TubeDigger review, feedback, suggestions -Download and Record streaming audio & video

[heyadam]

Hello.

I used a trial version of TubeDigger. I like the interface. Easy-to-use.

Unfortunately, it didn't work to capture FLV (RTMP, unprotected) from a music site that uses a pop-up window for its player. Does TubeDigger only monitor one window at a time? Can this feature be added? It would be valuable!

I would like to purchase a license to TubeDigger but this is currently a roadblock. I think GetFLV solves this problem by opening pop-ups in additional tabs then monitoring the new tab.

Thanks,
heyadam

[TubeDigger]

Originally Posted by heyadam

Unfortunately, it didn't work to capture FLV (RTMP, unprotected) from a music site that uses a pop-up window for its player. Does TubeDigger only monitor one window at a time? Can this feature be added? It would be valuable!

It is known problem with these pop-up windows and even worse - they are opening in separate process of Internet Explorer and intercepting their URLs is not easy task. TubeDigger has embedded Internet Explorer and monitors only it. TubeDigger is not monitoring other applications. There is one workaround with pop-up windows: right-click on pop-up's background, select properties, copy URL of this pop-up and paste it into TubeDigger. Actually, there is almost no need to have tabs. If you want to open something like "new tab" - just open new instance of TubeDigger.
Please also provide link to this music site with pop-ups.

[placebo]

Hey Adam, please let us know which music site you're after. (or let me know thru PM). I am curious to know and test it myself.

It should be no problem with TubeDigger after all!

[heyadam]

I purchased TubeDigger today and am now a registered user!

Please see my review below.

Review:
Overall: Tube Digger is a slick, elegant solution to recording HTTP and RTMP(E) streams that works with many popular sites. It also offers intelligent, guided conversion to many popular containers and codecs.

Interface: Minimalist, well-organized and efficient. With the URL entry at the top you can either go to a page or drag a shortcut directly into the bar. The site is presented in the center. At the bottom, the now familiar list of detected streams with protocol, URL and mouseover tips. Below that, buttons for Convert, Settings, Video Folder and About. There are no menus! I actually quite like this. Clean interface design and does what I need it to. Themes through msstyles.

Downloading: Tested at several video sites, all listed on TubeDigger's homepage. Has worked flawlessly. It gives me the information I need quickly to determine the quality of the stream I want to record.

VideoCap: Works well although I have only used this once as a test. Turn "Rec On" and record live streams.

License: $24.95 for the current version and lifetime updates. Of note, there is some strange thing listed in the FAQ about being able to verify the key 5 times on the same computer or 5 different computers every 12 months. This is a strange restriction with no indication in the app what my status is (i.e. how many verifications have I already done?). Why not tie the key to an email address or user name and if both pieces of info match when verifying out to the web then OK? This is a difficult and burdensome requirement for someone who is frequently upgrading or changing their OS.

Comparison: GetFLV is TubeDigger's main competitor right now. I do not consider RTMPdump a competitor because it is open source, free and command line--an amazing program, too! I tried both TubeDigger and GetFLV before purchasing TubeDigger. I found GetFLV's interface to be cluttered and confusing. I didn't like that I had to click around the different sections on the left to view my downloads, convert, fix, etc. Everything should be visible in the main screen or pop-up as it is in TubeDigger. Also, I found that GetFLV suffered from more frequent stops requiring a restart while downloading than TubeDigger. TubeDigger has better and more lean conversion options than GetFLV that output playable video. GetFLV is very reliant on the version of Flash that you have installed. Apparently, according to the developer, TubeDigger is not. Finally, GetFLV is more expensive at $59.95 for the current version and one year of updates or $159.95 (!!!) for lifetime. Really GetFLV?

Wishlist: As TubeDigger continues to improve with frequent updates, there are several features which would make it better.

1) A built-in way to join video segments together to make an episode for download sites like Via*** that present video in segments and acts.
2) A button in the line-by-line stream window at the bottom that quickly lets me Clear All Inactive. I have auto-start downloading OFF until I determine the right stream quality to download so a Clear All Inactive would be great after I initiate my listed downloads. I could move more quickly to the next recording.
3) Support for downloading from sites that have pop-up players like Nap**** and Rhap****

Summary: A competent program that does what it is supposed to do at a great price! Well worth it.

Cheers,
heyadam

[TubeDigger]

Originally Posted by heyadam

I purchased TubeDigger today and am now a registered user!

TubeDigger has confirmed that heyadam is a registered user of TubeDigger. Thank you for buying!

License: $24.95 for the current version and lifetime updates. Of note, there is some strange thing listed in the FAQ about being able to verify the key 5 times on the same computer or 5 different computers every 12 months. This is a strange restriction with no indication in the app what my status is (i.e. how many verifications have I already done?). Why not tie the key to an email address or user name and if both pieces of info match when verifying out to the web then OK? This is a difficult and burdensome requirement for someone who is frequently upgrading or changing their OS.

The philosophy of TubeDigger is NOT to bind to any customer's information as hardware, email, etc and allow registration on multiple computers. Emails confirmation is too annoying and hardware changes can be too often. Five times of Windows reinstallation per year it seems to be rare - if you'll overuse such quota, please contact support. You can read more about TubeDigger's licensing from its EULA.

1) A built-in way to join video segments together to make an episode for download sites like Via*** that present video in segments and acts.

It seems to be dozen of good software in the internet for merging videos - TubeDigger at the moment is only downloader

2) A button in the line-by-line stream window at the bottom that quickly lets me Clear All Inactive. I have auto-start downloading OFF until I determine the right stream quality to download so a Clear All Inactive would be great after I initiate my listed downloads. I could move more quickly to the next recording.

Menu item 'Remove idle downloads' has been added in version 1.5.1

[placebo]

hey adam, thx for the excellent review. placebo => lazy, no time, ignorant => that's why i dont write TubeDigger /GetFLV review. I own and use both products. I dont know why but of all SRF noteworthy tools (see their abbreviations) typically i launch GFLV first to see how it performs. If it fails, then i would try TD. And if both have failed, i would post a thread for help in the RTMPDump forum section .. because RTMPdump (and RTMPexplorer, rtmpsusk) are too difficult . StreamTransport and CooJah + Blader still do a great job on older websites .. but before i'd use them, i'd rather ask the developers of GFLV and TD for support of the streaming website in question.

Originally Posted by heyadam

3) Support for downloading from sites that have pop-up players like Nap**** and Rhap****

Nothing has changed about Nap****. It is still possible to undrm the 192kbps WMA's with a Nap**** To Go beggar subscription (confirmed by me). Nothing has changed about Rhap****. It is still possible to undrm the 160kbps WMA's with a Rhap**** Unlimited subscription (not confirmed by me (yet) because i am not interested in 160kbps low bitrate music). The Rhap**** popup player streams *.rad files thru the http protocol, in low quality (128kbps). There's nothing GFLV or TD could do here for you, sorry. Let's also mention Z***. Some things have changed about Z***. It is not possible anymore to undrm the 192kbps WMA's with a Z*** Music Pass for the Microsoft Z*** Pass Marketplace (this is 99.9% confirmed by me thanks to the power of the indvpage); catching the webplayer 128kbps WMA's is easy but they cant be undrm'ed either, logically.
Yes, the Nap**** 128kbps mp3 streams are sweet (RMC catches them easily!), so you're probably not on the US$14.95 tier but on the ~4.95$/month subscription.

OIC

[philyate]

I don't know where else to post this. I have been using TubeDigger very successfully and am running 1.5.4. Yesterday I downloaded 6 episodes of a UK Channel 5 series without any problems. Today, I tried to continue, but the program crashes (just disappears) before the main file after the adverts begins. Have tried this on two separate machines. Uninstalled and reinstalled TD. Other websites like BBC, iTV are okay. It seems to be a Channel 5 thing. Any ideas?

Otherwise, it's a fantastic program, well worth $25!

[philyate]

Thanks for the quick response! All seems to be OK again.

[philyate]

Minor issue: I find after using the blank page feature (as recommended for downloading without simultaneous viewing), pressing the back arrow causes the program to quit.

A drop down history in the address bar would be great...

[it2stream]

Seems to be some kind of flash issue when trying to view Tv4 play. Want to change the quality of the stream but I can't do that cause the stream doesn't start. Get a flash 100 error.