I wrote a very simple solution to help people generate Youtube-DL calls, to get all videos from a user, from a channel, or just from a single URL.
The solution is available at http://arturmarques.com/forms.pub/ytdl_cmd_gen/
It is nothing more than a learning device. It is built using plain HTML and plain JavaScript, with no frameworks or extensions necessary at all.
The code is written in the simplest possible fashion, using a pedagogical approach, with long and meaningful identifiers.
The operation is very simple: the user inputs a Youtube user name, or a Youtube channel name, or a Youtube video URL, and the page is expected to output a command-line command that enables any computer capable of running https://github.com/ytdl-org/youtube-dl to download the corresponding video(s), with the best available quality.
Some neat features are the support to proxies and a memory of past downloads. If you want to download via a proxy, even with authentication, the page should handle that.
The full source code is available from this post. This is just for learning. If something breaks and the solution stops working, you should be able to fix it yourself.
<!DOCTYPE html>
<!--
File: "ytdl_cmd_gen_pub.html"
Artur Marques, https://arturmarques.com/, 2019
-->
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Youtube-DL Command Generator Helper</title>
<script src="./am_minimal_pattern_v2019.js"></script>
<script src="./YTDL_CMD_GEN_PUB_SECRET_DEFAULTS.js"></script>
<script src="./ytdl_cmd_gen_pub.js"></script>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://github.com/ytdl-org/youtube-dl">Youtube-DL</a> command gen to DL <mark>ALL</mark> video(s)...</h1>
<h2>...from a channel OR from a user OR from a single URL</h2>
<form id="idFormDownloadAllVideos">
<fieldset>
<legend>Input <strong>channel</strong> name <mark>OR</mark> <strong>user</strong> name <mark>OR</mark> single video URL:</legend>
<label for="idSelectIdentifierType">This is the </label>
<select id="idSelectIdentifierType">
<option value="c" selected>channel</option>
<option value="u">user</option>
<option value="s">single video URL</option>
</select>
<label for="idTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl"> identifier: </label>
<input
value="UCUa0DzKskGo0iRYP8QzWsvA"
size="60"
type="text"
id="idTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl"
placeholder="channel OR user identifier OR single video URL">
<br>
<label for="idCheckUseProxy">Use a proxy? </label>
<input
type="checkbox"
id="idCheckUseProxy"
checked>
<details open id="idDetailsProxy">
<summary>Proxy details</summary>
<fieldset>
<legend>Proxy URL address, port and (optionally) user/login and password</legend>
<label for="idTextUrlProxyAddress">Proxy URL address: </label>
<input
size="60"
type="text"
id="idTextUrlProxyAddress"
placeholder="e.g. someregion.somevpn.com">
<br>
<label for="idNumberProxyPort">Proxy port: </label>
<input
type="number"
id="idNumberProxyPort"
placeholder="proxy port here (e.g. 80)"
value="80">
<br>
<label for="idCheckLoginRequired">Login required? </label>
<input
type="checkbox"
id="idCheckLoginRequired"
checked>
<br>
<details open id="idDetailsProxyUserAndPass">
<summary>Proxy login and password</summary>
<fieldset>
<legend>User/login name and password</legend>
<label for="idTextProxyUser">User/login name: </label>
<input
type="text"
id="idTextProxyUser"
placeholder="username">
<br>
<label for="idPasswordProxyPass">Password: </label>
<input
type="password"
id="idPasswordProxyPass"
placeholder="">
<br>
</fieldset>
</details>
</fieldset>
</details>
<br>
<label for="idCheckKeepMemoryOfPreviousDls">Keep memory of previous downloads (<code>--download-archive</code> option)? </label>
<input
type="checkbox"
id="idCheckKeepMemoryOfPreviousDls"
checked>
<br>
<label for="idTextYoutubedlOptions">Youtube-dl options (do NOT use <code>--download-archive</code> if set above): </label><br>
<input
size="80"
type="text"
id="idTextYoutubedlOptions"
placeholder="youtube-dl options"
>
<br>
<input
id="idSubmitFormDownloadAllVideos"
type="submit"
value="get the command to download">
</fieldset>
</form>
<hr>
<h2><label for="idTaCommand">Your <mark>command<sup>*</sup></mark> will appear here:</label></h2>
<br>
<textarea
cols="80"
rows="4"
id="idTaCommand"></textarea>
<p><sup>*</sup>The command is intended to be called from the command-line,
from the directory where you installed <a href="https://github.com/ytdl-org/youtube-dl">Youtube-DL</a>
or from any other, provided your system's PATH knows where Youtube-DL is installed.<br>
You can resize the textarea from its lower-right corner.
</p>
</body>
</html>
/*
File: ytdl_cmd_gen_pub.js
Artur Marques, https://arturmarques.com/, 2019
*/
window.onload = boot;
const PANIC = "One or more relevant object(s) are null. Will NOT proceed.";
const YOUTUBE_CHANNEL_PREFIX = "https://www.youtube.com/channel/";
const YOUTUBE_USER_PREFIX = "https://www.youtube.com/user/";
const PROTOCOL_STRING_END_MARK = "://";
const SUB_FOLDER_FOR_CHANNELS = "c";
const SUB_FOLDER_FOR_USERS = "u";
const
ID_FORM_DOWNLOAD_ALL_VIDEOS = "idFormDownloadAllVideos",
ID_SELECT_IDENTIFIER_TYPE = "idSelectIdentifierType",
ID_TEXT_CHANNEL_OR_USER_NAME_OR_SINGLE_VIDEO_URL = "idTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl",
ID_CHECK_USER_PROXY = "idCheckUseProxy",
ID_DETAILS_PROXY = "idDetailsProxy",
ID_TEXT_URL_PROXY_ADDRESS = "idTextUrlProxyAddress",
ID_NUMBER_PROXY_PORT = "idNumberProxyPort",
ID_CHECK_LOGIN_REQUIRED = "idCheckLoginRequired",
ID_DETAILS_PROXY_USER_AND_PASS = "idDetailsProxyUserAndPass",
ID_TEXT_PROXY_USER = "idTextProxyUser",
ID_PASSWORD_PROXY_PASS = "idPasswordProxyPass",
ID_CHECK_KEEP_MEMORY_OF_PREVIOUS_DLS = "idCheckKeepMemoryOfPreviousDls",
ID_TEXT_YOUTUBEDL_OPTIONS = "idTextYoutubedlOptions",
ID_SUBMIT_FORM_DOWNLOAD_ALL_VIDEOS = "idSubmitFormDownloadAllVideos",
ID_TA_COMMAND = "idTaCommand";
let oFormDownloadAllVideos, oSelectIdentifierType, oTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl,
oCheckUseProxy, oDetailsProxy, oTextUrlProxyAddress, oNumberProxyPort, oCheckLoginRequired,
oDetailsProxyUserAndPass, oTextProxyUser, oPasswordProxyPass,
oCheckKeepMemoryOfPreviousDls,
oTextYoutubedlOptions,
oSubmitFormDownloadAllVideos,
oTaCommand;
function boot(){
oFormDownloadAllVideos = $(ID_FORM_DOWNLOAD_ALL_VIDEOS);
oSelectIdentifierType = $(ID_SELECT_IDENTIFIER_TYPE);
oTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl = $(ID_TEXT_CHANNEL_OR_USER_NAME_OR_SINGLE_VIDEO_URL);
oCheckUseProxy = $(ID_CHECK_USER_PROXY);
oDetailsProxy = $(ID_DETAILS_PROXY);
oTextUrlProxyAddress = $(ID_TEXT_URL_PROXY_ADDRESS);
oNumberProxyPort = $(ID_NUMBER_PROXY_PORT);
oCheckLoginRequired = $(ID_CHECK_LOGIN_REQUIRED);
oDetailsProxyUserAndPass = $(ID_DETAILS_PROXY_USER_AND_PASS);
oTextProxyUser = $(ID_TEXT_PROXY_USER);
oPasswordProxyPass= $(ID_PASSWORD_PROXY_PASS);
oCheckKeepMemoryOfPreviousDls = $(ID_CHECK_KEEP_MEMORY_OF_PREVIOUS_DLS);
oTextYoutubedlOptions = $(ID_TEXT_YOUTUBEDL_OPTIONS);
oSubmitFormDownloadAllVideos = $(ID_SUBMIT_FORM_DOWNLOAD_ALL_VIDEOS);
oTaCommand = $(ID_TA_COMMAND);
let aAllRelevant = [
oFormDownloadAllVideos, oSelectIdentifierType, oTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl,
oCheckUseProxy, oDetailsProxy, oTextUrlProxyAddress, oNumberProxyPort, oCheckLoginRequired,
oDetailsProxyUserAndPass, oTextProxyUser, oPasswordProxyPass,
oCheckKeepMemoryOfPreviousDls,
oTextYoutubedlOptions,
oSubmitFormDownloadAllVideos,
oTaCommand
];
let bAllOK = allNotNull(aAllRelevant);
if (bAllOK){
setDefaultsFromSecrets();
oTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl.oninput =
oTextYoutubedlOptions.oninput =
oSelectIdentifierType.onchange = actionUpdateToReflectCurrentUserInputs;
oCheckUseProxy.onchange = function() { oDetailsProxy.open = oCheckUseProxy.checked; actionUpdateToReflectCurrentUserInputs(); };
oCheckLoginRequired.onchange = function() { oDetailsProxyUserAndPass.open = oCheckLoginRequired.checked; actionUpdateToReflectCurrentUserInputs(); };
oCheckKeepMemoryOfPreviousDls.onchange = function() { actionUpdateToReflectCurrentUserInputs(); };
oNumberProxyPort.onchange = function() { actionUpdateToReflectCurrentUserInputs(); };
oFormDownloadAllVideos.onsubmit = actionDownloadAllVideos;
actionUpdateToReflectCurrentUserInputs();
}//if
else{
window.console.log(PANIC);
alert (PANIC);
return;
}//else
}//boot
function actionUpdateToReflectCurrentUserInputs (
pTheEvent
){
oTaCommand.value = computeYoutubedlCommandFromCurrentFormData();
}//actionUpdateToReflectCurrentUserInputs
/*
implies the availability of file "YTDL_CMD_GEN_PUB_SECRET_DEFAULTS.js"
loaded from HTML
defining the following consts:
const DEFAULT_CHECK_USE_PROXY = some boolean;
const DEFAULT_TEXT_URL_PROXY_ADDRESS = "?";
const DEFAULT_NUMBER_PROXY_PORT = some number;
const DEFAULT_CHECK_LOGIN_REQUIRED = some boolean;
const DEFAULT_TEXT_PROXY_USER = "?";
const DEFAULT_PASSWORD_PROXY_PASS = "?";
*/
function setDefaultsFromSecrets(){
oTextYoutubedlOptions.value = DEFAULT_TEXT_YOUTUBEDL_OPTIONS;
oCheckUseProxy.checked = DEFAULT_CHECK_USE_PROXY;
if (oCheckUseProxy.checked){
oDetailsProxy.open = true;
oTextUrlProxyAddress.value = DEFAULT_TEXT_URL_PROXY_ADDRESS;
oNumberProxyPort.value = DEFAULT_NUMBER_PROXY_PORT;
oCheckLoginRequired.checked = DEFAULT_CHECK_LOGIN_REQUIRED;
if (oCheckLoginRequired.checked){
oDetailsProxyUserAndPass.open = true;
oTextProxyUser.value = DEFAULT_TEXT_PROXY_USER;
oPasswordProxyPass.value = DEFAULT_PASSWORD_PROXY_PASS;
}//if
else{
oDetailsProxyUserAndPass.open = false;
oTextProxyUser.value = "";
oPasswordProxyPass.value = "";
}
}//if
else{
oDetailsProxy.open = false;
oTextUrlProxyAddress.value = "";
oNumberProxyPort.value = "";
}//else
}//setDefaultsFromSecrets
function computeYoutubedlCommandFromCurrentFormData(){
let bTypeChannel = oSelectIdentifierType.value==="c" || oSelectIdentifierType.value==="C";
let bTypeUser = oSelectIdentifierType.value==="u" || oSelectIdentifierType.value==="U";
let bSingleVideoUrl = oSelectIdentifierType.value==="s" || oSelectIdentifierType.value==="s";
let strCMD ="youtube-dl ";
if (oCheckUseProxy.checked){
strCMD+=" --proxy ";
if (oCheckLoginRequired.checked){
//proxy with authentication
let nProtocolMarkEndPos = oTextUrlProxyAddress.value.indexOf(PROTOCOL_STRING_END_MARK) + PROTOCOL_STRING_END_MARK.length;
let strProxyUrlWithoutProtocol = oTextUrlProxyAddress.value.substr(nProtocolMarkEndPos);
let strProtocolIncludingEndMark = oTextUrlProxyAddress.value.substr(0, nProtocolMarkEndPos);
let strUrlWithAuthentication =
strProtocolIncludingEndMark +
oTextProxyUser.value+
":"+oPasswordProxyPass.value+"@"+
strProxyUrlWithoutProtocol+":"+
oNumberProxyPort.value+" ";
strCMD += strUrlWithAuthentication;
}//if
else{
//no proxy
strCMD += oTextUrlProxyAddress.value+":"+oNumberProxyPort.value+" ";
}//else
}//if
strCMD+=oTextYoutubedlOptions.value+" ";
if (oCheckKeepMemoryOfPreviousDls.checked){
strCMD+=" --download-archive "+"DB_"+oTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl.value+".TXT ";
}//if
if (bTypeUser){
//e.g. end with ytuser:bostondynamics
strCMD += "ytuser:"+oTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl.value;
}//if
if (bTypeChannel){
//e.g. UCUa0DzKskGo0iRYP8QzWsvA => end with full channel URL
strCMD += YOUTUBE_CHANNEL_PREFIX+oTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl.value;
}//if
if (bSingleVideoUrl){
strCMD += oTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl.value;
}
return strCMD;
}//computeYoutubedlCommandFromCurrentFormData
function actionDownloadAllVideos(
pTheEvent
){
let bEmptyChannelOrUserName = oTextChannelOrUserNameOrVideoUrl.value.trim() === "";
if (!bEmptyChannelOrUserName){
let strFullCMD = computeYoutubedlCommandFromCurrentFormData();
oTaCommand.innerHTML = strFullCMD;
alert ("Done. The command is at the \"command\" text area.")
}//if
else{
alert ("Empty channel or user name or single video URL! Nothing done.")
}
return false;
}//actionDownloadAllVideos
/*
File: am_minimal_pattern_v2019.js
Artur Marques, https://arturmarques.com/, 2019
*/
//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
function $ (pId){return document.getElementById(pId);}
//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
function allNotNull (pObjects){
let bAllNotNull = true;
//for (var o of pObjects){
for (let idx=0; idx<pObjects.length; idx++)
{
let o = pObjects[idx]; //comentar esta linha se usarmos for..of
if (o===null){
let strMsg = "element @idx "+idx+" is null\n";
console.log (strMsg);
}
bAllNotNull = bAllNotNull && (o!==null);
}//for
return bAllNotNull;
}//allNotNull
/*
File: YTDL_CMD_GEN_PUB_SECRET_DEFAULTS.js
*/
const DEFAULT_CHECK_USE_PROXY = true;
const DEFAULT_TEXT_URL_PROXY_ADDRESS = "https://someregion.somevpn.com"; //do NOT terminate with /
const DEFAULT_NUMBER_PROXY_PORT = 80;
const DEFAULT_CHECK_LOGIN_REQUIRED = true;
const DEFAULT_TEXT_PROXY_USER = "\"your@emailForExample.com\"";
const DEFAULT_PASSWORD_PROXY_PASS = "yourPassword";
const DEFAULT_TEXT_YOUTUBEDL_OPTIONS = " -f best -ciw --write-description --write-annotations --write-thumbnail ";
