Have you tried to download videos from a website on several occasions but found yourself running into a brick wall? Downloading videos from most websites can be a tough nut to crack if you do not know how to go about it.
Most websites do not have a download button that you can easily use to download videos; however, in this guide, we’re going to let you in on some tips that you can use to download videos from any website.
There isn’t a one size fits all approach that can be used to download videos from websites, you have to use a combination of different methods in order to see which one works best for you.
Downloading videos from any website or social media page is easier than you ever imagined. Below is a guide on some options you can use to download videos online.
Free Methods You Can Use To Download Videos From Any Website
Screen recording is a great way to get videos from the internet. With a screen recording tool, you can capture any activity taking place on your computer screen. However, you need to understand first that screen-recording as a method of downloading videos online has some inherent limitations.
First off, the quality of the video may not be top-notch. The video may lag or have inconsistent stream speeds. The video audio may also sound distant or out of sync.
Another limitation of using the screen recording method is that you’ll need to get access to the videos by subscribing to the service. For instance, if you want to screen record a video from Netflix, you’ll need to subscribe to the Netflix service so you can get access to the videos.
Follow these steps to download and install the screen recording software
- Download Open Broadcast Software (OBS Studio) set up file.
- Double-click the OBS Studio setup file.
- Click Next
- Click I Agree
- Click Next
- Uncheck the plug-in (optional).
- Click Install
- Click the FINISH button to complete the installation process when prompted.
Once installed, the OBS studio will launch or open on your computer automatically, in case this doesn’t happen, go to your Windows search bar and type ‘OBS studio,’ when it appears at the top of search results, click it so it can launch on your computer.
When it launches on your computer, click OK when prompted so that you can accept the terms of use, and get access to the main OBS studio interface.
To configure the software, click YES on the “Auto-Configuration Wizard” window, a window will be launched, and you can use that window to complete the wizard set-up. Follow the instructions below to complete the wizard set-up;
- You’ll see an “Optimize just for recording” box, make sure to check it.
- Click Next
- Click Next
- Click Apply Settings
- If you want to customize your settings, click No instead.
Next, you’ll need to add an OBS studio to your desktop. To do this, follow the instructions below;
Click the ＋ icon below the “Sources” heading, click Display Capture or Game Capture, click OK at the bottom of the “New Capture” window, and click OK at the bottom of the window.
Next, click on Settings, you’ll find it at the lower-right side of the OBS Studio window. This will open up the Settings window.
Next, on the left side of the window, you’ll see a list of options, click on the tab with the word Output.
Next, after clicking the OUTPUT tab, then go ahead to click the “Recording Format” option close to the bottom of the page, and then you’ll see a dropdown menu.
When you see the dropdown menu, choose the video format by clicking on MP4
Next, You’ll see the “Video” tab on the left-hand side of your computer, make sure to click on it.
Next, after clicking the video tab, you’ll see a box titled “Output (Scaled) Resolution,” select the numerical content in the box, and then click and drag your mouse across the content of the text box, the text box content is located towards the top of your computer screen.
Next, look at the “Base (Canvas) Resolution” box at the top, you’ll see a value content in the box, type that value into the “Output (Scaled) Resolution” box below.
Next, look at the left side of your computer window, you’ll see a list of options with one of the tabs titled “Audio,” click that tab.
Next, to Enable audio recording, you’ll see some dropdown boxes by the left titled “Mic/Aux” and “Desktop Audio,” make sure the four (4) boxes are checked. Then proceed to click on the microphone name of your computer.
Next, on the left side of your computer screen, you’ll see the Hotkeys tab, make sure to click it.
Next, you’ll need to create a combination of keys for the start recording and stop recording screen recording function. To do this, first, locate the start recording text box at the top and enter a value. For instance, you can enter a combination of values like Alt + 5.
Follow the same process for the stop recording function. Go the stop recording text box and enter a different combination of values as well.
Next, take a look at the lower right side of your computer screen, you’ll see two buttons, one is the APPLY button, and the other one is the OK button. Click the APPLY button first, then click the OK button.
Next, sign-up with a site where you can get access to videos, for instance, you can sign-up with NETFLIX or HULU. Enter your account details on the site so you can get access to their videos.
On the website’s video player, you’ll see a FULL-SCREEN icon to make the video cover your entire computer screen, click on the icon. In a situation where you cannot find the FULL-SCREEN icon, press F11 on your computer to make the video cover your entire screen.
Next, and this is very important. Make sure to turn up the volume of the video so that when you’re recording, your video will be audible enough.
Next, do you remember the start recording and stop recording combination values you created earlier? It’s time to make use of them. First, enter the key combination for Start Recording to enable OBS Studio to start the recording process. In a situation where you come across a “Failed to record” error, follow the guidelines stated below:
- Click OK on the error message.
- Click Settings on the lower-right side of the OBS Studio window.
- Click Output on the upper-left side of the Settings window.
- Click the “Encoder” drop-down box.
- Click Software (x264) in the drop-down menu.
- Click Apply, then click OK
If you do not come across a “Failed to record” error, then go ahead and play the video by clicking on the PLAY button.
Finally, when you’ve finished recording, enter the other key combination you created for Stop Recording so that the software can stop recording. The recorded video so far will be saved.
Video Downloader Professional is one of the best, safe, and fastest ways to download videos online. It is essentially a Google extension that allows users to download and save videos that are embedded into any website. Downloading videos online just got easier.
However, keep in mind that Video Downloader Professional only allows you to download videos from non-commercial websites. For a commercial site like YouTube, the video downloader professional method may not work.
Moreover, video downloader professional basically works with Firefox, Chrome, and Microsoft Edge browsers. Follow the guidelines below to download and use Video Downloader Professional with any of the supported web browsers of your choice.
First, download the extension for Video Downloader Professional by clicking any of the links below:
- Chrome extension page
- Firefox add-on page
- Microsoft Edge app page
Next, you have to install the extension you downloaded. The installation process for each browser is different. Follow the guidelines below to see the installation process for your chosen browser:
- For Firefox Browser – Click the＋ Add to Firefox button highlighted in blue, then when prompted, click the Add button in blue, and lastly, click the OK button when prompted.
- For Chrome Browser – Click the ＋ ADD TO CHROME button highlighted in blue, then when prompted, click Add extension.
- For Microsoft Edge Browser – Click the blue Get button when the Store app opens, then click Launch when the app has finished installing.
Next, if you are using the Microsoft Edge browser, you’ll need to enable video downloader professional before you proceed. To do this, follow the steps below:
- Click the symbol ⋯ located in the upper-right corner of your computer window to see the dropdown menu.
- In the drop-down menu, click Extensions.
- Then click Video Downloader professional
- Click the “Off” switch at the bottom of the menu.
- When prompted, click Turn it on.
Note that if you are not using Microsoft Edge, these steps, as mentioned above, are not necessary.
Next, visit any non-commercial website that has a video that you want to download, click on the particular video, and open it.
Next, start playing the video. By this time, you’ll see as a button turns into a GREEN ARROW pointing downwards on your video download manager extension. If this doesn’t happen, try to refresh the page by clicking on the refresh icon.
Click the GREEN ARROW button, and you’ll see a dropdown menu, in the drop-down menu, look for the file with the largest file size.
Lastly, click the download button to begin the process of downloading the file into your computer. Depending on your browser, you may need to choose a download location for your video, and you may also be required to click SAVE to save the video.
