Comfortable means that it should not be complicated to download videos, or even better, that the process of selecting and downloading videos is integrated into the workflow.

FreeMake Video Downloader is a free program to download videos from the Internet. The software supports more than 40 different video sites, the usual suspects, Youtube, Facebook or Google Video are on the list, as are other video portals such as Dailymotion, MTV, Veoh, Megavideo and a good dozen adult oriented video sites.

Video Downloader is a standalone program for Windows, that offers Chrome and Firefox web browser integration in the form of add-ons which are automatically installed during installation on the Windows PC (unless unselected).

It is still possible to use the program without the browser extensions, but the video url would then need to be copied into the application window manually to download videos.

The browser add-ons place a button in the interface that sends the active url to the video downloader.

The main interface lists the downloaded videos with their playing time, size, video format and a small thumbnail. From here it is possible to play them directly in the system’s default video player for the format and to open their download folder on the local hard drive.

A popup window in the main program interface is displayed when a video is send to the application via one of the browser plug-ins, or if a web video address is pasted directly into the program.

The video downloader displays all available quality settings for the video, along with their resolution, size and audio encoding.

It is possible to switch from a pure video downloading mode to extracting only the audio of the video (ideal for ripping mp3 from Youtube videos for instance) or to convert the video after downloading to another video or audio format. Available for selection are among others mp3, mkv and avi.

The download popup may be fine if you download a video occasionally; That changes if you download dozens of video on a day. It is possible to bypass the download selection screen by activating the one-click download mode in the upper right corner of the screen.

Here it is possible to select a quality level and optionally if the video should be converted after download. These settings are then used whenever a video is downloaded by the program.

It is then a matter of clicking on the browser plugin button to download the videos. Everything else is handled by the application in the background.

The options have settings to hide and lock adult videos. Hiding means that the downloaded videos do not appear in the video listing, locking enables parental controls which blocks adult videos from being downloaded a password is entered.

A proxy can be configured under Connections, and it is furthermore possible to enter account information for some video sites. Accounts are necessary to download private videos from the sites.

The program is comfortable to use, especially if one of the browser plugins is used in conjunction with the one-click video download mode.

The biggest limitation is the number of sites. Browser add-ons like Download Helper for Firefox top the 40+ video sites supported by the free video downloader by hundreds of sites.

Windows users can download the latest version of Freemake Video Downloader from the developer website. The software is compatible with 32-bit and 64-bit editions of Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7. It requires the Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0.

VDownloader falls into the desktop application category. The free version of the program, there is a paid version as well, offers video searching, playing, downloading and converting.

The application is pretty easy to use. A click on Search in the left sidebar opens all video search options. It is possible to search Youtube, Dailymotion, Yahoo Video and Google by keyword, playlist or username, and some for personal videos.

Those portals are the only video sites supported by the search. The application itself supports way more than that. Several other video portals can be browsed via the Web button that is also available in the sidebar, and clipboard monitoring ensures that users who prefer to use their web browser can make use of the downloader as well. Back to video search.

VDownloader searches all sites at once, the down arrow next to the search button can be clicked on to only search one of the available video hosting sites.

Videos that have been found by the search are shown with thumbnails, a small site icon that indicates where they are hosted, their name, a few words of their description and Download and Play now buttons.

A click on Play now opens a small window in which the video can be played directly. The standard site controls, like pausing, skipping ahead or muting are available. It is likely that the application uses Internet Explorer’s rendering engine for that, which means that it will work if IE can play videos.

A click on the download button opens a save as window which is used to select a download directory for the video. The software can convert videos automatically with avi being selected by default. Other formats include mp3, 3gp, device specific formats for Apple’s iPad or iPhone, and resolution specific formats.

All videos that are selected for download are added to the download queue which is accessible via the Activity sidebar button.

All downloads are listed with their title, originating video site, download status, total size, and a progress bar. Two videos are downloaded consecutively by default, which can be changed in the options.

The settings of the video downloader contain some interesting options. The program monitors the Windows clipboard for video urls which are automatically pasted in the download form of the activity monitor. That makes it a little bit easier to download videos from external sources, especially since there is an option to automatically download those videos (needs to be activated).

Another interesting option is the ability to integrate Youtube, Facebook and Megavideo accounts which makes the videos of the account searchable and downloadable.

The Web button opens a basic web browser to browse supported video portals. Available are about 25 different video portals that can be browsed directly.

It is necessary to be on the video page to download the video which does not have to be playing. Several options of the video downloader are only active in the commercial version, which includes access to a video history, scheduler, batch downloading videos, download of full HD videos or local video conversion.

The free version of VDownloader is available for download at the developer website. It tries to install the Ask Toolbar during installation which means that users need to pay attention to the installation to avoid this if they do not want the toolbar on their system. Compatibility information are not provided on the developer homepage, the software worked fine under Windows 7 Professional 64-bit.

SVDownloader has been developed by the same company that brought your the video recorder SMRecorder. Please be advised that the installation is similar to that of the recorder, which means that it will install a toolbar and make changes to search, homepage and other pages of the web browser if installed with the recommended settings.

The application interface itself is divided into three different parts. The navigational elements at the top, the download queue and download manager in the middle and the search results at the bottom.

SVDownloader returns only results from one video portal at a time. This limits the results and reduces the usability of the video downloader. Among the supported video portals are Youtube, Dailymotion, LiveLeak, Yahoo Videos and an adult entertainment site that shall remain unnamed.

Each video is displayed with a video thumbnail, title, description, playing time, the source portal and play and download buttons.

A click on play opens a popup window in which the video is played. SVDownloader uses Internet Explorer’s core for this which means that the “play-part” will only work if Internet Explorer can play videos on the site as well. Internet Explorer 9 users may want to check if ActiveX Filtering is enabled as it interferes with Flash video and other plugin related contents (see Internet Explorer 9 ActiveX Filtering: Fix Flash, Java And Other Plugins) for detailed information about this).

A click on Download Video sends the video to the download queue. Videos are displayed with their size, progress and download speed. Completed videos can be played locally with a double-click (in the built-in SFPlayer) or by opening the folder they have been stored in with a right-click and the selection of Open Containing Folder.

The tool integrates with the developer’s audio and video converter which is also freely available from the developer site. Downloaded videos can be converted into different formats if the converter is installed on the system as well.

Videos can be filtered with a click on one of the sidebar items.

Here it is possible to disable the automatic system start of the application, change the video download directory, add or remove file types that are monitored in the Windows Clipboard and proxy settings. It is furthermore possible to add an anti-virus program in the settings which is then automatically used to scan downloaded files.

The program could be improved by offering multi-video portal searches which is probably the biggest issue right now. Its integration with web browsers could also be improved.

Windows users can download the video downloader SVDownloader directly from the developer homepage.

All Video Downloader is a handy tool for Windows PCs that can download videos from more than 280 different video portals. The list includes the whois who of the online video world, from Youtube and Dailymotion over MSN Video and MySpace to Megavideo and Nationalgeographic.

The software supports single and batch downloads from video sites. Downloads need to be added manually in the form of urls. The easiest way to do that is to copy and paste urls into the application.

One advantage of All Video Downloader is the ability to convert videos after download. Available output formats and containers are avi, mp3, DVD, iPod and other device compatible formats or mp4. The convert is based on FFmpeg and offers a lot of advanced output options.

All Video Download is a handy application. It could use an option to monitor the clipboard for supported video urls to optimize and speed up the process a bit.

Interested users can download All Video Downloader from the developer site. The software supports plugins, explanations on how to create plugins are offered at the website as well.

A browser integrated alternative is the excellent Download Helper extension for Firefox which supports even more sites.

A software alternative is the excellent Freemake Video Downloader which in its latest version supports more than ten thousand video hosting sites.

Offline viewing has several advantages, most noticeably the option to watch the video multiple times without downloading it every time it is viewed, or the ability to move the video to devices without Internet access.

If you search for ways how to download Camtasia videos you come up with lots of websites promoting commercial software for that purpose. There are a few free programs that can download Camtasia videos, but this article is concentrating on manually downloading the videos.

Please note that the manual approach requires making some url modifications and looking at source codes. This may not appeal to anyone.

The following tip is for those users, and users who just want to get that damn video straight away. Web browsers store files in their cache, and Camtasia videos are no exception of the rule. This means that the video that you have been watching is in the browser cache.

How do you find the browser cache?

• Firefox: Enter about:cache in the address bar and find the path under Disk cache device > Cache Directory.
• Opera: Click on Help > About Opera and find the path next to Cache.
• Chrome: Windows Vista and Windows 7 users find the Chrome cache under C:\Users\usename\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Cache
• Internet Explorer: Press Alt-X, then Internet Options from the context menu. Now click the Settings button next to Browsing History in the new window and look for the Current Location path in the window.

This method works best if you clear the cache prior to playing the video, as it makes it a lot easier to locate the Camtasia video in the cache.

Start playing the video on the website, and switch to your cache. Sort the cache by size, and drag and drop large files (usually larger than 1 Megabyte, often more) into the browser window to see if they are the video. If you have cleared the cache you are likely to end up with one large file on your cache. If the video plays in the browser congratulations, you just found the local copy of the Camtasia video.

The screenshot above is a snapshot of the Google Chrome cache. The Camtasia video is the third file from the top, with a size of 4313 Kilobytes.

You can now copy the video to another location. Please note that the video is usually in swf format, which means that many video players will have difficulties playing that video.

Using the source code:

Right-click on the video page and select to view the source of the page. Press Ctr-f, and enter the term swf. The source code usually contains one instance, often using the default name flash_controller.swf. All you need to do to download the Camtasia video is to remove _controller from the file name, and append the remaining name to the url / replace index file with it. Say you are watching the video on example.com. To view the video directly in the web browser you would open the url example.com/flash.swf.

This displays the Camtasia video directly in the web browser. To download it use the Save As option in your web browser. This will save the video to the local computer system.

This method works well in most cases. I have yet to encounter one where it is not possible to download the Camtasia video either by looking at the cache or the source code.

Have you tried downloading Camtasia videos in the past? How did you do it? If you know of a free software to download those videos let me know in the comments.

The video download and conversion service Dirpy offers a similar option on their Internet website. Dirpy can also be used to download Vevo videos from Youtube. The benefit of this solution is that it does not require a software installation. All it takes is to paste the Youtube url into the form at the Dirpy website.

Dirpy will then process the video and display a page with download and conversion options. The video can be previewed on the page. Other options include renaming the file that is downloaded, selecting one of the available video quality levels as well as transcoding options for downloading only the audio of the video.

The download of the Vevo videos works fine.Even better is the fact that Dirpy provides access to a bookmarklet that can be used to download the videos more comfortably. All that is needed to download Vevo videos with the bookmarklet is to click on the bookmarklet when a Vevo video is the active website in the web browser.

The bookmarklet is compatible with the major web browsers Firefox, Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Opera and Safari. The bookmarklet is only available on a video page at Dirpy. The easiest way to access it is to click on the example video given on the main page of the service.

The differences become apparent right away. Vevo is not available in all countries. Most music videos were viewable by all users at Youtube but Vevo locks out everyone who is not coming from the United States. This is currently not such a big problem as all music videos are still available at Youtube.

Another annoyance is that Vevo seems to display additional advertisement. Vevo visitors get a few additional services like lyrics or artist profiles that are not offered by Youtube. This situation is not that problematic for as long as the music videos are offered at Youtube directly as well. It could however become a issue if a long term goal of the deal is to move all official music videos to Vevo.

Some users reported that the Vevo videos on Youtube load slowly (if at all) and cannot be downloaded. Good news is that it is still possible to download Vevo videos at Youtube if the right tools are available.

The easiest way to download Vevo videos is by using the Firefox extension Download Helper which works just fine for this purpose.

Download Helper will indicate downloadable contents in the Firefox status bar. A click on the icon displays the list of all videos that have been found. Those can then be downloaded to the local computer system.

We were not able to test Download Helper at the Vevo website as it is currently blocked in our country. It would be nice if a visitor from the United States could check and see if Download Helper works at the Vevo website as well.

Check out Download Youtube Videos for more tools that might be able to download Vevo videos.

Update:

Vevo videos use protected streaming (opposed to standard Youtube videos that download to the temp folder). It is therefor as of now not possible to download Vevo music videos with the usual tools.

Update 2:

One of our readers has created a small web script that can be used to search for Vevo videos on Youtube and download them. You can access the script here.

Update 3:

RealPlayer SP can download Vevo videos. Check out this review to find out how.

Each add-on is tested if it can be used to download videos from the following sample video portals: Youtube, Dailymotion and Gametrailers. The main goal is to see if the add-ons can download Youtube videos, dailymotion videos and gametrailer videos including the way these downloads are offered. We will take a look at the video portals that are supported by the add-ons and possible usability issues.

The following Firefox add-ons have been selected for the test:

• Bbmao Video Downloader
• Flash Video Downloader
• Flash Video Resources Downloader
• NetVideoHunter Video Downloader
• Video DownloadHelper

All of these add-ons are highly rated and compatible with all versions of Firefox 3 even though some of them have to be forced to be compatible with the latest beta of Firefox 3.6.

Bbmao Video Downloader

This add-on was the only add-on in the test that was not compatible with Firefox 3.6. It was still possible to install and work with it after forcing compatibility with the Nightly Tester Tools.

The add-on places an icon in the Firefox toolbar at the top that will spin if a video has been discovered on a website. A click on that icon will open a popup window with links to all videos that have been discovered by the add-on. Links that are selected can be played right in the window or downloaded to the local computer system.

Bbmao Video Downloader worked well with both Youtube and Dailymotion but failed to recognize videos at Gametrailers. No information available on the amount of supported video websites.

Flash Video Downloader

Flash Video Downloader is the only experimental add-on in this test. It did install fine and display a download icon in the status bar. This download icon displays a license agreement after the first left-click which needs to be accepted. A left-click on the icon (which can also be placed in one of the toolbars of the web browser) will open a popup window with a download link and other information including add-on updates (somewhat confusing for users who are running the latest version) and an ad for a (free) video converter software.

Each new download will spawn its own popup window which can become somewhat messy for heavy downloaders. The add-on worked well with all tested video portals. The developers state that it is currently compatible with more than 200 different video sites and even some game hosting websites.

Flash Video Resources Downloader

The icon in the status bar that was supposed to be there after installation of the add-on did not appear. There was no option available to display the icon in another way or to use the add-on. Flash Video Resources Downloader is supposed to work with a few dozen websites including Youtube and Dailymotion but not Gametrailers. No rating for this add-on since it failed to install properly even though it was reported to be compatible with Firefox 3.6.

NetVideoHunter Video Downloader

Net Video Hunter is compatible with all versions of Firefox 3. It places an icon in the firefox status bar after installation that can be used to download videos from video hosting websites. The status bar icon will display a number that indicates the amount of videos that have been identified by the add-on.

Net Video Hunter makes use of a popup window to display all the videos that it has discovered in this browsing session. This is a very comfortable way of displaying those download links especially for users with enough screen estate to place both the web browser window and the Net Video Hunter video download window next to each other.

The add-on displays options to play or download each video that has been recognized. Another interesting detail is the display of the direct url to the video in the same interface.

The video download add-on was compatible with all three test video portals. The developers have not published a list of all compatible video websites but it is fair to assume that the add-on works with most “Youtube-like” video sites.

Video DownloadHelper

Video Download Helper supports all versions of Firefox 3 out of the box. It adds a single icon into the Firefox status bar which serves to purposes. It will for one indicate if videos have been detected on a website with options to download these. The other option is to display the list of supported sites which are opened in a small popup window. A right-click lastly will display a context menu with options to configure the add-on.

Youtube videos can be downloaded in various quality versions. This can be somewhat confusing to the user as it might not always be possible to identify the quality by looking at the download options of the Firefox add-on. It was also no problem to download videos from Dailymotion or Gametrailers using Video Download Helper.

Video Download Helper offers a very comfortable way of downloading videos from video portals. The amount of video portals supported goes even beyond the few hundreds that are listed in the add-on as it is able to detect videos on many (officially) unsupported websites. The download links are sometimes a bit confusing and the links in the supported list of video portals does not lead directly to those portals but to the homepage of the developer’s first.

The Verdict:

Out of the five add-ons that have been tested one failed completely, two were only compatible with two of the three test sites and two were compatible with all test sites. Video Download Helper and Net Video Hunter were the only add-ons that were able to download videos from these websites. Both add-ons have their uses. Net Video Hunter makes it easier to manage video downloads while Video Download Helper offers a list of supported websites which is interesting for exploration purposes.

Update: The Bbmao Video Downloader is no longer available at the official Mozilla Firefox add-on website.

There are basically three ways of downloading Youtube videos: Using a web service, a web browser add-on or a standalone software program. All methods have their distinct advantages and disadvantages. Web services for example are usually independent of operating systems and can be used instantly without having to install software.They do usually lack the ability to download multiple Youtube videos at once.

Web browser plugins require installation. They have the advantage that they work directly on the site which is very comfortable for the user. They also usually do not provide the means to add multiple videos at once to a download queue.

Software programs that download videos from Youtube usually come with the option to add multiple video links to the queue before starting the download. They do need to be installed on the other hand and lack a solid Youtube browser sometimes.

Online services to download Youtube videos:

Web services are websites that provide the means to download videos from Youtube to a local computer system. Some offer advanced features like converting the video to another format. The list has been limited to ten free services that provide options to download Youtube videos.

1. Keepvid: A straightforward service. The user needs to paste the url of the Youtube video in the form provided on the website. Keepvid will then offer low quality and high quality downloads of the video. Works with other video portals like MySpace video or Dailymotion as well. Offers a bookmarklet which works more comfortably than copying pasting Youtube urls.

keepvid

2. Zamzar: A file conversion service that can not only download Youtube videos but also convert the videos into different formats. Great for users who need the video in a different format and do not want to convert them on their computer system.

Zamzar

3. KCoolOnline: Currently supports 231 video portals including Youtube. It has a basic interface. All that needs to be done is to paste a video url in the form to download the Youtube video. Users who like to download videos from many different video portals might like this as it supports a lot of them.

KCoolOnline

4. Video Downloader: Another basic web interface that allows users to download and convert videos from sites like Youtube, Dailymotion or MySpace. Nothing much to say about this service except that it offers downloads in the original flv format but also in mp4 out of the box.

Video Downloader

5. SaveVid: Offers Youtube videos in original flv or mp4 format. Displays a live list of videos that get downloaded by users on the website which can be a great source of videos as download links are displayed directly. Offers top 10 lists, archives and categories as well.

SaveVid

6. Vidgrab: Vidgrab offers a web form that can be used to paste Youtube videos into it. These videos can then be downloaded in their original format. One interesting aspect of Vidgrab is the list of popular videos that are displayed on the website. These can also be downloaded directly to the computer system.

Vidgrab

7. Vixy: Vixy is a video converter that supports Youtube videos. It does not offer the means to download Youtube videos in their original format. Videos can be converted into various formats including avi, 3gp, mov or mp4.

Vixy

8. KeepTube: Online service to download Youtube videos with preview and options to download the video in various formats including normal and high quality flv, 3gp and mp4. Offers additional ways of downloading the videos including a bookmarklet and a very ingenious way by adding keep- after the www. of the youtube url.

KeepTube

9. KissYoutube: Offers a similar service as Keeptube by allowing users to add the word kiss after the www. of the youtube url to download videos directly without having to visit the KissYoutube website manually. Comes with the usual form to download videos from Youtube as well.

10. Video Getting: Another service that combines video downloading and conversion in one interface. Users can paste Youtube videos in the form and download them in eight different formats.

Video Getting

Web Browser Add-ons to download videos from Youtube

The following list contains ten web browser add-ons and plugins for popular web browsers such as Mozilla Firefox or Internet Explorer that allow users to directly download videos from video portals like Youtube. These add-ons have the advantage that the videos can be downloaded directly without having to visit another website to do so.

1. Video Download Helper (Firefox): One of the most popular Firefox add-ons. It supports many different video portals including Youtube. The add-on will change its icon in the status bar whenever a website with media links is visited.

Video Download Helper

2. NetVideoHunter (Firefox):

NetVideoHunter: Will recognize Youtube videos and add them to its queue with the possibility to download the videos immediately or at a later time. Videos can also be played in the interface as well.

3. Viloader (Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera): A plugin that installs itself in three different web browsers. It offers a download video right-click context menu option that can be used to download the videos from Youtube and other video portals.

Viloader

4. IE7Pro: IE7Pro supports Internet Explorer 8 as well despite its name. It comes with a userscript engine and a script pre-installed that can download Youtube videos. The browser plugin will display a download video link in the video description on Youtube.

IE7Pro

5. Flash Video Downloader (Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera): Flash Video Downloader operates a web service to download videos and an add-on that can be installed in Firefox, Internet Explorer and Opera. The Opera is one of the few Youtube video download widgets that currently work with Opera 10.

6. Google Chrome Bookmarklet: Users can use a bookmarklet to download videos in the Google browser. All they need to do is to create a new bookmark in the web browser and add the following JavaScript code as the url:

javascript:window.location.href = 'http://youtube.com/get_video?video_id=' + swfArgs['video_id']+ "&fmt=18" + "&l=" + swfArgs['l'] + "&sk=" + swfArgs['sk'] + '&fmt_map' + swfArgs['fmt_map'] + '&t=' + swfArgs['t'];

A click on the bookmark on any Youtube video page will download that video in the Google Chrome web browser.

Software Programs to download Youtube videos

The following list contains software programs for all popular operating systems that allow a user to download videos from Youtube.

1. TubeQueue (Windows):

TubeQueue: A program for the Windows operating system that can queue, convert and download multiple Youtube videos. The program comes with its own search interface making it completely independent from the Youtube website.

Update: TubeQueue is no longer available. I have uploaded the latest version to the Ghacks servers. You can download the program from this link: TubeQueue (236)

2. Free FLV Converter (Windows):

Free FLV Converter: A software program that can search for, download and convert Youtube videos and videos from other web services. It’s biggest strength is the search that can easily handle thousands of results providing comfortable options to download multiple videos at once from Youtube.

3. Orbit Downloader (Windows) : Orbit is a very popular download manager that supports a variety of popular media sites out of the box including Youtube, MySpace or Pandora. It integrates with web browsers and comes with the Grab++ module that can be used to catch and download media files.

Orbit Downloader

4. Youtube-DL (Linux, Windows): A command line program to download videos from Youtube

Youtube-DL

5. Abby and CCLive (Linux): Abby is a frontend for CCLive that can be used to download videos from various popular video hosting websites including Youtube.

Abby and CClive

6. GetTube (Mac): An application for Apple Mac computers that can be used to download Youtube videos.

There are literally dozens of other applications, web services and browser plugins that can be used to download videos from Youtube. Please leave a comment if you think we should add another free services, plugin or software to the list.

Tubequeue – as the name suggests – is of the latter sort. It is a standalone software program for the Windows operating system that can not only download multiple videos from Youtube but also convert them into different formats so that the videos can be transferred to other devices such as mobile phones, mp3 players or gaming consoles.

The program works the following way: The user begins by entering a search phrase in the search box at the top left corner of the program. This will display 100 Youtube videos related to that search query. It is possible to sort the results by relevancy, data added, popularity or view count just like on the Youtube website. The Youtube videos are displayed with a small image thumbnail, names, ratings and playing time. A click on the right arrow key will open the selected Youtube video in a preview window where it can be watched. The second possibility to find Youtube videos is to use the Youtube website search instead which will basically display the Youtube website in the program window.

A right-click on one or multiple videos in the list makes it possible to add the selected videos to the processing queue. This will move these videos to the conversion settings pane where the user can select an output format. Formats offered included avi, mp4, mov, mp3 or mpeg with the option to keep the original flv format.

A click on the Add To Processing Queue button will move the videos once again. This time to the processing queue where all information and settings that have been selected so far are shown again. A click on Download / Convert will start the Youtube video download and conversion process.

It is possible to add Youtube urls and video formats that already reside on the local computer system to the queue as well. TubeQueue is an interesting software program to download and convert multiple Youtube videos in short time. It has some performance problems during video playback and does not cope well with videos that are not available in the user’s country. It is a rock solid program otherwise though. TubeQueue requires the Microsoft .net Framework 3.5.

Download Helper for example will automatically identify videos that are played on websites offering the user a download link of that video. Most of the solutions that have been created require at least some manual interaction with the program.

Not so with WebVideoCap. The portable video capture software has been created by Nirsoft, one of our all-time favorite software developers. The software will automatically save videos that are played on websites to a folder on the local computer system. All the user needs to do to start the capturing is to click on the Start Capture button in the application’s interface.

A few parameters and options are available; It is for example possible to select the network adapter, save folder, scan method (between raw sockets and WinPCap) or file types that should be saved automatically. WebVideoCap supports the following web video stream formats:

• Flash video files (with .flv extension)
• Microsoft Windows media files (with .wmv extension)
• RTSP streams. (RTSP protocol is used by many news and live TV/radio Web sites)
• MMS streams. (MMS protocol is used by many news and live TV/radio Web sites)

All videos that match the supported video stream formats are saved automatically once the capturing process has been started. This can be very helpful for users who regularly download videos from video portals. One slight problem was encountered during tests. If the videos contain an age verification (like the 18+ video games over at Gametrailers) then they cannot be saved as the capturing process is interrupted by this). Videos that do not contain this interference are saved without problems.

There are several options when it comes to downloading music and videos from the Internet. Some websites use weak or no encryption at all which means it is possible to download the media directly from within the web browser. Other websites and services protect the media by encrypting it which makes it harder to actually download the files to the local computer system.

There are several software programs available that can download from most music and video portals and services. A very versatile one that is automating the process as much as possible is Tubemaster++. Tubemaster++ is a Java application that is using the packet capturing network monitor WinPcap.

The software program will automatically capture music and videos once the application is up and running. All the user needs to do is to visit a media site, service or software and start playing the media from there. Tubemaster recognizes the media and will display it in its interface. The software works with many services including Youtube, Last.fm, Pandora, Imeem and many more. The only restriction is that the service needs to stream the music to the computer system.

The music and videos can be saved in their original format or converted in the software program to common formats like avi or mp3. There are presets for some popular devices like Apple’s iPod, Blackberries, the Playstation 3 and dozens of other devices.

A video and mp3 search is provided in the program itself which makes it very comfortable to find specific music or videos. The search results are displayed in the program but open in the default web browser where they can be played.

Tubemaster++ (via Freeware Genius) is a very comfortable program to download videos and music from the Internet. The program is compatible with Windows 2000, XP, Vista and Windows 7. It requires Java and WinPcap to run (which are provided if they are not installed).

Amazon.com is offering a video streaming service for more than 40000 videos on their website. Users can watch the first two minutes of the videos without charge and have to pay to rent the movie 24 hours or to buy it. Both alternatives allow the user to watch the video right away on the Amazon website. Amazon uses Adobe Flash to transfer the movie to the user. The interesting aspect of the Amazon video streaming service according to Reuters is that they start streaming the entire movie even if the user is only watching previewing it.

The movie is stopped after playing for two minutes and a user who wants to watch the full movie would either have to rent or but it online. The streaming software on the other hand should be able to continue recording the movie because it does not receive the stop signal from the Adobe Flash server.

This would effectively mean that everyone would be able to download all movies that are offered for streaming on Amazon providing that they have access to the correct software. The software mentioned in the article is the commercial multimedia stream catcher Replay Media Catcher which can be tested before purchase.

Reuters mentioned that the trial version was able to download the movies from Amazon. A local test however did not have the same results. This could have several reasons. Reuters did only mention that the software was able to record the movie stream but they did not mention if any other applications or settings were necessary for it to succeed.

It could also mean that Amazon was able to close the security hole by adding another verification. Lastly it could also mean that the service is not available to customers from outside the United States. It would be interesting if any of you would be able to download an entire movie from Amazon just by using the Replay Media Catcher software or a similar product. Let me know if it works for you.

This plugin for Internet Explorer adds itself to the right-click context menu. All the user needs to do is to right-click a link that points to a Youtube video and select the Download This Youtube Video that was added by the Youtube File Hack Tool.

A download dialog appears and CTRL V enters the filename of the video automatically in the dialog box, another comfort function of the plugin.

The creates have added several tutorials to their websites that detail possible scenarios like wanting to download a video after search, while playing or from user recommendations.

I began to explore other options and sites using Download Helper and was pleasantly surprised by its effectiveness. Download Helper is able to list direct video downloads from hundreds of video portals currently. All the big portals are included of course but it does offer access to videos from several smaller video portals as well.

Once installed the Download Helper Icon can be moved to a toolbar where the options become accessible. You can do that by right-clicking a toolbar and selecting Customize from the menu. A new window should open with icons that are not in use already. Just located and drag and drop the Download Helper icon to one of your toolbars.

The icon displays links to videos that are found on websites that you visit. The videos have to be played to be recognized by Download Helper. I usually click on the play icon and stop them after they have played for a second. That’s enough for Download Helper to recognize the video link.

Videos can then be saved like normal files by clicking on them. A left-click opens the Save As window and you can save the video to your hard drive.

A left-click on the icon directly opens a new window that lists the supported video portals. All portals are rated and you see a comment count as well. A click on a video portal loads the Download Helper website. If the link has been to an adult video portal (they are not enabled by default) then you have to verify your age. A page with comments and a link to the video portal is then opened.

I like Download Helper because it is easy to use and works on several websites that Grab++ is not working on.

via Firefox Mastery

They do have a huge problem with linking to the sites mentioned on their website because all links lead to not found when I tried them. That is because they have added their address in front of the address of the website that they recommend. Besides that they list Unbox and Walmart in the Legal Downloads category which provide downloads after you purchase them.

A better place for these two – and others – would probably have been the Buy or Rent Movies category. Actually, several other websites mentioned in their legal downloads section are pay before download websites who probably offer a freebie every now and then.

Enough of the criticism. The effort is worth noting. I’m not sure if this is the first time the MPAA did try to offer alternatives (some free) instead of just suing and lobbying against Pirates. If you are a regular Internet user you know those websites already but it could be nice for some who just begin to use the Internet.

If they could fix the Pay / Free distinction they could create a valuable resource.

Firebug is actually a great web development extension for Firefox which does also list all objects that are loaded with their full url on the server. I suppose you are already seeing where this is going, huh ? You just have to take a look at the objects and filter out the largest files which are most of the time the media files. Copy the url from that file and paste it into your download manager to download the mp3, video or other media file.

Let me give you an example on how to download a mp3 right from myspace. Make sure you have the firebug extension installed.

Visit myspace.com and click on a band’s website, e.g. http://myspace.com/theused
Open Firebug by pressing F12
Play a song
Check the NET tab in Firebug and search for the biggest file
Copy the location of that file (by right-clicking it) and paste it into your download manager.
Rename the file and give it the right file extension, in this case .mp3

This method can be used on almost every other site that offers media files. Want some examples ? Gametrailers, Myspace, Youtube, Armor Games and many more. It is not working with sites that stream content to your PC (like Internet Radio but all others should be fine.)

The website viddownloader converts the videos to avi before it displays a download link. This is probably not the most elegant solution if you want to download hundreds of videos but it works fine if you only want to download a few videos. You supply the url of the video that you want to download and viddownloader does the rest automatically and displays a download link afterwards. It supports the following sites at the moment: Youtube, Break, Dailymotion, Myspace and Pornotube.

The conversion took just a few minutes and depends on the length of the video mainly. Not sure if video conversions are queued or how viddownloader handles several requests at the same time. Download speeds were fine as well. I was able to download with about 100K which is ok for videos of that size. The flv video was about 7 megabytes in size while the converted avi was almost triple that size with 19 megabytes.