Youtube

[Sob__]

People don't care about YouTube, it's just where the stuff they want to watch is. To boycott YouTube just because it's being slightly annoying in their chosen non-Chrome browser, and not be able to watch what they want seems like overreaction. Does anyone really do that?

[Night Wing]

Off-topic:
Wouldn't it be easier to simply stop using YouTube by then? It's not as hard as you may think, even when "your life depends on it".

I do a lot of research on surfboards (mainly longboards which can be broken down to high performance longboards, niche boards and nose rider boards), different designs and sizes of surfing fins depending on wind and wave conditions, different designers and shapers of surfboards, standup paddleboards, the fins used on sups, etc.

All these things above, the vast majority of information where you can actually see these things in action is on YouTube.

I'll give you an example. Below is a YouTube link where sup fins are discussed for sup surfing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umvyhcOYlTE

BTW, I own one prone niche surfing longboard and four standup paddleboards (sups) in various lengths, widths, thicknesses and liters of volume for every board. To stop using YouTube is not an option for me. So with YouTube discriminating against Pale Moon, I've had to switch to Firefox.

Off-topic:
Lastly, I thought I would give a little teaser bonus on where I go to prone and sup surf (a long time ago) which I found on YouTube. The place is at Surfside, Texas. This short YT video might not play right away because it freezes for me when loading the page when I'm using Pale Moon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOAqTxzAM2Y

[Moonbird]

To watch Youtube videos, have a look at Invidious. Here is the list of Invidious services: https://redirect.invidious.io/
No problems with it specific to Pale Moon. But of course a specific Invidious instance could be overloaded, broken or shut down, so that's to consider. Try out different instances, if one makes trouble.

[New Tobin Paradigm]

Shitty replacement for shitty service is shitty never the less.

[Goodydino]

To watch Youtube videos, have a look at Invidious. Here is the list of Invidious services: https://redirect.invidious.io/
No problems with it specific to Pale Moon. But of course a specific Invidious instance could be overloaded, broken or shut down, so that's to consider. Try out different instances, if one makes trouble.

Invidious does not work any more. I tried two different sites and they both quit working.
I use SeaMonkey to view YouTube videos most of the time. It is faster to populate the pages than Pale Moon. Why it would take so long for text and thumbnail pictures to appear on the pages with Pale Moon but not with SeaMonkey, I wish I knew.

[Moonbird]

@Dino: Try it yewtu.be. Many other instances are broken unfortuneatly it looks like.

[Night Wing]

Try yewtu.be

Yewtu.be looks promising for me. In my last post, the video I posted for Surfside freezes for me at the start on YouTube when using Pale Moon. It didn't on Yew.

I went and searched for another one of my favorite surfing places at Port Aransas, Texas to see if the video would freeze on Yew when using Pale Moon. The video below freezes for me on YouTube, but not on Yew.

https://yewtu.be/watch?v=4DlIVeSEIPw

So far, so good.

[Moonchild]

the video I posted for Surfside freezes for me at the start on YouTube when using Pale Moon.

FTR that's not a video problem. It is due to scripting on the page being loaded and being very greedy in terms of CPU cycles when compiled and executed (even offthread).
That's not limited to Pale Moon either. if I play YouTube on Edge, it happily eats 2 of my cores worth of CPU just for playing a video (that doesn't need anything special even with MSE, in terms of CPU)

[Goodydino]

@Dino: Try it yewtu.be. Many other instances are broken unfortuneatly it looks like.

It looks promising. Thanks, I shall try it.

[rayandrews]

It could be useful if people who have issues they attribute to the browser mentioned which OS they're using and give a bit of info about their system.

Well, that presumes anyone is interested in the problem and/or that the issue is not well understood already without the details and/or that it's not already known to be a general problem. If someone does want to engage with the issue, off course I can supply whatever details are required. But is has to be the browser because Firefox does much, much better -- tho it is significant of course the FF too, has these script errors on occasion.

[coffeebreak]

Well, that presumes...

Actually people are interested in the problem.
And it's not necessarily the case that everyone experiences freezes such that the site literally can't be used.

But it's also true that YouTube has been extremely problematic for some time, because it has adopted Chrome-specific technology that Pale Moon doesn't currently support (see UXP issues #1361 and #1375), and that is consciously designed to make the site harder to use with non-chromium browsers.

There is already alot of discussion about YouTube that you could have read to understand what's going on, if you had troubled to search. For instance, threads here and here.

At present, your choices are:
- If you do use Pale Moon with YouTube, make sure to use the built-in SSUAO that comes with the browser; or
- Use a different browser with YouTube; or
- Use some kind of workaround, such as an alternate front-end (Invidious instance, as linked above?) or an extension
(uTube, PMPlayer).

[Falna]

I've only been using this for a few days, but so far I'm finding that YT is much more responsive in mobile mode; that is, using https://m.youtube.com/?persist_app=1&app=m
May be worth a try.

[New Tobin Paradigm]

That's TRUE... It does work better though having to click for controls is a bit annoying cause expecting touch.. Still..

Someone write an extension that redirects all youtube watch urls to mobile. MAKE IT HAPPEN PEOPLE!

[RealityRipple]

Forked uTube to ΜTube (aka muTube), now available. Be warned, though, the mobile page will show ads, which embedded versions usually manage to bypass. It also pauses videos if you switch tabs.

[Night Wing]

I've only been using this for a few days, but so far I'm finding that YT is much more responsive in mobile mode; that is, using https://m.youtube.com/?persist_app=1&app=m

I'm using a desktop tower computer, circa 2010 model. It has a very old Intel i7 processor in it (I think it is a Sandy Bridge processor) with a processor speed of (2.80). It came with 16 GB of memory and the original 4 memory sticks have not been replaced. This desktop computer is connected to a Dell 27" external monitor. When I'm suing YouTube and find a video which I like, I will watch it in full screen mode. If I like it enough, I will save the video for a bookmark for future reference.

I just tried the link you posted and thank you for that.

The videos play basically instantaneously at the beginning of the videos in mobile mode. And I don't mind clicking (hunting) for the controls which I found. But the mobile mode is lacking in one important department and that is with the HD settings. I'll give an example.

At the streaming video below in the non mobile mode (desktop), I watch this streaming video in 1440p60 HD without any problems.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=viOkh9al0xM

But in mobile mode, the highest setting is 720p60 which means it is not as sharp viewing wise for my eyesight as the 1440p60 HD setting. When someone like me has poor eyesight, I want the highest HD setting I can see (nice and sharp) and which my computer has no problem with (no stuttering when playing the video).

So for me, I have a choice between using Pale Moon and putting up with the freezing at the beginning of the video above because of crappy scripts while retaining the 1440p60 HD setting or have the video play instantaneously for me without freezing in the mobile mode in Pale Moon, but with the highest 720p60 setting the mobile mode has to offer which isn't as sharp for my eyesight.

My choice is an easy one for me (if Firefox didn't exist). I would put up with the crappy scripts which freezes for 5-10 seconds at the beginning of the videos in order to watch videos which are 1080p60 HD and above in full screen mode when using Pale Moon.

The only alternative for me now is to use Firefox if I'm going to be doing a lot of research by viewing lots of videos on YouTube since videos don't freeze (aren't susceptible to the crappy scripts) at the beginning of videos when using Firefox.

[New Tobin Paradigm]

Someone else create an extension that redirects desktop to mobile site.

[coffeebreak]

URL Rewriter seems to do the job, using Falna's url:

Edit: Actually, spoke too soon. It does the job if the main page was visited first, seems to have to do with cookies.

[rayandrews]

> Actually people are interested in the problem.

But you don't know until you ask. I've mentioned many a problem on many a forum and got no interest at all.

> And it's not necessarily the case that everyone experiences freezes such that the site literally can't be used.

I presume nothing. Others will report their own experience as it may be.

> Chrome-specific technology that Pale Moon doesn't currently support

I'm not surprised to hear it. One might simply report that and leave it at that as the boss did above.

> There is already alot of discussion about YouTube that you could have read to understand what's going on, if you had troubled to search.

You do not know how much 'trouble' I've gone to, nor are you in a position to insinuate that I'm lazy. In fact, I'd say my first option should be to come here and get the facts straight from the horse's mouth rather than go wandering around the internet hoping to stumble across an answer. Or should the forum be considered a very last resort?

> make sure to use the built-in SSUAO that comes with the browser

Finally something useful, thanks very much. But what is SSUAO and where do I investigate this?

> Use a different browser with YouTube; or

That's helpful. So if my toilet is plugged you'd recommend I stop shitting, or use another toilet or poop behind a bush? Being a smartass doesn't accomplish much unless you get off on being a smartass. The boss answered my question above -- he's aware of the problem and is working on it. Meanwhile I like Palemoon and hope he gets it sorted out.

[coffeebreak]

[...] I'd say my first option should be to come here and get the facts straight from the horse's mouth rather than go wandering around the internet hoping to stumble across an answer. Or should the forum be considered a very last resort?

Searching this forum isn't "wandering around the internet hoping to stumble across an answer".

This is a mutual self-help forum (where both users and project developers participate),
it's NOT a commercial consumer "help desk".
It is very much expected that people search this forum thoroughly for answers before they choose to post.

No one should be expected to answer the same question over and over again.
And please understand that posting in anger/frustration, or because it seems to you that the developers were ignoring the problem, doesn't get things fixed faster.

what is SSUAO and where do I investigate this?

SSUAO = Site Specific User Agent Override.

It advertises Pale Moon to YouTube as being a specific chosen version of Firefox, so that YT will serve a version of their site meant for that version of Firefox.
If you've never heard the term before, most likely you didn't change it. For more detail, search the forum.

So if my toilet is plugged you'd recommend I stop shitting, or use another toilet or poop behind a bush? Being a smartass doesn't accomplish much

Personally, I don't equate smooth use of YouTube with having a functioning toilet. :)

But that aside, suggesting to use another browser wasn't smartass (regardless how you took it).
It's a legitimate, realistic workaround (among others) pending (the unknown time when) the problem is solved.

[New Tobin Paradigm]

A mobile UA is a bad idea.. It could cause less working codepaths than JUST visiting the mobile site.