**Tartube** is a GUI front-end for `youtube-dl <https://youtube-dl.org/>`__, partly based on `youtube-dl-gui <https://mrs0m30n3.github.io/youtube-dl-gui/>`__ and written in Python 3 / Gtk 3.
**Tartube** is beta software. **Test it carefully before you allow it to use your 100TB hard drive**, as it might not behave in the way you're expecting.
-`MS Windows (32-bit) installer <https://sourceforge.io/projects/tartube/files/v1.2.008/install-tartube-1.2.008-32bit.exe/download>`__ from Sourceforge
-`MS Windows (64-bit) installer <https://sourceforge.io/projects/tartube/files/v1.2.008/install-tartube-1.2.008-64bit.exe/download>`__ from Sourceforge
-`Source code <https://sourceforge.io/projects/tartube/files/v1.2.008/tartube_v1.2.008.tar.gz/download>`__ from Sourceforge
- You can download individual videos, and even whole channels and playlists, from YouTube and hundreds of other sites (see `here <https://ytdl-org.github.io/youtube-dl/supportedsites.html>`__ for a full list)
- You can fetch information about those videos, channels and playlists, without actually downloading anything
- If creators upload their videos to more than one website (**YouTube** and **BitChute**, for example), you can download videos from both sites without creating duplicates
- Certain popular websites manipulate search results, repeatedly unsubscribe people from their favourite channels and/or deliberately conceal videos that they don't like. **Tartube** won't do any of those things
-**Tartube** can, in some circumstances, see videos that are region-blocked and/or age-restricted
MS Windows users should use the installer `available at the Tartube website <https://tartube.sourceforge.io/>`__. The installer contains everything you need to run Tartube. You must be using Windows Vista or above; the installer will not work on Windows XP.
If you want to use **ffmpeg**, see the section below.
**Some users report that Tartube will install but won't run**. This problem should be fixed as of v1.2.0 but, if you still have problems, you can try performing a manual installation. This takes about 10-30 minutes, depending on your internet speed.
- This section assumes you have a 64-bit computer
- Download and install MSYS2 from `msys2.org <https://msys2.org>`__. You need the file that looks something like **msys2-x86_64-yyyymmdd.exe**
- MSYS2 wants to install in **C:\\msys64**, so do that
- Open the MINGW64 terminal, which is **C:\\msys64\\mingw64.exe**
- In the MINGW64 terminal, type:
**pacman -Syu**
- If the terminal wants to shut down, close it, and then restart it
Tartube should run on MacOS, but the authors don't have access a MacOS system. If you are a MacOS user, open an issue at our Github page, and we'll work out the installation procedure together.
-`Python moviepy module <https://pypi.org/project/moviepy/>`__ - if the website doesn't tell Tartube about the length of its videos, moviepy can work it out
-`Ffmpeg <https://ffmpeg.org/>`__ or `AVConv <https://sourceforge.io/projects/avconv/>`__ - see the section below if you want to use FFmpeg or AVConv
**youtube-dl** can use the `FFmpeg library <https://ffmpeg.org/>`__ or the `AVConv library <https://sourceforge.io/projects/avconv/>`__ for various video-processing tasks, such as converting video files to audio. If you want to use FFmpeg or AVConv, you should first install them on your system.
On Linux/BSD, **youtube-dl** might be able to detect FFmpeg/AVConv without any help from you. On MS Windows, **youtube-dl** can't do that.
In either case, you can tell Tartube where to find FFmpeg/AVConv in this same tab.
On the left side of the **Tartube** window is a list of folders. You can store videos, channels and playlists inside these folders. You can even store folders inside of other folders.
Copy and paste the channel's URL into the popup window. You should also give the channel a name. The channel's name is usually the name used on the website (but you can choose any name you like).
The left-hand side of the window will quickly still filling up. It's a good idea to create some folders, and to store your channels/playlists inside those folders.
-**'Download'** - Actually download the videos. If you have disabled downloads for a particular item, **Tartube** will just fetch information about it instead
To **Check** or **Download** videos, channels and playlists, use the buttons near the top of the window. To **Refresh****Tartube**'s database, use the menu.
Those are the *default* download options. If you want to apply a *different* set of download options to a particular channel or particular playlist, you can do so.
In the new window, click the **'OK'** button. The options are applied to *everything* in the **Music folder**. A pen icon appears above the folder to remind you of this.
If you haven't downloaded the video yet, you can watch it online by clicking the word **YouTube** or **Website**. (One or the other will be visible).
If it's a YouTube video that is restricted (not available in certain regions, or without confirming your age), it's often possible to watch the same video without restrictions on the **HookTube** website.
14. Combining channels, playlists and folders
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
**Tartube** can download videos from several channels and/or playlists into a single directory (folder) on your computer's hard drive. There are three situations in which this might be useful:
- A channel has several playlists. You have added both the channel and its playlists to Tartube's database, but you don't want to download duplicate videos
- A creator releases their videos on **BitChute** as well as on **YouTube**. You have added both channels, but you don't want to download duplicate videos
- You don't care about keeping videos in separate directories/folders on your filesystem. You just want to download all videos to one place
14a. Combining one channel and many playlists
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A creator might have a single channel, and several playlists. The playlists contain videos from that channel (but not necessarily *every* video).
You can add the channel and its playlists in the normal way but, if you do, **Tartube** will download many videos twice.
The solution is to tell **Tartube** to store all the videos from the channel and its playlists in a single location. In that way, you can still see a list of videos in each playlist, but duplicate videos are not actually downloaded to your filesystem.
- Click **Media > Add channel**..., and then enter the channel's details
- Click **Media > Add playlist**... for each playlist
- Now, right-click on each playlist in turn and select **Playlist actions > Set download destination...**
- In the dialogue window, click **Choose a different directory/folder**, select the name of the channel, then click the **OK button**
14b. Combining channels from different websites
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A creator might release their videos on **YouTube**, but also on a site like **BitChute**. Sometimes they will only release a particular video on **BitChute**.
You can add both channels in the normal way but, if you do, **Tartube** will download many videos twice.
The solution is to tell **Tartube** to store videos from both channels in a single location. In that way, you can still see a list of videos in each channel, but duplicate videos are not actually downloaded to your filesystem.
- Click **Media > Add channel**..., and then enter the **YouTube** channel's details
- Click **Media > Add channel**..., and then enter the **BitChute** channel's details
- Right-click the **BitChute** channel and select **Channel actions > Set download destination...**
- In the dialogue window, click **Choose a different directory/folder**, select the name of the **YouTube** channel, then click the **OK button**
It doesn't matter which of the two channels you use as the download destination. There is also no limit to the number of parallel channels, so if a creator uploads videos to a dozen different websites, you can add them all.
14c. Download all videos to a single folder
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you don't care about keeping videos in separate directories/folders on your filesystem, you can download *all* videos into the **Unsorted videos** folder. Regardless of whether you have added one channel or a thousand, all the videos will be stored in that one place.
- Click **Edit > General download options... > Files**
- Click the **Download all videos into this folder** button to select it
- In the combo next to it, select **Unsorted Videos**
Alternatively, you could select **Temporary Videos**. If you do, videos will be deleted when you shut down **Tartube** (and will not be re-downloaded in the future).
15. Archiving videos
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You can tell **Tartube** to automatically delete videos after some period of time. This is useful if you don't have an infinitely large hard drive.
- Click **Edit > System preferences... > Videos**
- Click the **Automatically delete downloaded videos after this many days** button to select it
- If you want to, change the number of days from 30 to some other value
If you want to protect your favourite videos from being deleted automatically, you can *archive* them. Only videos that have actually been downloaded can be archived.
- Right-click a video, and select **Video is archived**
You can also archive all the videos in a channel, playlist or folder.
- For example, right-click a folder and select **Channel contents > Mark videos as archived**
- This action applies to *all* videos that are *currently* in the folder, including the contents of any channels and playlists in that folder
- It doesn't apply to any videos you might download in the future
16. Exporting/importing the Tartube database
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You can export the contents of **Tartube**'s database and, at any time in the future, import that information into a different **Tartube** database, perhaps on a different computer.
It is important to note that *only a list of videos, channels, playlists, folders are exported*. The videos themselves are not exported, and neither are any thumbnail, description or metadata files.
- Click **Media > Export from database**
- In the dialogue window, choose what you want to export
- If you want a list of videos, channels and playlists that you can edit by hand, select the **Export as plain text** option
- Click the **OK** button, then select where to save the export file
It is safe to share this export file with other people. It doesn't contain any personal information.
This is how to import the data into a different **Tartube** database.
A: Tartube creates a backup copy of the database, before trying to save a new copy. In the unlikely event of a failure, you can replace the broken database file with the backup file.
- Find the **tartube_TEMP_BU.db** file, and rename it **tartube.db**
- Restart Tartube
- Click the **Check All** button. Tartube will find all the last set of videos you downloaded, and add them to its database (without having to re-download them)
You can drastically reduce the time this takes by telling Tartube to stop checking/downloading videos, if it receives (for example) notifications for three videos it has already checked/downloaded.
This works well on sites like YouTube, which send information about videos in the order they were uploaded, newest first. We can't guarantee it will work on every site.
