Please Fix the Companion App Timer?

[nar...@eznet.net]

This question concerns the free version of VDH.  

I have searched the forum and did not find an answer.

Sometimes, after downloading an HLS Streaming video using the Companion App, then waiting more than 240 minutes (perhaps even the next day), upon my next attempt, I get the reminder message about the 4-hour restriction (when I shouldn't) and the application terminates. Rebooting the PC does not clear up the problem.

I'm not absolutely certain, but this seems to happen particularly when there was a failure in the previous HLS Streaming download attempt, i.e. the blue circle turned red, and error messages were generated. 

Being a retired computer programmer myself, I wonder if perhaps there is some flag that gets set at the end of an HLS Streaming download, which is -not- getting set if the download fails, causing the app to think there is an HLS Streaming download currently in progress (when there isn't), thereby tripping the message and exiting?  

If it's something like that, it ought to be an easy fix for a future release. One approach might be to reset the after generating the error messages. Another might be to reset the time when the user discards a failed download into the "trash can". 

The only solution at this time seems to be to uninstall and reinstall the application.

Thanks for your time!

[nar...@eznet.net]

CORRECTION:  

Another post that I reviewed referenced a 240-minute timer, and I had that in my mind. 

The reminder message that I see refers to a period of 120 minutes, not 240 minutes.   

Sorry about that!

[mjs]

That is a restriction in the Chrome and Edge versions of the VDH extension, if you don't want this limitation a license will remove the 2 hour limit.

If you insist on using it for free and don't want a license then use the Firefox version as there isn't a 2 hour limit.

A failed download may count as a download but I'm not sure either.

--

A vdh user

[jcv...@gmail.com]

Hi,

I asked the dev, the 120min delay is set only after a download is complete, you should not be limited if the download failed.

jerome

[Wild Willy]

That's good advice to use Firefox to avoid the 2 hour delay.  It's also good advice in case you want to get anything off YouTube, something Chrome VDH is not permitted to do.

Michel may claim that a failed download is not supposed to start the 2-hour counter.  But apparently our original poster is seeing precisely that situation.  I'm thinking a series of screenshots exhibiting the problem might be helpful here.  You'd want your screenshots to show time stamps to reinforce the argument.

And just on general principles, you might want to keep this handy:

https://groups.google.com/g/video-downloadhelper-q-and-a/c/BzPLK2YyL-s