@pencil-agent/nano-pencil 2.0.0-beta.9 → 2.0.0

package/dist/extensions/builtin/browser/agent-workspace/domain-skills/youtube/scraping.md

@@ -1,418 +1,418 @@
-# YouTube — Data Extraction
-
-Field-tested against youtube.com on 2026-04-21.
-No authentication required for any approach documented here.
-
----
-
-## Approach 1 (Fastest): oEmbed API — No Auth, No Browser
-
-`https://www.youtube.com/oembed?url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={VIDEO_ID}&format=json`
-
-Returns JSON in ~0.3s. Works for any public video. Does **not** require login.
-
-```python
-from helpers import http_get
-import json
-
-def youtube_oembed(video_id):
-    """Fetch oEmbed metadata for a YouTube video.
-
-    Returns title, author, thumbnail URL, and embed iframe HTML.
-    """
-    url = f"https://www.youtube.com/oembed?url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={video_id}&format=json"
-    return json.loads(http_get(url))
-
-data = youtube_oembed("dQw4w9WgXcQ")
-# {
-#   "title":            "Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up (Official Video) (4K Remaster)",
-#   "author_name":      "Rick Astley",
-#   "author_url":       "https://www.youtube.com/@RickAstleyYT",
-#   "type":             "video",
-#   "thumbnail_url":    "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dQw4w9WgXcQ/hqdefault.jpg",
-#   "thumbnail_width":  480,
-#   "thumbnail_height": 360,
-#   "width":            200,
-#   "height":           113,
-#   "version":          "1.0",
-#   "provider_name":    "YouTube",
-#   "html":             '<iframe width="200" height="113" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dQw4w9WgXcQ?feature=oembed" ...>'
-# }
-```
-
-### Bulk oEmbed (ThreadPoolExecutor)
-
-```python
-from concurrent.futures import ThreadPoolExecutor
-import json
-from helpers import http_get
-
-video_ids = ["dQw4w9WgXcQ", "jNQXAC9IVRw", "9bZkp7q19f0"]
-
-def fetch_oembed(vid):
-    url = f"https://www.youtube.com/oembed?url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={vid}&format=json"
-    try:
-        return json.loads(http_get(url))
-    except Exception as e:
-        return {"error": str(e), "id": vid}
-
-with ThreadPoolExecutor(max_workers=5) as ex:
-    results = list(ex.map(fetch_oembed, video_ids))
-# 3 videos: ~4.1s total (YouTube oEmbed is slower than Spotify's; don't use >5 workers)
-```
-
----
-
-## Approach 2: Watch Page — Full Metadata via ytInitialPlayerResponse
-
-Every `youtube.com/watch?v={ID}` page embeds two JSON blobs in the HTML:
-
-- `ytInitialPlayerResponse` — video details, microformat, caption track list
-- `ytInitialData` — comments section structure, related videos
-
-### Extract all video metadata
-
-```python
-from helpers import http_get
-import json, re
-
-def scrape_video(video_id):
-    html = http_get(f"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={video_id}")
-
-    # ---- ytInitialPlayerResponse ----
-    m = re.search(r'var ytInitialPlayerResponse = (\{.*?\});(?:var|</script>)', html, re.DOTALL)
-    if not m:
-        raise ValueError(f"ytInitialPlayerResponse not found for video {video_id} — video may be private, deleted, or region-blocked")
-    pr = json.loads(m.group(1))
-
-    # Check playability before parsing
-    status = pr.get("playabilityStatus", {}).get("status")
-    if status == "LOGIN_REQUIRED":
-        raise ValueError(f"Video {video_id} is age-restricted or login-gated (playabilityStatus: LOGIN_REQUIRED)")
-    if status == "ERROR":
-        reason = pr.get("playabilityStatus", {}).get("reason", "unknown")
-        raise ValueError(f"Video {video_id} is unavailable: {reason}")
-
-    vd  = pr["videoDetails"]
-    mf  = pr["microformat"]["playerMicroformatRenderer"]
-    caps = pr.get("captions", {}) \
-             .get("playerCaptionsTracklistRenderer", {}) \
-             .get("captionTracks", [])
-
-    return {
-        # Core
-        "video_id":      vd["videoId"],
-        "title":         vd["title"],
-        "author":        vd["author"],
-        "channel_id":    vd["channelId"],
-        "description":   vd["shortDescription"],
-        "duration_s":    int(vd["lengthSeconds"]),
-        "view_count":    int(vd["viewCount"]),
-        "keywords":      vd.get("keywords", []),
-        "is_live":       vd.get("isLiveContent", False),
-        "is_private":    vd.get("isPrivate", False),
-        # Microformat (richer publishing data)
-        "publish_date":  mf.get("publishDate"),   # ISO 8601, e.g. "2009-10-25T00:57:33-07:00"
-        "upload_date":   mf.get("uploadDate"),
-        "category":      mf.get("category"),       # e.g. "Music", "Gaming", "Education"
-        "like_count":    int(mf.get("likeCount", 0)),
-        "is_family_safe": mf.get("isFamilySafe"),
-        "is_unlisted":   mf.get("isUnlisted"),
-        "available_countries": mf.get("availableCountries", []),  # list of ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes
-        "channel_name":  mf.get("ownerChannelName"),
-        "channel_url":   mf.get("ownerProfileUrl"),
-        "embed_url":     mf.get("embed", {}).get("iframeUrl"),
-        # Thumbnails (all publicly accessible, no auth)
-        "thumbnail_hq":  f"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/{video_id}/hqdefault.jpg",    # 480×360, always exists
-        "thumbnail_max": f"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/{video_id}/maxresdefault.jpg", # 1280×720, may 404
-        # Caption tracks — baseUrl is included for reference but returns empty in practice;
-        # use the Show Transcript UI flow in the browser instead (see playback.md)
-        "caption_tracks": [
-            {
-                "lang":     t.get("languageCode"),
-                "name":     t.get("name", {}).get("simpleText"),
-                "kind":     t.get("kind", "manual"),  # "manual" or "asr" (auto-generated)
-                "base_url": t.get("baseUrl"),
-            }
-            for t in caps
-        ],
-    }
-
-video = scrape_video("dQw4w9WgXcQ")
-# {
-#   "video_id":     "dQw4w9WgXcQ",
-#   "title":        "Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up (Official Video) (4K Remaster)",
-#   "author":       "Rick Astley",
-#   "channel_id":   "UCuAXFkgsw1L7xaCfnd5JJOw",
-#   "duration_s":   213,
-#   "view_count":   1764468859,
-#   "publish_date": "2009-10-24T23:57:33-07:00",
-#   "category":     "Music",
-#   "like_count":   16942558,
-#   "caption_tracks": [
-#     {"lang": "en",    "name": "English",                "kind": "manual"},
-#     {"lang": "en",    "name": "English (auto-generated)", "kind": "asr"},
-#     {"lang": "de-DE", "name": "German (Germany)",        "kind": "manual"},
-#     ...
-#   ],
-# }
-```
-
----
-
-## Approach 3: Search Results — No Auth
-
-`youtube.com/results?search_query={QUERY}` is server-side rendered. The `ytInitialData` blob contains up to ~20 video results.
-
-```python
-from helpers import http_get
-import json, re
-from urllib.parse import quote_plus
-
-def youtube_search(query, max_results=20):
-    """Search YouTube videos without a browser or API key."""
-    url = f"https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query={quote_plus(query)}"
-    html = http_get(url)
-
-    m = re.search(r'var ytInitialData = (\{.*?\});</script>', html, re.DOTALL)
-    data = json.loads(m.group(1))
-
-    # Walk the nested structure to find videoRenderer items
-    section_contents = (
-        data.get("contents", {})
-            .get("twoColumnSearchResultsRenderer", {})
-            .get("primaryContents", {})
-            .get("sectionListRenderer", {})
-            .get("contents", [])
-    )
-
-    results = []
-    for section in section_contents:
-        for item in section.get("itemSectionRenderer", {}).get("contents", []):
-            vr = item.get("videoRenderer", {})
-            if not vr:
-                continue
-            snippet = vr.get("detailedMetadataSnippets", [])
-            desc = (
-                "".join(r.get("text", "") for r in snippet[0]["snippetText"]["runs"])
-                if snippet else None
-            )
-            results.append({
-                "video_id":   vr["videoId"],
-                "url":        f"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={vr['videoId']}",
-                "title":      vr.get("title", {}).get("runs", [{}])[0].get("text"),
-                "channel":    vr.get("ownerText", {}).get("runs", [{}])[0].get("text"),
-                "channel_url": (
-                    "https://www.youtube.com"
-                    + vr.get("ownerText", {}).get("runs", [{}])[0]
-                                              .get("navigationEndpoint", {})
-                                              .get("browseEndpoint", {})
-                                              .get("canonicalBaseUrl", "")
-                ),
-                "duration":   vr.get("lengthText", {}).get("simpleText"),  # e.g. "3:32"
-                "views":      vr.get("viewCountText", {}).get("simpleText"),  # e.g. "1,764,468,859 views"
-                "published":  vr.get("publishedTimeText", {}).get("simpleText"),  # e.g. "7 years ago"
-                "description_snippet": desc,
-                "thumbnail":  f"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/{vr['videoId']}/hqdefault.jpg",
-            })
-            if len(results) >= max_results:
-                return results  # exit both loops immediately
-    return results
-
-results = youtube_search("python tutorial", max_results=5)
-# Returns up to ~14-20 results (YouTube serves fewer than 20 on first page)
-# [
-#   {
-#     "video_id":  "K5KVEU3aaeQ",
-#     "title":     "Python Full Course for Beginners",
-#     "channel":   "Programming with Mosh",
-#     "duration":  "2:02:21",
-#     "views":     "6,056,121 views",
-#     "published": "1 year ago",
-#   }, ...
-# ]
-```
-
----
-
-## Approach 4: Channel Metadata — No Auth
-
-Channel pages (`youtube.com/@handle` or `youtube.com/channel/{CHANNEL_ID}`) embed metadata in `ytInitialData`.
-
-```python
-from helpers import http_get
-import json, re
-
-def scrape_channel(handle_or_id):
-    """
-    handle_or_id: "@RickAstleyYT"           (handle, with @)
-                  "UCuAXFkgsw1L7xaCfnd5JJOw" (channel ID)
-    """
-    if handle_or_id.startswith("UC"):
-        url = f"https://www.youtube.com/channel/{handle_or_id}"
-    else:
-        url = f"https://www.youtube.com/{handle_or_id}"
-
-    html = http_get(url)
-    m = re.search(r'var ytInitialData = (\{.*?\});</script>', html, re.DOTALL)
-    data = json.loads(m.group(1))
-
-    # Canonical metadata (always present)
-    cmd = data.get("metadata", {}).get("channelMetadataRenderer", {})
-
-    # Subscriber count + handle from pageHeaderViewModel
-    ph = (
-        data.get("header", {})
-            .get("pageHeaderRenderer", {})
-            .get("content", {})
-            .get("pageHeaderViewModel", {})
-    )
-    meta_parts = [
-        part.get("text", {}).get("content", "")
-        for row in ph.get("metadata", {})
-                     .get("contentMetadataViewModel", {})
-                     .get("metadataRows", [])
-        for part in row.get("metadataParts", [])
-    ]
-    # meta_parts is typically: ["@handle", "4.48m subscribers", "N videos"]
-
-    # Avatar (take the largest source)
-    avatar_sources = (
-        ph.get("image", {})
-          .get("decoratedAvatarViewModel", {})
-          .get("avatar", {})
-          .get("avatarViewModel", {})
-          .get("image", {})
-          .get("sources", [])
-    )
-    avatar_url = avatar_sources[-1]["url"] if avatar_sources else None
-
-    # Channel banner
-    banner_sources = (
-        ph.get("banner", {})
-          .get("imageBannerViewModel", {})
-          .get("image", {})
-          .get("sources", [])
-    )
-    banner_url = banner_sources[-1]["url"] if banner_sources else None
-
-    return {
-        "channel_id":  cmd.get("externalId"),
-        "title":       cmd.get("title"),
-        "description": cmd.get("description"),
-        "channel_url": cmd.get("channelUrl"),
-        "keywords":    cmd.get("keywords", ""),
-        "handle":      meta_parts[0] if len(meta_parts) > 0 else None,
-        "subscribers": meta_parts[1] if len(meta_parts) > 1 else None,  # e.g. "4.48m subscribers"
-        "avatar_url":  avatar_url,
-        "banner_url":  banner_url,
-    }
-
-channel = scrape_channel("@RickAstleyYT")
-# {
-#   "channel_id":  "UCuAXFkgsw1L7xaCfnd5JJOw",
-#   "title":       "Rick Astley",
-#   "description": "2026 UK & Ireland Reflection Tour...",
-#   "channel_url": "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuAXFkgsw1L7xaCfnd5JJOw",
-#   "handle":      "@RickAstleyYT",
-#   "subscribers": "4.48m subscribers",
-#   "avatar_url":  "https://yt3.googleusercontent.com/...",
-#   "banner_url":  "https://yt3.googleusercontent.com/...",
-# }
-```
-
----
-
-## Thumbnail URLs — All Sizes
-
-All thumbnail sizes are publicly accessible without auth. Construct directly from `video_id`:
-
-```python
-def thumbnail_urls(video_id):
-    base = f"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/{video_id}"
-    return {
-        "default":  f"{base}/default.jpg",      # 120×90,  always exists
-        "medium":   f"{base}/mqdefault.jpg",     # 320×180, always exists
-        "high":     f"{base}/hqdefault.jpg",     # 480×360, always exists
-        "standard": f"{base}/sddefault.jpg",     # 640×480, always exists
-        "maxres":   f"{base}/maxresdefault.jpg", # 1280×720, may 404 on older/low-res videos
-    }
-```
-
----
-
-## Extract Video ID from Any URL
-
-```python
-import re
-
-def extract_video_id(url):
-    """Extract YouTube video ID (11-char) from any YouTube URL format."""
-    m = re.search(r'(?:v=|/v/|youtu\.be/|/embed/|/shorts/)([A-Za-z0-9_-]{11})', url)
-    return m.group(1) if m else None
-
-extract_video_id("https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ")  # "dQw4w9WgXcQ"
-extract_video_id("https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ")                  # "dQw4w9WgXcQ"
-extract_video_id("https://www.youtube.com/shorts/dQw4w9WgXcQ")    # "dQw4w9WgXcQ"
-extract_video_id("https://www.youtube.com/embed/dQw4w9WgXcQ")     # "dQw4w9WgXcQ"
-```
-
----
-
-## What Requires a Browser
-
-The following are **not accessible** via `http_get` and require the CDP browser (see `playback.md`):
-
-- **Trending / Explore** (`/feed/trending`) — `ytInitialData` loads but video items are empty without cookies
-- **Playlist contents** — `ytInitialData` returns only microformat; full video list requires session cookies
-- **Comments** — loaded lazily via XHR, not present in initial HTML
-- **Shorts feed** — requires JS hydration
-- **Channel Videos tab** — video list requires cookies for consistent results
-- **Caption text content** — `captionTracks[].baseUrl` URLs return empty bytes regardless of session state; use the browser's Show Transcript UI flow instead (see `playback.md`)
-- **Age-restricted videos** — oEmbed returns HTTP 401; `scrape_video()` raises `ValueError("LOGIN_REQUIRED")`
-
-### Watch-page DOM hydration — the wait you need
-
-When you do fall through to the browser for watch-page DOM (e.g. because you need a
-rendered UI state, not just metadata), `wait_for_load()` is **not** enough. The `load`
-event fires before YouTube's Polymer components hydrate — `h1.ytd-watch-metadata yt-formatted-string`,
-`ytd-video-owner-renderer #channel-name a`, and `ytd-watch-info-text` all return `null` for
-~2s after load. Add a `wait(3)` after `wait_for_load()` before querying any watch-page
-selector.
-
-Field-tested 2026-04-24 on Brave; same behavior observed on ungoogled-chromium. Prefer
-the `http_get` + `ytInitialPlayerResponse` path above — the browser path exists for flows
-that need live UI state, not for reading metadata.
-
----
-
-## URL Patterns
-
-| Resource       | URL pattern                                                        |
-|----------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------|
-| Video          | `https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={VIDEO_ID}`                       |
-| Short URL      | `https://youtu.be/{VIDEO_ID}`                                      |
-| Shorts         | `https://www.youtube.com/shorts/{VIDEO_ID}`                        |
-| Channel handle | `https://www.youtube.com/@{HANDLE}`                                |
-| Channel ID     | `https://www.youtube.com/channel/{CHANNEL_ID}`                     |
-| Playlist       | `https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list={PLAYLIST_ID}`              |
-| Search         | `https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query={QUERY}`             |
-| oEmbed         | `https://www.youtube.com/oembed?url={VIDEO_URL}&format=json`       |
-| Thumbnail (HQ) | `https://i.ytimg.com/vi/{VIDEO_ID}/hqdefault.jpg`                  |
-
----
-
-## Gotchas
-
-- **`ytInitialPlayerResponse` regex must use non-greedy match with lookahead** — `(\{.*?\});(?:var|</script>)` with `re.DOTALL` is reliable. Do not use `\{.*\}` (greedy) — it consumes the entire rest of the page.
-- **`viewCount` and `lengthSeconds` are strings, not ints** — `vd["viewCount"]` returns `"1764468859"`. Always cast with `int()`.
-- **`likeCount` lives in `microformat`, not `videoDetails`** — `videoDetails` does not expose like count. `microformat.playerMicroformatRenderer.likeCount` is a string integer.
-- **`availableCountries` is a list of ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes** — 249 entries for globally available videos. An empty list means region data is unavailable, not that the video is globally blocked.
-- **oEmbed thumbnail is always `hqdefault` (480×360)** — if you need 1280×720, construct the `maxresdefault.jpg` URL directly, but check for 404 on older videos.
-- **Search returns ~14–20 results** — YouTube does not guarantee 20 results. Always iterate `itemSectionRenderer.contents` rather than assuming a fixed count.
-- **Channel subscriber count is a rounded string** — `"4.48m subscribers"`, not an integer. Parse with regex if sorting: `re.search(r'([\d.]+)\s*([km]?)', text, re.I)`.
-- **`meta_parts` order is `[handle, subscribers, video_count]`** — the third element is not always present. Index defensively.
-- **Caption `baseUrl` is not fetchable** — `captionTracks[].baseUrl` contains `expire=` and `signature=` params but returns empty bytes in all tested conditions (plain `http_get`, XHR from within the page, and `fetch()` with cookies). Use the Show Transcript UI in the browser for caption text (see `playback.md`).
-- **Age-restricted videos** — `scrape_video()` raises `ValueError` with a `LOGIN_REQUIRED` message. `oEmbed` returns HTTP 401 (raises `urllib.error.HTTPError`). Neither approach can access age-restricted content without login.
-- **Private / deleted videos** — oEmbed returns HTTP 404 (raises `urllib.error.HTTPError`). Wrap in `try/except`.
-- **`ytInitialData` blob terminator is `;</script>`** — using `re.DOTALL` with `(\{.*?\});</script>` is safe; the blob does not contain `;</script>` internally.
+# YouTube — Data Extraction
+
+Field-tested against youtube.com on 2026-04-21.
+No authentication required for any approach documented here.
+
+---
+
+## Approach 1 (Fastest): oEmbed API — No Auth, No Browser
+
+`https://www.youtube.com/oembed?url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={VIDEO_ID}&format=json`
+
+Returns JSON in ~0.3s. Works for any public video. Does **not** require login.
+
+```python
+from helpers import http_get
+import json
+
+def youtube_oembed(video_id):
+    """Fetch oEmbed metadata for a YouTube video.
+
+    Returns title, author, thumbnail URL, and embed iframe HTML.
+    """
+    url = f"https://www.youtube.com/oembed?url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={video_id}&format=json"
+    return json.loads(http_get(url))
+
+data = youtube_oembed("dQw4w9WgXcQ")
+# {
+#   "title":            "Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up (Official Video) (4K Remaster)",
+#   "author_name":      "Rick Astley",
+#   "author_url":       "https://www.youtube.com/@RickAstleyYT",
+#   "type":             "video",
+#   "thumbnail_url":    "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dQw4w9WgXcQ/hqdefault.jpg",
+#   "thumbnail_width":  480,
+#   "thumbnail_height": 360,
+#   "width":            200,
+#   "height":           113,
+#   "version":          "1.0",
+#   "provider_name":    "YouTube",
+#   "html":             '<iframe width="200" height="113" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dQw4w9WgXcQ?feature=oembed" ...>'
+# }
+```
+
+### Bulk oEmbed (ThreadPoolExecutor)
+
+```python
+from concurrent.futures import ThreadPoolExecutor
+import json
+from helpers import http_get
+
+video_ids = ["dQw4w9WgXcQ", "jNQXAC9IVRw", "9bZkp7q19f0"]
+
+def fetch_oembed(vid):
+    url = f"https://www.youtube.com/oembed?url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={vid}&format=json"
+    try:
+        return json.loads(http_get(url))
+    except Exception as e:
+        return {"error": str(e), "id": vid}
+
+with ThreadPoolExecutor(max_workers=5) as ex:
+    results = list(ex.map(fetch_oembed, video_ids))
+# 3 videos: ~4.1s total (YouTube oEmbed is slower than Spotify's; don't use >5 workers)
+```
+
+---
+
+## Approach 2: Watch Page — Full Metadata via ytInitialPlayerResponse
+
+Every `youtube.com/watch?v={ID}` page embeds two JSON blobs in the HTML:
+
+- `ytInitialPlayerResponse` — video details, microformat, caption track list
+- `ytInitialData` — comments section structure, related videos
+
+### Extract all video metadata
+
+```python
+from helpers import http_get
+import json, re
+
+def scrape_video(video_id):
+    html = http_get(f"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={video_id}")
+
+    # ---- ytInitialPlayerResponse ----
+    m = re.search(r'var ytInitialPlayerResponse = (\{.*?\});(?:var|</script>)', html, re.DOTALL)
+    if not m:
+        raise ValueError(f"ytInitialPlayerResponse not found for video {video_id} — video may be private, deleted, or region-blocked")
+    pr = json.loads(m.group(1))
+
+    # Check playability before parsing
+    status = pr.get("playabilityStatus", {}).get("status")
+    if status == "LOGIN_REQUIRED":
+        raise ValueError(f"Video {video_id} is age-restricted or login-gated (playabilityStatus: LOGIN_REQUIRED)")
+    if status == "ERROR":
+        reason = pr.get("playabilityStatus", {}).get("reason", "unknown")
+        raise ValueError(f"Video {video_id} is unavailable: {reason}")
+
+    vd  = pr["videoDetails"]
+    mf  = pr["microformat"]["playerMicroformatRenderer"]
+    caps = pr.get("captions", {}) \
+             .get("playerCaptionsTracklistRenderer", {}) \
+             .get("captionTracks", [])
+
+    return {
+        # Core
+        "video_id":      vd["videoId"],
+        "title":         vd["title"],
+        "author":        vd["author"],
+        "channel_id":    vd["channelId"],
+        "description":   vd["shortDescription"],
+        "duration_s":    int(vd["lengthSeconds"]),
+        "view_count":    int(vd["viewCount"]),
+        "keywords":      vd.get("keywords", []),
+        "is_live":       vd.get("isLiveContent", False),
+        "is_private":    vd.get("isPrivate", False),
+        # Microformat (richer publishing data)
+        "publish_date":  mf.get("publishDate"),   # ISO 8601, e.g. "2009-10-25T00:57:33-07:00"
+        "upload_date":   mf.get("uploadDate"),
+        "category":      mf.get("category"),       # e.g. "Music", "Gaming", "Education"
+        "like_count":    int(mf.get("likeCount", 0)),
+        "is_family_safe": mf.get("isFamilySafe"),
+        "is_unlisted":   mf.get("isUnlisted"),
+        "available_countries": mf.get("availableCountries", []),  # list of ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes
+        "channel_name":  mf.get("ownerChannelName"),
+        "channel_url":   mf.get("ownerProfileUrl"),
+        "embed_url":     mf.get("embed", {}).get("iframeUrl"),
+        # Thumbnails (all publicly accessible, no auth)
+        "thumbnail_hq":  f"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/{video_id}/hqdefault.jpg",    # 480×360, always exists
+        "thumbnail_max": f"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/{video_id}/maxresdefault.jpg", # 1280×720, may 404
+        # Caption tracks — baseUrl is included for reference but returns empty in practice;
+        # use the Show Transcript UI flow in the browser instead (see playback.md)
+        "caption_tracks": [
+            {
+                "lang":     t.get("languageCode"),
+                "name":     t.get("name", {}).get("simpleText"),
+                "kind":     t.get("kind", "manual"),  # "manual" or "asr" (auto-generated)
+                "base_url": t.get("baseUrl"),
+            }
+            for t in caps
+        ],
+    }
+
+video = scrape_video("dQw4w9WgXcQ")
+# {
+#   "video_id":     "dQw4w9WgXcQ",
+#   "title":        "Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up (Official Video) (4K Remaster)",
+#   "author":       "Rick Astley",
+#   "channel_id":   "UCuAXFkgsw1L7xaCfnd5JJOw",
+#   "duration_s":   213,
+#   "view_count":   1764468859,
+#   "publish_date": "2009-10-24T23:57:33-07:00",
+#   "category":     "Music",
+#   "like_count":   16942558,
+#   "caption_tracks": [
+#     {"lang": "en",    "name": "English",                "kind": "manual"},
+#     {"lang": "en",    "name": "English (auto-generated)", "kind": "asr"},
+#     {"lang": "de-DE", "name": "German (Germany)",        "kind": "manual"},
+#     ...
+#   ],
+# }
+```
+
+---
+
+## Approach 3: Search Results — No Auth
+
+`youtube.com/results?search_query={QUERY}` is server-side rendered. The `ytInitialData` blob contains up to ~20 video results.
+
+```python
+from helpers import http_get
+import json, re
+from urllib.parse import quote_plus
+
+def youtube_search(query, max_results=20):
+    """Search YouTube videos without a browser or API key."""
+    url = f"https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query={quote_plus(query)}"
+    html = http_get(url)
+
+    m = re.search(r'var ytInitialData = (\{.*?\});</script>', html, re.DOTALL)
+    data = json.loads(m.group(1))
+
+    # Walk the nested structure to find videoRenderer items
+    section_contents = (
+        data.get("contents", {})
+            .get("twoColumnSearchResultsRenderer", {})
+            .get("primaryContents", {})
+            .get("sectionListRenderer", {})
+            .get("contents", [])
+    )
+
+    results = []
+    for section in section_contents:
+        for item in section.get("itemSectionRenderer", {}).get("contents", []):
+            vr = item.get("videoRenderer", {})
+            if not vr:
+                continue
+            snippet = vr.get("detailedMetadataSnippets", [])
+            desc = (
+                "".join(r.get("text", "") for r in snippet[0]["snippetText"]["runs"])
+                if snippet else None
+            )
+            results.append({
+                "video_id":   vr["videoId"],
+                "url":        f"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={vr['videoId']}",
+                "title":      vr.get("title", {}).get("runs", [{}])[0].get("text"),
+                "channel":    vr.get("ownerText", {}).get("runs", [{}])[0].get("text"),
+                "channel_url": (
+                    "https://www.youtube.com"
+                    + vr.get("ownerText", {}).get("runs", [{}])[0]
+                                              .get("navigationEndpoint", {})
+                                              .get("browseEndpoint", {})
+                                              .get("canonicalBaseUrl", "")
+                ),
+                "duration":   vr.get("lengthText", {}).get("simpleText"),  # e.g. "3:32"
+                "views":      vr.get("viewCountText", {}).get("simpleText"),  # e.g. "1,764,468,859 views"
+                "published":  vr.get("publishedTimeText", {}).get("simpleText"),  # e.g. "7 years ago"
+                "description_snippet": desc,
+                "thumbnail":  f"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/{vr['videoId']}/hqdefault.jpg",
+            })
+            if len(results) >= max_results:
+                return results  # exit both loops immediately
+    return results
+
+results = youtube_search("python tutorial", max_results=5)
+# Returns up to ~14-20 results (YouTube serves fewer than 20 on first page)
+# [
+#   {
+#     "video_id":  "K5KVEU3aaeQ",
+#     "title":     "Python Full Course for Beginners",
+#     "channel":   "Programming with Mosh",
+#     "duration":  "2:02:21",
+#     "views":     "6,056,121 views",
+#     "published": "1 year ago",
+#   }, ...
+# ]
+```
+
+---
+
+## Approach 4: Channel Metadata — No Auth
+
+Channel pages (`youtube.com/@handle` or `youtube.com/channel/{CHANNEL_ID}`) embed metadata in `ytInitialData`.
+
+```python
+from helpers import http_get
+import json, re
+
+def scrape_channel(handle_or_id):
+    """
+    handle_or_id: "@RickAstleyYT"           (handle, with @)
+                  "UCuAXFkgsw1L7xaCfnd5JJOw" (channel ID)
+    """
+    if handle_or_id.startswith("UC"):
+        url = f"https://www.youtube.com/channel/{handle_or_id}"
+    else:
+        url = f"https://www.youtube.com/{handle_or_id}"
+
+    html = http_get(url)
+    m = re.search(r'var ytInitialData = (\{.*?\});</script>', html, re.DOTALL)
+    data = json.loads(m.group(1))
+
+    # Canonical metadata (always present)
+    cmd = data.get("metadata", {}).get("channelMetadataRenderer", {})
+
+    # Subscriber count + handle from pageHeaderViewModel
+    ph = (
+        data.get("header", {})
+            .get("pageHeaderRenderer", {})
+            .get("content", {})
+            .get("pageHeaderViewModel", {})
+    )
+    meta_parts = [
+        part.get("text", {}).get("content", "")
+        for row in ph.get("metadata", {})
+                     .get("contentMetadataViewModel", {})
+                     .get("metadataRows", [])
+        for part in row.get("metadataParts", [])
+    ]
+    # meta_parts is typically: ["@handle", "4.48m subscribers", "N videos"]
+
+    # Avatar (take the largest source)
+    avatar_sources = (
+        ph.get("image", {})
+          .get("decoratedAvatarViewModel", {})
+          .get("avatar", {})
+          .get("avatarViewModel", {})
+          .get("image", {})
+          .get("sources", [])
+    )
+    avatar_url = avatar_sources[-1]["url"] if avatar_sources else None
+
+    # Channel banner
+    banner_sources = (
+        ph.get("banner", {})
+          .get("imageBannerViewModel", {})
+          .get("image", {})
+          .get("sources", [])
+    )
+    banner_url = banner_sources[-1]["url"] if banner_sources else None
+
+    return {
+        "channel_id":  cmd.get("externalId"),
+        "title":       cmd.get("title"),
+        "description": cmd.get("description"),
+        "channel_url": cmd.get("channelUrl"),
+        "keywords":    cmd.get("keywords", ""),
+        "handle":      meta_parts[0] if len(meta_parts) > 0 else None,
+        "subscribers": meta_parts[1] if len(meta_parts) > 1 else None,  # e.g. "4.48m subscribers"
+        "avatar_url":  avatar_url,
+        "banner_url":  banner_url,
+    }
+
+channel = scrape_channel("@RickAstleyYT")
+# {
+#   "channel_id":  "UCuAXFkgsw1L7xaCfnd5JJOw",
+#   "title":       "Rick Astley",
+#   "description": "2026 UK & Ireland Reflection Tour...",
+#   "channel_url": "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuAXFkgsw1L7xaCfnd5JJOw",
+#   "handle":      "@RickAstleyYT",
+#   "subscribers": "4.48m subscribers",
+#   "avatar_url":  "https://yt3.googleusercontent.com/...",
+#   "banner_url":  "https://yt3.googleusercontent.com/...",
+# }
+```
+
+---
+
+## Thumbnail URLs — All Sizes
+
+All thumbnail sizes are publicly accessible without auth. Construct directly from `video_id`:
+
+```python
+def thumbnail_urls(video_id):
+    base = f"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/{video_id}"
+    return {
+        "default":  f"{base}/default.jpg",      # 120×90,  always exists
+        "medium":   f"{base}/mqdefault.jpg",     # 320×180, always exists
+        "high":     f"{base}/hqdefault.jpg",     # 480×360, always exists
+        "standard": f"{base}/sddefault.jpg",     # 640×480, always exists
+        "maxres":   f"{base}/maxresdefault.jpg", # 1280×720, may 404 on older/low-res videos
+    }
+```
+
+---
+
+## Extract Video ID from Any URL
+
+```python
+import re
+
+def extract_video_id(url):
+    """Extract YouTube video ID (11-char) from any YouTube URL format."""
+    m = re.search(r'(?:v=|/v/|youtu\.be/|/embed/|/shorts/)([A-Za-z0-9_-]{11})', url)
+    return m.group(1) if m else None
+
+extract_video_id("https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ")  # "dQw4w9WgXcQ"
+extract_video_id("https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ")                  # "dQw4w9WgXcQ"
+extract_video_id("https://www.youtube.com/shorts/dQw4w9WgXcQ")    # "dQw4w9WgXcQ"
+extract_video_id("https://www.youtube.com/embed/dQw4w9WgXcQ")     # "dQw4w9WgXcQ"
+```
+
+---
+
+## What Requires a Browser
+
+The following are **not accessible** via `http_get` and require the CDP browser (see `playback.md`):
+
+- **Trending / Explore** (`/feed/trending`) — `ytInitialData` loads but video items are empty without cookies
+- **Playlist contents** — `ytInitialData` returns only microformat; full video list requires session cookies
+- **Comments** — loaded lazily via XHR, not present in initial HTML
+- **Shorts feed** — requires JS hydration
+- **Channel Videos tab** — video list requires cookies for consistent results
+- **Caption text content** — `captionTracks[].baseUrl` URLs return empty bytes regardless of session state; use the browser's Show Transcript UI flow instead (see `playback.md`)
+- **Age-restricted videos** — oEmbed returns HTTP 401; `scrape_video()` raises `ValueError("LOGIN_REQUIRED")`
+
+### Watch-page DOM hydration — the wait you need
+
+When you do fall through to the browser for watch-page DOM (e.g. because you need a
+rendered UI state, not just metadata), `wait_for_load()` is **not** enough. The `load`
+event fires before YouTube's Polymer components hydrate — `h1.ytd-watch-metadata yt-formatted-string`,
+`ytd-video-owner-renderer #channel-name a`, and `ytd-watch-info-text` all return `null` for
+~2s after load. Add a `wait(3)` after `wait_for_load()` before querying any watch-page
+selector.
+
+Field-tested 2026-04-24 on Brave; same behavior observed on ungoogled-chromium. Prefer
+the `http_get` + `ytInitialPlayerResponse` path above — the browser path exists for flows
+that need live UI state, not for reading metadata.
+
+---
+
+## URL Patterns
+
+| Resource       | URL pattern                                                        |
+|----------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------|
+| Video          | `https://www.youtube.com/watch?v={VIDEO_ID}`                       |
+| Short URL      | `https://youtu.be/{VIDEO_ID}`                                      |
+| Shorts         | `https://www.youtube.com/shorts/{VIDEO_ID}`                        |
+| Channel handle | `https://www.youtube.com/@{HANDLE}`                                |
+| Channel ID     | `https://www.youtube.com/channel/{CHANNEL_ID}`                     |
+| Playlist       | `https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list={PLAYLIST_ID}`              |
+| Search         | `https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query={QUERY}`             |
+| oEmbed         | `https://www.youtube.com/oembed?url={VIDEO_URL}&format=json`       |
+| Thumbnail (HQ) | `https://i.ytimg.com/vi/{VIDEO_ID}/hqdefault.jpg`                  |
+
+---
+
+## Gotchas
+
+- **`ytInitialPlayerResponse` regex must use non-greedy match with lookahead** — `(\{.*?\});(?:var|</script>)` with `re.DOTALL` is reliable. Do not use `\{.*\}` (greedy) — it consumes the entire rest of the page.
+- **`viewCount` and `lengthSeconds` are strings, not ints** — `vd["viewCount"]` returns `"1764468859"`. Always cast with `int()`.
+- **`likeCount` lives in `microformat`, not `videoDetails`** — `videoDetails` does not expose like count. `microformat.playerMicroformatRenderer.likeCount` is a string integer.
+- **`availableCountries` is a list of ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes** — 249 entries for globally available videos. An empty list means region data is unavailable, not that the video is globally blocked.
+- **oEmbed thumbnail is always `hqdefault` (480×360)** — if you need 1280×720, construct the `maxresdefault.jpg` URL directly, but check for 404 on older videos.
+- **Search returns ~14–20 results** — YouTube does not guarantee 20 results. Always iterate `itemSectionRenderer.contents` rather than assuming a fixed count.
+- **Channel subscriber count is a rounded string** — `"4.48m subscribers"`, not an integer. Parse with regex if sorting: `re.search(r'([\d.]+)\s*([km]?)', text, re.I)`.
+- **`meta_parts` order is `[handle, subscribers, video_count]`** — the third element is not always present. Index defensively.
+- **Caption `baseUrl` is not fetchable** — `captionTracks[].baseUrl` contains `expire=` and `signature=` params but returns empty bytes in all tested conditions (plain `http_get`, XHR from within the page, and `fetch()` with cookies). Use the Show Transcript UI in the browser for caption text (see `playback.md`).
+- **Age-restricted videos** — `scrape_video()` raises `ValueError` with a `LOGIN_REQUIRED` message. `oEmbed` returns HTTP 401 (raises `urllib.error.HTTPError`). Neither approach can access age-restricted content without login.
+- **Private / deleted videos** — oEmbed returns HTTP 404 (raises `urllib.error.HTTPError`). Wrap in `try/except`.
+- **`ytInitialData` blob terminator is `;</script>`** — using `re.DOTALL` with `(\{.*?\});</script>` is safe; the blob does not contain `;</script>` internally.