Show YouTube Video Upload Date
Show full upload dates instead of "1 year ago", etc.
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Steve McIntyre

Show YouTube Video Upload Date - Show full dates on YouTube instead of "1 year ago", etc.

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Free and paid features: - Replace all relative dates with full dates in local format - Option to show relative date if video was published less than 1 day ago Paid features: - Show the time - Show dates and times of comments - Custom date and time formats

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Steve McIntyre
Maker
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I spent a lot of time on YouTube during the lockdowns but found it strange that all of the video upload dates were shown relatively such as "3 weeks ago", "4 years ago", etc. In 2022 I wrote an extension to show full dates (only on the video page at that time), published it to the Chrome Web Store and left it running in the background for a couple years, doing some minor bug fixes when they came up in reviews and support. Fast forward to 2024 and I had a decision to make. The bug fixes are taking some of my time and focus so I needed to decide whether to double down on it or ditch it. I looked at the stats and it had 22K weekly users. It was greater than anything I'd built up to that point as an indie maker, so I decided to see if I could convert some of that traffic and make my first internet dollar off it. I fixed a bunch of bugs and generally made it more stable and smooth, added all of the features users asked for and made the dates available on every page, all for free. It was a massive improvement on the version that had been on the store for 2 years previous. I then started charging an optional $1/mo subscription for additional features such as showing the upload time, showing dates in comments and customising the date format - as well as for supporting its ongoing development. I'm happy to say that it's making some money and the lessons I'm learning along the way have been invaluable. Hopefully it's the first part of my indie hacker journey. Ask me anything, happy to chat and my inbox is always open.
Esus 🛡️
Wow, amazing timing. I'll be learning from a friend more about Chrome Ext development today. This looks amazing and so specific - I love that it solved a pain point you had as a beginning. Also really impressed with your engagement in the Chrome Store comments :) Would love to hear if you have plans for another extension? Congrats again on your launch!
Steve McIntyre
Maker
@esus Yeah it's simple (on the surface) but solves a big paint point for YouTube super users. It's been a lot of work learning the ins and outs of shipping Chrome extensions, marketing, finding the right features to charge for, it's great that you have someone with experience to guide you through it. Best of luck in your new venture. I've followed you on X, reach out any time if you have questions. I plan to build another extension soon. In relation to building this extension a few areas I've been looking into a lot have been SEO, tracking business metrics, and getting good usable data out of the Chrome Web Store dashboard, so likely something in those areas first if creating a SaaS isn't a better fit. Constantly tinkering with ideas and ways to implement them. Thanks for the feedback, all the best.
Josh Lee
Been looking for something like this! Brilliant job :)
Steve McIntyre
Maker
@toficofi Thanks Josh!
Giovani Drosda Lima
Now that's a good product. Thinking about a problem that many people have. Sometimes I am curious to know when the video was uploaded because I need to contextualize it, but all youtube gives me is "3 years ago". June? October? Who knows. Thanks for developing it!
Steve McIntyre
Maker
@kitamashi Glad you like it, all the best!