# Ticket: YouTube-to-Obsidian capture workflow ## Metadata - Type: Ticket - Status: Archived - Project: YouTube-to-Obsidian Knowledge Capture - Created: 2026-05-14 - Updated: 2026-05-17 - Priority: Medium ## Goal Design and test a low-friction workflow for capturing useful information from YouTube videos watched offline/online on an Android tablet and converting it into Obsidian-ready Markdown notes. ## Why The user watches many YouTube videos and wants to retain important concepts, subjects, timestamps, and references without relying on memory or YouTube's uncertain offline history behavior. ## Scope Included: - Document Android tablet/work constraints. - Verify whether Nextcloud Talk voice messages can act as the capture inbox while offline. Result: unsuitable because messages/self-notes cannot be created without a Nextcloud connection. - Identify fallback capture options: local Android voice recorder plus automatic upload/sync after reconnect. - Define a quick/minimal capture template. - Define Obsidian staging note formats for daily captures, watched-video logs, and per-video notes. - Identify whether YouTube offline viewing data can be reconciled after sync. Initial test confirms offline watches appear in YouTube history after reconnect, PC website history does not expose timestamps, and Google My Activity shows a single timestamp that may be enough if it reflects watch time rather than sync time. - Investigate whether YouTube API, OAuth, or Google Takeout can expose useful history data. Not included: - Direct access to the user's Obsidian vault before permission/access is granted. - Bypassing YouTube DRM/offline storage restrictions. - Full automation against private Google/YouTube data before feasibility and safety are reviewed. ## Acceptance Criteria This ticket is done when: - [x] The user's watching/capture devices are documented. - [x] Nextcloud Talk offline/queued voice-message behavior is tested on Android. - [ ] Local voice recorder plus automatic upload/sync method is selected. - [ ] Offline capture behavior is tested. - [x] Basic YouTube offline-history sync behavior is tested. - [ ] YouTube API/Google Takeout/My Activity timestamp feasibility is documented. - [ ] My Activity watch-time-vs-sync-time behavior is tested. - [ ] A minimal capture template is agreed. - [ ] Markdown staging templates for daily notes, watched-video logs, and per-video notes are created. - [x] Next steps for Obsidian vault access/sync are identified. ## Questions - Does Nextcloud Talk on Android allow composing text messages while offline and send them after reconnecting? - Done: Nextcloud Talk does not allow useful offline capture without Nextcloud connection. - Which Android voice recorder app provides quickest local capture and accessible saved files? - Can Nextcloud Android auto-upload the recorder folder, or should FolderSync/WebDAV/Syncthing be used? - Can YouTube on Android show/share title, URL, or current timestamp while offline with minimal interaction? - Done: after sync, YouTube history includes videos watched offline, but YouTube website does not show watch timestamps. - Google My Activity shows a single timestamp; is it actual watch start time or tablet resync time? - Does Google Takeout expose the same timestamps? - Does a simple YouTube API key help, or is OAuth required and still insufficient? - Does manual Google Takeout provide a better/safe history export source? - Is Google Data Portability API relevant for YouTube history, or unnecessary overhead? - What folder in the Obsidian vault should receive YouTube video notes, daily captures, and watched-video logs? ## Plan / Next Actions - [ ] Test Nextcloud Talk on Android in airplane mode/no reception: compose `ytcap interesting`, reconnect, confirm delivery timestamp behavior. - [x] Test whether Talk voice messages can be recorded offline, queued, synced, and downloaded/transcribed later. Result: not viable without connection. - [ ] Test built-in Android/Samsung/Pixel recorder or Fossify Voice Recorder saving locally. - [ ] Test Nextcloud Android auto-upload, FolderSync/WebDAV, or Syncthing for the recordings folder. - [x] Test YouTube offline viewing: watched downloaded videos in airplane mode, reconnected, confirmed they appeared in YouTube history on PC; no timestamps visible on website. - [x] Check Google My Activity for the same offline watches and note whether timestamps appear. - [ ] Run a controlled test: note actual offline watch time and later reconnect time, then compare the timestamp shown in Google My Activity. - [ ] Research YouTube Data API vs OAuth vs manual Google Takeout/Data Portability API for watch history access. - [ ] Create Markdown templates for daily capture and video note staging. - [ ] Run a small test with 3 videos/captures. ## 2026-05-17 Spec Advancement Confidence level: high for voice-capture ingestion; medium for daily staging format; low for automated watch-history source. Decisions now stable: - Offline Talk capture is not viable; local Android recorder plus Nextcloud upload is the first reliable capture path. - Staging on the Nextcloud VM is the correct boundary until Obsidian sync/backup exists. - Data Portability is blocked by region, so fallback watch-history approaches are required. Refined next milestone: - Complete a daily workflow using voice captures plus staged daily notes, then select a watch-history fallback. Updated next actions: - [ ] Keep testing real Android recordings over several days. - [ ] Choose and document the minimal voice-capture template the user should speak. - [ ] Defer Obsidian writes until the vault sync/backup ticket is resolved. - [ ] Use `2026-05-15-youtube-watch-history-fallbacks.md` for watched-video import strategy. ## Notes - User watches on an Android tablet at work. - User interaction at work is limited; no reception may be available. - Preferred capture interface is quick local Android voice recordings around the time the video plays. Mentioning title, channel/author, or topic in the voice message should help identify the video. Nextcloud Talk is unsuitable offline because it cannot create/send messages or self-notes without connection. - Desired output is context-dependent: one note per interesting video plus a daily capture note, with concept integration into the existing vault. Also consider an Obsidian watched-video log/index, potentially including videos not explicitly mentioned. - Obsidian vault currently lives on the user's PC and should be synced with Nextcloud ASAP. - A YouTube API key may be useful for public video metadata once we have a video ID/URL, but likely will not by itself expose private watch history. - Google Takeout does not appear to be a simple API-key service; treat it as manual export unless Data Portability API research proves useful. - Offline YouTube Premium watches can sync into normal YouTube history after reconnect. Google My Activity shows one timestamp, but whether it is watch-start time or resync time is still unproven. - Building a custom app to play YouTube Premium offline downloads is not a practical path; official downloads are tied to the YouTube app and protected by YouTube/DRM/terms constraints. - YouTube Premium offline watch data may not be available through public APIs. - The first reliable version should work with minimal voice capture, then add automation where feasible. - Future feature idea: list videos watched on a selected day with metadata/summaries and use that as a prompt for later conversation about topics, even for videos not explicitly flagged. ## Archive Note Archived because the YouTube-to-Obsidian project is dead in the water for now. Retained for future reference if requirements change.