Marik Posted March 22, 2008 Share Posted March 22, 2008 Although Now YouTube offers higher res videos as much as 480×360 (but these are not HD), but it’s an improvement from the traditional 320×240, but when you want to view the specific video, is there a link or button to view the new better resolution? well in some videos there is a link offering you to take to higher resolution, but most users miss this and end up watching the traditional 320×240 videos.The Difference Between the Two QualitiesHere are screen screenshots from both the high quality and low quality versions of the Beastie Boys’ “Gratitude” video on YouTube. The difference is noticeable in several areas, mostly the shadows and highlights on the bassist’s hands and on the background behind him.Here is a ways to watch and share these new Hi-Res videos without hassle.MethodsViewing1. The URL HackAdd &fmt=18 to the end of a normal YouTube URL. If there’s a high quality version available, this will cause it to load.2. The Firefox Add-on.The team over at Lifehacker makes the Better YouTube extension for Firefox and the latest version of the add-on includes the URL hacking technique above (as well as some other goodies, like the ability to stop movies from auto-playing).3. The Easily Overlooked Obvious MethodIf you’re logged in to YouTube anyway, just head over to your account settings page. Near the bottom you’ll find a “Video Quality” option. Click that link and you’ll land on a page where you can choose to always see the higher quality videos. Obviously, this requires you to login to YouTube, so if you don’t want to do that, just stick with one of the methods above.Even at the higher quality, YouTube videos aren’t going to look good on an HDTV. But for smaller monitors and laptops, they may be good enough to at least watch in full screen mode without the video turning the chunky moving blocks of color.SharingJust adding the fmt=18 bit to the URLs in a video’s regular embed code won’t work. You have to add a couple of small pieces elsewhere, too. Here are the changes to make:<object width=”480” height=”397“><param name=”movie” value=”(VIDEO EMBED URL)&ap=%2526fmt%3D18“></param><param name=”wmode” value=”window“></param><embed src=”(VIDEO EMBED URL)&ap=%2526fmt%3D18” type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” wmode=”window” width=”480” height=”397“></embed></object>One Final NoteIf you’re ripping YouTube videos to your iPod, Zune or other handheld, always grab the higher-quality version. Even though those screens are tiny, they show a lot of detail, so the extra quality goes a long way. Source: DotNetWizzard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shought Posted March 22, 2008 Share Posted March 22, 2008 Very handy Marik! Never noticed that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marik Posted March 22, 2008 Author Share Posted March 22, 2008 yeah me neither until my m8 wizard made the post :rolleyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
demonon Posted March 28, 2008 Share Posted March 28, 2008 Isn't this the same as clicking on view this video in high quality? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LemonHead2089 Posted March 28, 2008 Share Posted March 28, 2008 This is awesome. thanks for the new info. I changed my settings on youtube and also added the extension just for the hell of it. Handy tip! There is also a slight difference in video quality as you said there would be@demonon - ya im pretty sure it is. if you use firefox get the extension that way you won't even have to worry about clicking on view video in high quality Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jman123 Posted March 29, 2008 Share Posted March 29, 2008 Thanks :)didn't even know about the better youtube plugin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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