VidFetch - YouTube Video Downloader

Overview

VidFetch is a comprehensive, cross-platform desktop application designed for downloading YouTube videos and playlists with a modern, intuitive user interface. Built with Python and CustomTkinter, it provides a seamless experience for users who want to download high-quality video content in various formats and resolutions, from 360p to 4K.

This application was created by me as a demonstration of advanced Python development skills including GUI design, multi-threading, media processing, and cross-platform compatibility.

Key Features

Video Download Capabilities

• Multi-Format Support: Download videos in MP4, WebM, and MKV formats
• Quality Selection: Choose from resolutions ranging from 360p to 4K (8K when available)
• Individual Video Downloads: Download single videos with customizable quality and format options
• Playlist Management: Comprehensive support for downloading entire playlists with selective filtering
• Visual Previews: Integrated thumbnail viewer for immediate content verification before download

Modern User Interface

• Dark Theme Design: Polished, dark-themed interface built with CustomTkinter
• Responsive Layout: Clean, card-based design with intuitive navigation
• Real-Time Progress Tracking: Live download progress with speed indicators and time remaining
• Download Management Tab: Dedicated view for monitoring multiple concurrent downloads
• History Management: Track and manage previously downloaded content
• Settings Panel: Customizable preferences for download location, quality defaults, and notifications

Performance & Reliability

• Multi-Threaded Downloads: Robust chunked file downloading with up to 8 concurrent threads
• Intelligent Retry Logic: Automatic retry mechanism with exponential backoff for failed downloads
• Media Muxing: Seamless integration with FFmpeg for automatic merging of high-quality video and audio streams
• Pause/Resume Functionality: Control downloads with pause and resume capabilities
• Error Handling: Comprehensive error handling with user-friendly error messages

Technical Stack

Core Technologies

• Python 3.12+: Modern Python with type hints and dataclasses
• CustomTkinter: Modern GUI framework providing beautiful, customizable widgets
• yt-dlp: Powerful YouTube downloader library (fork of youtube-dl) - Special thanks to the creators and maintainers of yt-dlp for their excellent work
• FFmpeg: Media processing for video/audio muxing and conversion
• Pillow (PIL): Image processing for thumbnails and icons
• requests: HTTP library with retry logic and session management

Architecture

The application follows a modular architecture with clear separation of concerns:

Core Module

• downloader.py: Multi-threaded download engine with intelligent chunking
• muxer.py: FFmpeg integration for media merging
• youtube_client.py: YouTube API interaction
• models.py: Data models (VideoMetadata, PlaylistMetadata)

UI Module

• main_window.py: Main application window
• components.py: Reusable UI components
• download_item.py: Download progress widgets

Utils Module

• config.py: Configuration management
• logging.py: Logging setup
• paths.py: Resource path resolution

Technical Achievements

1. Advanced Download Engine: Implemented sophisticated multi-threaded downloader with intelligent chunking and automatic fallback mechanisms
2. User Experience: Seamless integration of video metadata fetching and display with real-time progress updates
3. Cross-Platform Compatibility: Platform-specific optimizations for Windows, macOS, and Linux
4. Robust Error Handling: Comprehensive exception handling with user-friendly error messages

Development Highlights

• Extensive use of type hints for better code maintainability
• Efficient caching of icons and images
• Proper locking mechanisms for thread-safe concurrent operations
• Clean architecture with separation of concerns
• Well-documented codebase with comprehensive docstrings

Project Metrics

• Supported Formats: MP4, WebM, MKV
• Quality Range: 360p to 4K/8K
• Concurrent Threads: Up to 8 threads per download
• Platform Support: Windows 10/11, macOS 11+, Linux
• Python Version: 3.12+

UI/UX Features

• Hero section with prominent URL input
• Search results view with detailed video information and thumbnail preview
• Download queue with real-time progress tracking
• History window with grid-based view and filtering
• Settings window with theme selection and notification preferences
• Recent downloads section for quick access

Acknowledgments

Special thanks to the creators and maintainers of yt-dlp for providing an excellent library that makes this application possible. yt-dlp is a powerful and actively maintained fork of youtube-dl, and this project would not exist without their hard work and dedication.

Project Status

Version: 0.1.0
Status: Active Development
License: MIT

This application is designed for educational and personal archiving purposes. Users are responsible for complying with YouTube's Terms of Service and applicable copyright laws.