What do you think if Bitcointalk accepted videos?

[AB de Royse777]

I sometimes post a video in the following form, but it takes some time, and some users don't even realize that the link to the video is hidden behind the picture.

This is one way to solve it. Another way is to put the link under then screenshot like


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSKimRE6qmY

I guess the topic is about embedded video? In my experience, from some other forums, it does not look good visually and in some cases it's annoying too. 

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[NeuroticFish]

I guess the topic is about embedded video? In my experience, from some other forums, it does not look good visually and in some cases it's annoying too. 

That's correct.
Some may remember the not-too-long period when animated images were allowed as avatars and some campaigns started using that.
It soon became rather annoying and soon enough theymos no longer allowed them.

Now just imagine what would happen when a lot of people would put in videos, especially on auto-play...


So imho the proposal can work only without auto-play (as already said).
And really, I don't know why would that be needed when somebody can add it just in the way Royse posted the previous example. After all, the videos are not hosted here anyway.

[Xal0lex]

I can only imagine how much work will be added to the moderators if this feature is added to the forum. Because in order to moderate such posts, moderators will need to review all these videos.

[SamReomo]

Should it be possible or not to watch videos via the forum?

I think it's a good idea and I fully support it. I believe it should be possible to watch videos via the forum and I believe you are the right person to have a platform that may host the videos or make a site similar to TalkImg where users of Bitcointalk should be allowed to host their videos and then they may share the links on this forum.

I believe a JavaScript embedded pop-up of a video should be a nice feature to have on this forum. I believe someone like PowerGlove may help to create such script for the forum and if it's accepted and implemented by Theymos then it would be much helpful for the members of the forum.

[The Sceptical Chymist]

I know this forum seems way behind the times in many aspects, but I hate it when I go to some mainsteam-y media site and there's some kind of video that starts playing.  No doubt there could be an option to not autoplay videos, but I'd just rather not see bitcointalk go that route--and it sounds like Theymos isn't leaning in that direction based on his response.

That compromise solution he offered up, the one with an icon to click, might not be a bad idea.  It hasn't escaped me that a lot of the younger generation prefer watching videos to reading, so it's probably not a bad idea for the forum to take a baby step out of the stone age.  And hey, I used to watch a lot of crypto videos and would probably find specially-marked links to them useful.

[KingsDen]

I know this forum seems way behind the times in many aspects, but I hate it when I go to some mainsteam-y media site and there's some kind of video that starts playing.  No doubt there could be an option to not autoplay videos, but I'd just rather not see bitcointalk go that route--and it sounds like Theymos isn't leaning in that direction based on his response.

That compromise solution he offered up, the one with an icon to click, might not be a bad idea.  It hasn't escaped me that a lot of the younger generation prefer watching videos to reading, so it's probably not a bad idea for the forum to take a baby step out of the stone age.  And hey, I used to watch a lot of crypto videos and would probably find specially-marked links to them useful.

While someone has a problem of watching videos in the forum. Myself I sometimes wish to communicate here using a voice note, especially when I do not want to type much. I would be happy if that is added than video. On a second, many people here do not have English as their first language which makes it difficult to make connected sentences. Let's assume audio is added, with poor English and different ascents, it's gonna be a nightmare...LOL

[BlackHatCoiner]

In this sense, I thought: couldn't the forum also accept videos?

It'd be comfortable to have an "Upload file" option in general, not just limited to videos (why staying in videos when you could broaden it beyond?). Certain limitations could exist, such as the minimum rank required to be able to upload, or account storage limit (with over 1250 bitcoin in reserves, I'm pretty sure the forum can handle a few gigabytes for each user).

The problem is legal. If a user uploads illegal content, then unless files are actively monitored and reviewed, the forum admins are legally responsible. To be honest though, this would be one of the least important features to account for, if I had to choose. There's no particular problem with uploading a file to a temporary file hosting service whenever needed, and I rarely see non-newbie users who would want to share with us a video.

[PX-Z]

I feel like neutral on this, as I always view the videos on their platform e.g. vimeo or youtube instead in any third-party sites but having it in here is nothing to worry and still okay as embedded video.

On other forum i used — a general forum like reddit, the admin there create a separate website (like a dummy website) for images and videos to embed on that forum, I guess that was his third website because the other was taken down for obvious reasons. This is to avoid legal complaints, copyrights, etc. Of course, the embedding video is also possible on that forum too.

[Upgrade00]

Before adding a new feature, I would imagine the admins check for the demand on that feature through users exploring other more difficult routes to achieve the same result. With videos, I don't see an obvious demand for it, I've hardly ever had to embed a video into a post I was making and also come across posts containing custom links to videos sparingly.

Without much real users, if an easy to use feature is added, it would be abused, necessitating the need for stricter moderation, adding to the workload of the mods.
It would be a cool feature to have but I'll vote No on it, cause of the obvious drawbacks and that it doesn't improve communication on the forum.

[joker_josue]

Thank you for your feedback.

A common point of view was noticed, which is very good in a community: the idea is good, this capability would be interesting, but in reality it would not be very useful for the dynamics of the forum.

The link continues to be the best way to take the reader to the video you want to present. 

[LoyceV]

I don't want embedded videos. If there's a video link, I'll open it in an external window, and either play it on the side, or full screen. Many other sites that have embedded videos don't work for me, because I don't allow the tracking cookies. I'm okay without working embedded videos.
It gets worse if it's animating by default. My browser is set to animate GIFs only once, and ads are blocked. Whenever I visit a website without those default settings, I'm instantly surprised and annoyed by the amount of animations on my screen. I like a "quiet" screen, and anything that moves distracts.

I prefer the embedded videos to be from a platform that doesn't force users to view an ad or two ^{[YouTube (e.g. standard videos) is a perfect example of a platform that should be avoided]}.

I refuse to watch ads, and the day my adblocker doesn't block them anymore is the day I stop using Youtube.

I sometimes wish to communicate here using a voice note, especially when I do not want to type much.

I hate voice messages with a passion. Suddenly it goes from a screen to sound that goes all around me.

I think that such a feature should somehow be limited to at least the Member+ rank, because there should be no doubt that otherwise there will be those who will abuse such a feature.

How about limiting it to only certain boards? Or even just one, so the rest of the forum stays nice and quiet.

There's another thing I hate about "video tutorials": whenever I need something, the first thing Google shows me is a bunch of Youtube videos. To find what I need, I need to watch some guy film himself, tell me to subscribe, bla bla bla bla bla and finally (if I'm lucky) I get to see what I needed. I miss the days when a "Howto" was just written text with images, so I can quickly scroll through it to find what i need. Video is very time consuming.

[MusaMohamed]

There's another thing I hate about "video tutorials": whenever I need something, the first thing Google shows me is a bunch of Youtube videos. To find what I need, I need to watch some guy film himself, tell me to subscribe, bla bla bla bla bla and finally (if I'm lucky) I get to see what I needed. I miss the days when a "Howto" was just written text with images, so I can quickly scroll through it to find what i need. Video is very time consuming.

Some youtubers did not add a text description of the video content or a summary of important points in the video.

To get what we need, we have to watch a full video that is sometimes too long and waste time for watching.
Even we get what we need, if we don't type it in our own note, in future, if we need that information again, we will have to watch that video again, another waste of time.

I like to read books, blog posts, articles than watching a video.

I tend not to watch videos for education on any topic because I don't learn that way, but you might be different.

[FatFork]

I see some upsides to having videos directly embedded in forum posts, but like theymos pointed out, there are definitely some privacy concerns too. So, I'm on the fence about it.  Personally, I don't mind the occasional click-through to another site to watch a video, it's not a huge deal.

Maybe the devs could brainstorm a solution that offers the best of both worlds?  A pop-up window that plays the video within the forum could be a good compromise.  That way, you still get the embedded video experience, but without potentially compromising your privacy by having videos load automatically and sharing our IPs with third-party sites.

[shield132]

What are your opinions? Should it be possible or not to watch videos via the forum?
If so, do you think it should be possible to share videos from any platform, or just from specific platforms? And what would be the maximum time a video should take to be available here?

Lucius's trick is a smart solution but it's not very practical because I have to leave the website and watch video on another platform. For a smooth experience, it will be good if we are able to embed videos from popular platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Twitch, Twitter... and if they'll be embedded with lazy image loading. Lazy image loading will not slow down the website.
I mentioned those websites intentionally because they censor violence and illegal content, so forum wouldn't be under DMCA complain. If we allow videos from any source, then moderators will probably have to work very hard.

[Bureau]

The forum still allows flash videos which does not work in 2024. The admin of the forum does not feel that it should be upgraded, being the only forum of Bitcoin. It would be amazing if there was a fix to show videos within the forum. I also doubt that is possible within the forum, Talkimg moving forward to become a source to display videos will be great, it will cost a lot for sure.

I sometimes post a video in the following form, but it takes some time, and some users don't even realize that the link to the video is hidden behind the picture.

That does not look presentable! That kind of predicament will not give an assurance to anyone unless a rank holder like you presents it. I have not been able to do such a thing with my posts or topics as I am only a small rank holder. If there is a way to show the video within the forum by only those who are ranked Sr Member and above then it will be good. There are a lot of users who have been awakened in my signature campaign and these guys were not a part of the forum when the merit system was implemented. If you give access to full member and above then we might see a lot spam content in the forum.

[joker_josue]

There's another thing I hate about "video tutorials": whenever I need something, the first thing Google shows me is a bunch of Youtube videos. To find what I need, I need to watch some guy film himself, tell me to subscribe, bla bla bla bla bla and finally (if I'm lucky) I get to see what I needed. I miss the days when a "Howto" was just written text with images, so I can quickly scroll through it to find what i need. Video is very time consuming.

Totally agree, I miss that simplicity the same.
90% of the content of most of these videos is useless and does not add any information to what is really needed.

[AB de Royse777]

I can only imagine how much work will be added to the moderators if this feature is added to the forum. Because in order to moderate such posts, moderators will need to review all these videos.

Watch a few seconds at the beginning, fast forward with 10x, 20x or 30x even more, watch last few seconds. A 10 minutes video will not take more than 1 minutes to get a rough idea about the video. Is moderation too hard :-)?

I imagine a good problem though. If the video is hosted on Bitcointalk server then watching it on the TOR browser is nearly an impossible job LOL. For a 10 minutes video I will need half an hour to finish it :-D.

[Mpamaegbu]

What are your opinions? Should it be possible or not to watch videos via the forum?
If so, do you think it should be possible to share videos from any platform, or just from specific platforms? And what would be the maximum time a video should take to be available here?

I know you're trying to bring creativity and dynamism into the mix, even your past works have shown your good intentions. I've nothing against such conception. However, I'm of the opinion that having videos play in the forum will distract and derail topics of discussion. We know how how these things are easily hijacked. User A sends a video to buttress their point, User B sends a similar video as a follow up but which is slightly different from the first. It goes on and on like that and the import and storyline begins to lose its relevance. Besides, videos are more addictive than comments and we often find ourselves drifting while on them.

In addition, I think this forum should continue to make itself distinct and not see itself as copying what others are doing.

[LoyceV]

Lucius's trick is a smart solution but it's not very practical because I have to leave the website and watch video on another platform.

I always have many tabs open, and often several windows. One more or less doesn't matter.

For a smooth experience, it will be good if we are able to embed videos from popular platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Twitch, Twitter.

Let's not add mass tracking to Bitcointalk
I've blocked 4 out of those 5 including their advertising domains from my hosts file. See StevenBlack / hosts to conveniently block them. Life is better without social media.

I mentioned those websites intentionally because they censor violence and illegal content, so forum wouldn't be under DMCA complain.

DMCA is for the ones hosting it, not for embedding if it's hosted elsewhere.

[BlackHatCoiner]

For a smooth experience, it will be good if we are able to embed videos from popular platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Twitch, Twitter...

Sounds terrible, and not smooth. I've been in forums that allowed embedding YouTube videos and it didn't go well. Think of a video being posted once and quoted 5 times. The page will be on an endless loading.

It's also bad for privacy. Right now, bitcointalk proxy protects the user's privacy by passing all image requests through ip.bitcointalk.org. You can't do that to a YouTube video. Google will have to know who's watching. That's why DuckDuckGo allows you to view images privately but not videos.