yt-downloader_skill

Overview

This skill downloads YouTube videos as high-quality MP4 files and registers them as managed assets. It accepts standard YouTube links (youtube.com, youtu.be, shorts) and saves the best available video+audio merged into an MP4. Downloads are stored with clear labels and logged in a registry for dashboard visibility. It is optimized for archival and backup of public content.

How this skill works

When given a YouTube URL and a short label, the skill fetches the video at the highest available resolution and the best audio track, merges them into H.264 + AAC MP4, and writes the file to the assets folder using a timestamped filename. It extracts the video ID, generates metadata (label, source, path, filesize, downloadedAt), and appends an entry to the registry JSON so the dashboard can display the asset. It skips live streams and fails gracefully on private or deleted videos.

When to use it

• You want a local archival copy of a public YouTube video for backup or review.
• You need a correctly labeled MP4 file for editing or publishing workflows.
• You want automated registration of downloaded videos for a media dashboard.
• You have a YouTube link and need the best available quality up to 4K.
• You need consistent filenames and metadata for asset management.

Best practices

• Provide a concise label (e.g., event-recap) to keep filenames readable and searchable.
• Use full YouTube URLs (watch, youtu.be, or shorts) to ensure correct ID extraction.
• Avoid attempting live streams or private content; expect failures in those cases.
• For age-restricted content, supply appropriate cookies if supported by your environment.
• Verify disk space before large downloads, especially for 4K video files.

Example use cases

• Archiving conference talks from a public channel with descriptive labels for later indexing.
• Downloading footage to import into an editing timeline while preserving highest quality.
• Creating a backup library of promotional videos for a marketing team with registry entries.
• Saving tutorial videos for offline training sessions and registering them in the dashboard.