# Is there a way to download youtube clips? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 24, 2008, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585 "2008-03-24T20:33:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Little\_Radius\_Ulna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8baadc/32.png) [@Little\_Radius\_Ulna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Radius_Ulna)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/1 "2008-03-24T20:33:41Z")
I’d like to play some off line, but all I can seem to download are links and perhaps the page with everything except the clip. Is this maybe something I can get a browser add-on for? IE7 ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/2 "2008-03-24T20:38:56Z")
[http://javimoya.com/blog/youtube\_en.php](http://javimoya.com/blog/youtube_en.php) ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/3 "2008-03-24T20:43:06Z")
[QUOTE=Telemark] [http://javimoya.com/blog/youtube\_en.php](http://javimoya.com/blog/youtube_en.php) [/QUOTE] Is that legal? ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/4 "2008-03-24T20:51:45Z")
In Firefox under Windows, not IE sorry, recently played YouTube clips are to be found at the ludicrously deep location C:\Documents and Settings<your user name\>\Local Settings\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles<some random characters\>\Cache. Copy them somewhere else, rename with a .flv extension and you can play them in e.g. Wimpy FLV player. Presumably IE caches them in a similar fashion. ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/5 "2008-03-24T20:52:53Z")
There’s a Firefox extension that will allow you to do this. I can’t remember what it’s called. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/6 "2008-03-24T20:54:52Z")
[QUOTE=Rysto] There’s a Firefox extension that will allow you to do this. I can’t remember what it’s called. [/QUOTE] [Video DownloadHelper?](https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/3006) ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/7 "2008-03-24T21:04:06Z")
If you download the latest version of RealPlayer, whenever you watch a YouTube video a “Download this video” link pops up above the video. Pretty nice… ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Radius\_Ulna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8baadc/32.png) [@Little\_Radius\_Ulna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Radius_Ulna)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/8 "2008-03-24T21:06:55Z")
[QUOTE=Really Not All That Bright] Is that legal? [/QUOTE] I’m only interested in legal stuff. But it didn’t work on the first one I tried. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Radius\_Ulna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8baadc/32.png) [@Little\_Radius\_Ulna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Radius_Ulna)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/9 "2008-03-24T21:11:08Z")
[QUOTE=jtgain] If you download the latest version of RealPlayer, whenever you watch a YouTube video a “Download this video” link pops up above the video. Pretty nice.. [/QUOTE] Thanks! That did the trick. And RealPlayer’s been around a long time, so I trust them to have sorted out the legal end. ---
**Author:** ![atomicbadgerrace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@atomicbadgerrace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/atomicbadgerrace)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/10 "2008-03-24T21:16:06Z")
Several sites allow you to input a YouTube URL and will parse the source code to provide you a link to download the original .flv (Flash) video. [Keepvid.com](http://www.keepvid.com) works for me, and [SaveTube](http://www.savetube.com) claims to do the same, though I’ve never tried that one. ---
**Author:** ![Giant\_Hairy\_Nevus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/848f3c/32.png) [@Giant\_Hairy\_Nevus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giant_Hairy_Nevus)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/11 "2008-03-24T21:58:21Z")
[QUOTE=Really Not All That Bright] Is that legal? [/QUOTE] What? To use Firefox instead of Internet Explorer? 🙂 You’re under no contractual obligation to access Youtube through any particular browser or web tool. You ask for a file, they send it. Anyone’s allowed to view the content, and the data has to get onto your computer one way or the other. And possessing copyrighted content on your computer for your own personal use is not illegal no matter what the MAFIAA scum would love you to believe. Seconded; for the occasional user, there’s lots of (usually ad-heavy) online services where you enter a Youtube address and they give you the direct link to the .flv file to “right click & save as”. Just google “download youtube”. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/12 "2008-03-24T22:05:50Z")
[QUOTE=Little Radius Ulna] And RealPlayer’s been around a long time, so I trust them to have sorted out the legal end. [/QUOTE] Unless you have a “real” need to have RealPlayer installed on your computer, get rid of it. RealPlayer has been suspect for years as a source of [malware](http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/Does-RealPlayer-Deserve-Badware-Label/) . There are other players out there that should play RealPlayer files without risking your computer to RealPlayer’s alleged deceptive practices. ---
**Author:** ![hotflungwok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/edb3f5/32.png) [@hotflungwok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hotflungwok)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2008, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/13 "2008-03-24T22:27:25Z")
The easiest way I’ve found: [keepvid.com/](http://keepvid.com/) ---
**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/14 "2008-03-25T00:34:38Z")
[QUOTE=Contrapuntal] [Video DownloadHelper?](https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/3006) [/QUOTE] Awesome! YouTube had some great vintage Joni Mitchell clips from the era when she was “Joan Anderson” and I really wanted to save them. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/15 "2008-03-25T00:43:31Z")
No, what you really want is Orbit. Go to Tools - Grab, and open your youtube page. Orbit is the bomb. It often gets better DL speeds on normal files that Firefox does. ---
**Author:** ![j\_sum1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8baadc/32.png) [@j\_sum1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j_sum1)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/16 "2008-03-25T03:17:59Z")
> **[DVDVideoSoft.com: #1 YT Downloader and Converter Apps](https://www.dvdvideosoft.com/en12)** > > Download and Convert YT videos with Free YouTube Download and Free YouTube to MP3 Converter in any format. Easy to use apps for PC and Mac. Go for the free Studio manager which then organises a number of useful apps and installs more if you want them. Top of the list are numerous apps for uploading/downloading/converting Youtube clips as well as various mobile phone formats. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Man\_In\_Black](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@The\_Man\_In\_Black](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Man_In_Black)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/17 "2008-03-25T03:20:53Z")
Here is a very easy one: [http://www.downloadyoutubevideos.com/](http://www.downloadyoutubevideos.com/) This and Keepvid (which was already posted) are what I use. But every now and then one or the other will go down (or so it seems, might be on my end). So I use them both as needed. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Radius\_Ulna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8baadc/32.png) [@Little\_Radius\_Ulna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Radius_Ulna)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/18 "2008-03-25T13:38:01Z")
[QUOTE=Duckster] Unless you have a “real” need to have RealPlayer installed on your computer, get rid of it. RealPlayer has been suspect for years as a source of [malware](http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/Does-RealPlayer-Deserve-Badware-Label/) . There are other players out there that should play RealPlayer files without risking your computer to RealPlayer’s alleged deceptive practices. [/QUOTE] You know, I realized that while I recognized the name RealPlayer, I had removed it at some point. I don’t know I’d call it malware, but it is hard to uninstall. But Windows Media Player and QuickTime are just as devious about taking over each other’s turf. A pox on all their houses. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/19 "2008-03-25T13:46:48Z")
[QUOTE=Little Radius Ulna] You know, I realized that while I recognized the name RealPlayer, I had removed it at some point. I don’t know I’d call it malware, but it is hard to uninstall. But Windows Media Player and QuickTime are just as devious about taking over each other’s turf. A pox on all their houses. [/QUOTE] It’s not RealPlayer itself. It’s the extraneous stuff that comes bundled with it and installs itself whether you like it or not (and doesn’t all get uninstalled when RP does). ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2008, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585/20 "2008-03-25T14:37:48Z")
Of course the downside is that with all their compression, the video quality of YouTube is crap. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-way-to-download-youtube-clips/442585.md?page=2)