New video! I think Netflix, Hulu, and other similar streaming media sites are harming society. And now I'm going to tell you why, and how I use self-hosted media instead to fill the gap.
https://tinkerbetter.tube/videos/watch/adb3102a-f329-44a8-86c7-50c7e52a5bd7
@vkc My first time watching a video on PeerTube! I loved the no ads experience and the playback quality was excellent. Now I just need to work out how to watch PeerTube on my TV (watched this one on my phone).
@vkc oof - this reminds me that I never did finish digitizing my DVD collection. (The project stalled when my motherboard literally exploded - or at least a component on the motherboard. I just never got around to restarting it.)
@vkc
This video brings me so much joy. I've shared it with a few new friends I've converted to the freedom of Linux.
@vkc Longtime fan on the Peertube channel. Just Patreoned ya.
@ScottStarkey Oh my goodness, thank you so much Scott!
@vkc Your great content for the Fediverse is appreciated! Thanks for all your hard work.
@vkc the discovery is simply terrible on peertube. I would like a real alternative to youtube
@hiphopheaven I disagree- discovery is a function of human connection on PeerTube and that's good enough for me.
@vkc i have no issue finding content on pixelfed so it is not about the lqck of algorithm
@vkc I've returned to purchasing CDs and DVDs whether second-hand, or new, and I'm glad I did. I just wish I had more room for all the CDs I buy.
@vkc
One think I like about my TV/Radio tuner is that there's a mast on a hill over in Lancashire just beaming out the national channels all day and night that does not really care about who is tuned into what.
And that's 170Mbps of digital multiplexes broadcast to everyone at the same time despite only having a little indoor aerial on my window sill.
@vkc I always watch movies and shows from my own hard drive (or, although rarely nowadays, from DVD and VHS), and I also always listen to music from local storage media, which include not only CDs but also tapes and vinyl records, and of course a local digital archive of about half a terabyte. A much smaller collection of about 20 gigabytes of music is stored on the memory card in my smartphone.
I have never felt the need to pay for any streaming service, and when it comes to "free" (usually ad supported) streaming services, well, I tend to rip those streams to one of my local hard drives so I don't have to worry that the media become unavailable one day. Content on streaming sites like Youtube or Vimeo gets deleted ever so often, I don't even bother to make my own YT playlists anymore because by the time I want to watch, half or more of the videos will have gone missing. I just run yt-dlp and that's that. Media on my own HDDs won't just suddenly disappear. And if I can't get any decent DRM free downloads legally, I'll get them illegally via Bittorrent, and sometimes I even start that old donkey (aMule, that is) or Soulseek (well, Nicotine) for the rarer stuff I can't find anywhere else. I also still buy physical media like CDs or records.
I'm just a 50 year old electronics addict and a huge nerd, and I have never understood the allure of streaming services since I hate not being in control, and as an Anarchist, I don't care whether what I do is legal or not. Netflix, Hulu, etc., may delete shows and movies all the time, but they can't delete the pirated copies I torrent. Companies can switch of their servers when they go out of business, but the data on my own machines isn't affected. I also don't play any online games, I only play single player games that don't need any external server in order to work. Being able to play all by myself, not having to play with others, is what made computer games so attractive for me when I was a teenager, and I still don't feel like playing any kind of multiplayer games. My favourite genre has always been adventure games, whether parser based text adventures, parser based graphic adventures like Sierra before SQ IV, or point and click adventure games like Lucasfilm/Lucasarts games or Sierra starting with SQ IV. Which are exactly the type of game which won't suddenly stop working because the company decided to pull the plug.
Being in control is also why I started using Linux in the 1990s. The ability to customise everything to my liking is very important to me.
@vkc Thanks a lot for describing this so well ❤️
@vkc If I may, I have a question around a small dilemma I have about where I should watch your videos. I'm a patron, so I guess I'm contributing, *but* I do also have a YouTube Premium account (for no ads reasons), and so I think if I watch your video on YouTube you also get paid a little bit for that, which you don't get if I watch through PeerTube. Am I right about that? And if so, do you have a strong preference on the subject? Thanks!
My new video is also on YouTube, if you prefer to use a massive streaming platform in order to see a video about why massive streaming platforms are harming us.
@vkc nice video. Another thing that brothers me about streaming is ownership. Like you i buy dvd's in thriftstores, rip them with #MakeMkv convert them with #Handbrake and play the movies on the device of my choice. It's a bit cumbersome, but it's mine.
@vkc I've wondered with other people who make videos and have them on both YouTube and Peertube (and some Nebula.TV):
If you get some money from YouTube (but also some from supporters via Patreon or the like), does it matter to you whether non-$-supporters use YT or your PeerTube site?
I mean, I'm sure if you have a preference it is mild, but do you have one?
I wrote up a blog post about how I use Handbrake, as a companion to this piece (and so I could edit the link with new developments in the future):
@vkc Appreciate the tips, especially with subtitle stuff. I have so much trouble with subtitles, especially with foreign language material where I want both the original language with English subtitles as well as the English dub with its closed captions/subtitles.
@vkc oh this comes in at the right time. I have a pile of DVDs that need to be digitized. Thanks.
Lastly, hosting these videos on PeerTube is only possible thanks to the generosity of viewers like you. I don't have sponsors and there's no ad revenue on the Fediverse. I need all the support I can get to keep going, especially now as folks are cutting back expenses.
If you can help support me with a monthly sustaining membership, I would greatly appreciate it (and you'll get access to my Matrix/Discord room).
https://ko-fi.com/VeronicaExplains
https://patreon.com/VeronicaExplains
@vkc Thank you for this! I volunteer with a small nonprofit with no budget who need to post occasional videos. We’ve used YouTube in the past, but I of course have been looking for a more open alternative that would *also* be beginner friendly for non technical non nerd non profit people. 😅
