youtube-traveller v1.2.2
Youtube Traveller
Youtube Traveller is an automated tool that can quickly navigate though youtube autoplay suggestions to see where the algorithm takes you.
It works by opening a browser, navigating to the given youtube video, skipping any pre-roll ads, and clicking the hidden autoplay "Play Now" button for as long as you want.
Quick Start
- Install Node.js 20
- Run
npx youtube-traveller -u "<youtube url>"
CLI Options
Options:
--help Show help [boolean]
--version Show version number [boolean]
-u, --url The YouTube URL to start with [string] [required]
--no-csv Skip csv generation at the end
[boolean] [default: false]
-i, --iterations The maximum number of videos to follow
[number] [default: 100]
--output-dir The location to save results
[string] [default: "output"]
--no-screenshots, --ns Save screenshots of each page
[boolean] [default: false]
-r, --save-recording Save a screenrecording of the browser
[boolean] [default: false]
--youtube-api-key Youtube api key, may also be set in the
environment variable YOUTUBE_API_KEY [string]Details
This runs in a seperate version of chrome downloaded to the .cache directory. It will not interfear with your regular browser or any services you are logged into. It does not run headless, it will open up a window which may take focus away from anything else you care working on. Running headless may be possible in a future version.
To save the video details, save a YouTube API v3 api key to the YOUTUBE_API_KEY environment variable, or use the --youtube-api-key flag.
Known Issues
- It will fail when trying to play an age restricted video, since login is not implemented
- Youtube shorts and livestreams will usually cause a failure
Future Enhancements
- Run headless
- Allow login to a youtube account