fast because there was a lot to cover and it was narrated over live footage. It was perfectly understandable to me, but the comment section was full of complains about the speed and how it was too hard to follow. This to me suggests that most of people would prefer if you paused the action to make your point slowly and after that continued with the footage.
  - BlueTemplar 5y ago
    Wait, you can also slow down YouTube videos, can't you ?
    - nextlevelwizard 5y ago
      yes, but that's an option you need to select. Normal people aren't going to even try searching for an option like that. Also it was 8 years ago, so I don't know if that was an option back then and in any case that would slowdown the footage as well.

by daenz 5y ago

thepasswordis 5y ago

Which addon are you using for youtube?

Topgamer7 5y ago
Enhancer for Youtuber
- michaelcampbell 5y ago
  This is a game changer.
razh 5y ago
Ilya Grigorik's Video Speed Controller? https://github.com/igrigorik/videospeed https://github.com/igrigorik/videospeed
gonehome 5y ago
I just modify it directly in the console (I have to search to look up the command every time).
- CompuHacker 5y ago
  Hit the Up arrow key in the console; in Firefox at least, command history persists across sessions. For reference; $('video').playbackRate=3.33 The playback engine mutes audio below 0.25x and above 4x, not configurable.
vbezhenar 5y ago
"<"/">" buttons decrease/increase playback speed (up to 2.0).
zoul 5y ago
For Safari there’s Dynamo, too, that lets you skip ads apart from changing the speed: https://dynamoformac.com/ https://dynamoformac.com/ (I am the author.)
daenz 5y ago
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/youtube-playback-speed-co/hdannnflhlmdablckfkjpleikpphncik?hl=en-US https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/youtube-playback-s... But I suspect they're all mostly similar
jholman 5y ago
I wrote a bookmarklet. Works on all non-iframe audio and video. javascript:void%20function(){document.querySelector(%22video,audio%22).playbackRate=parseFloat(prompt(%22Set%20the%20playback rate%22))}(); Here's a non-interactive version javascript:void%20function(){document.querySelector(%22audio,video%22).playbackRate=2.7}();

gumby 5y ago

> When I get to some really dense portion though, I will turn the speed down to 1x to learn it. An alternative that often works is to open the transcript and simply read it. If you find something unclear you can click to jump to that point. Coursera classes have this feature too. Obviously doesn't work for everything, but it's especially useful when you want to know more about a subject you already know about (say a programming language you've used but never formally learnt). If I can't do this I usually just close the tab -- the information rate of a video is typically quite low.

saghm 5y ago
I've noticed that I'm fairly unusual in my generation (late millennial) in that I strongly prefer to consume information through reading compared to listening or watching. My brothers and friends and girlfriend all love stuff like podcasts or casual YouTube watching, but I find that the increased effort needed to arbitrarily change speed or skip around always makes me end up not retaining or enjoying the content I consume as much.
- tempestn 5y ago
  It depends on the type of information, for me. I love podcasts (history, policy, some news) but when I'm trying to research a topic or find instructions on something, or that kind of thing, I also vastly prefer text. Kind of drives me crazy when the most relevant source I can find is a 15 minute youtube video explaining something that could be distilled into a paragraph of text.
  - Thlom 5y ago
    Same. Especially Youtube videos explaining and showing something really simple that takes like 5 seconds but they go on for 10-15 minutes. I suspect it has something to do with Youtubes algorithms that encourages creators to make long videos.
    - pbhjpbhj 5y ago
      In part. There was definitely a 10 min target time for a long while. However, a lot of TV shows - particularly USA ones seem to needlessly repeat everything like there running a lecture for amnesiacs. Here's what we're going to say in the first part, here's the first part, we say what we said we would, now a recap, then a break so we review the whole first part ... now we're 10 minutes into the show and we've seen about two minutes of unique footage. It's harrowing -- I'll take overdrawn explanations in preference to that.

elil17 5y ago

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/sponsorblock/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/sponsorblock/ This lets you skip filler content automatically for many popular videos.

nextlevelwizard 5y ago
It is more that these days everything is a video. Even things that should be two to three paragraphs of text or maybe a picture or two.
- aspyct 5y ago
  I agree with this, though it depends on what you're learning and what you already know. For example, I do not care for videos about code. I'm experienced in that domain and I want to get right into the meat of things: scroll to the appropriate paragraph, see the example I'm looking for, and move one. I could see why a beginner would need a slower pace with more "filler" explanation and background information. Videos are a nice format for this, because they allow one to just sit back like we did at school and take in the information. But that's only considering programming. Other domains are better suited to videos. For example, visual arts in general: painting, photography, filmmaking... I couldn't imagine explaining a picture with words only, or a human interaction with pictures only. Perhaps when I have more experience, but for now, I like videos.
  - nextlevelwizard 5y ago
    It is just sad when I you search for "how to do X in Linux" you get a video in search results first and only second some article where you can actually copy-paste the commands
  - fouric 5y ago
    > I could see why a beginner would need a slower pace with more "filler" explanation and background information. But that's what links are for - allowing you to deduplicate information by merely providing a link to some other content instead of replicating it entirely. Moreover, you don't know each beginner's background or desired pace. "Fixing" a certain set of information into the video is worse than providing the appropriate links that allow the beginner to read exactly what they're unfamiliar with, and videos hard-code the pace in a way that written material is not - they're the opposite of what a beginner needs. > Videos are a nice format for this, because they allow one to just sit back like we did at school and take in the information. The article specifically addresses this - passive consumption (which better describes videos than reading) is scientifically shown to be less effective for learning than active consumption: > One study[1] found that active learning makes students think they’re learning less even when they’re actually learning more. That’s one reason why, even though they’re less effective, lectures have persisted for so long. > Other domains are better suited to videos. The parent comment ("It is more that these days everything is a video.") wasn't taking any issue with the fact that some things are represented as videos, but that everything is. Of course most filmmaking education (modulo some stuff like maybe an introduction to optics) is best done by video - but nobody is complaining about that. Also, in terms of education, these subjects, while they exist, are a minority. The majority of stuff you learn in school is better done in a non-video format. Not a text format - diagrams and interactive simulation are incredibly valuable for understanding. But, specifically, video is almost exactly the opposite of a good format for learning most things. [1] https://www.pnas.org/content/116/39/19251 https://www.pnas.org/content/116/39/19251

bajsejohannes 5y ago

In addition to what you're saying, it can also be _harder_ to watch something at 1x speed. I've found that at 1.25x-1.5x my mind is more engaged. If it's too slow, I start thinking about other things and end up getting less from the video.

khariel 5y ago
To me this is fairly dependent on how fast the speaker speaks. Most of the times 1.25x works well. Sometimes 1.5x is too fast.
- michaelcampbell 5y ago
  I find this true on podcasts; I'm normally a 1.3-1.5x person listening to podcasts, except "No Such Thing as a Fish". That one I go slower on, just because they seem to talk quite quickly, comparatively.
nextlevelwizard 5y ago
I think the slowness of the videos is for non-english speakers. Meaning people who can understand english to a point, but aren't using english every day. Some years ago when I used to play games there was these awesome guides to some hard challenges a guy made where he was speaking pretty fast because there was a lot to cover and it was narrated over live footage. It was perfectly understandable to me, but the comment section was full of complains about the speed and how it was too hard to follow. This to me suggests that most of people would prefer if you paused the action to make your point slowly and after that continued with the footage.
- BlueTemplar 5y ago
  Wait, you can also slow down YouTube videos, can't you ?
  - nextlevelwizard 5y ago
    yes, but that's an option you need to select. Normal people aren't going to even try searching for an option like that. Also it was 8 years ago, so I don't know if that was an option back then and in any case that would slowdown the footage as well.