URLs#
This document describes how Tube Archivist identifies and treats links from YouTube.
Info
Application logic of Tube Archivist is tied only to the IDs, not the names.
Video#
A video ID is 11 characters long, e.g. 2tdiKTSdE9Y.
Urls can have several forms:
| URL Type | Example | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Watch URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tdiKTSdE9Y |
Regular URLs you will see while browsing YouTube, with the path /watch and a v parameter |
| Share URL | https://youtu.be/2tdiKTSdE9Y |
Link you will get when you click on share on a video |
| Shorts URL | https://www.youtube.com/shorts/U80grnZJm_8 |
Video links for YouTube shorts |
Channel#
A channel ID is 24 characters long, e.g. UCBa659QWEk1AI4Tg--mrJ2A.
Channel URLs can have these forms, all will get translated to the ID:
| URL Type | Example | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ID URL | https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBa659QWEk1AI4Tg--mrJ2A |
With a channel path |
| Channel Handle | @TomScottGo |
Starting with a @ this handle is personal and unique |
| Alias URL | https://www.youtube.com/@TomScottGo |
Based off the channel handle |
Channel subpages#
Tube Archivist can differentiate between the primary subpages:
- Videos only:
https://www.youtube.com/@IBRACORP/videos - Shorts only:
https://www.youtube.com/@IBRACORP/shorts - Streams only:
https://www.youtube.com/@IBRACORP/streams - Every other channel sub page will default to download all, for example
https://www.youtube.com/@IBRACORP/featuredwill download videos and shorts and streams.
Playlist#
A playlist ID can be 34, 26 or 18 characters long, e.g. PL96C35uN7xGLLeET0dOWaKHkAlPsrkcha
| URL Type | Example | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Playlist URL | https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL96C35uN7xGLLeET0dOWaKHkAlPsrkcha |
Playlist URLs start with a playlist path and have a list parameter |
Playlist vs Video URLs#
While browsing YouTube videos in Playlists, you might encounter URLs looking like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPZ0pIK_wsc&list=PL96C35uN7xGLLeET0dOWaKHkAlPsrkcha. As established above, based on the /watch path and the v parameter, Tube Archivist will treat this as a video with the ID QPZ0pIK_wsc and not as a playlist. If you mean the playlist, you can easily grab the correct ID from the URL, e.g. PL96C35uN7xGLLeET0dOWaKHkAlPsrkcha.