I need help organizing Google accounts.

[Harry Dresden]

I have a very dumb-sounding problem, but I haven't found a good solution for it, so I have maybe 6 or 7 Google accounts, but I only use two. The problem, though, is I don't want to delete my old unused Google emails because I want to keep the YouTube watch history from years ago, but I want to somehow merge it with my modern watch history. This might sound like a dumb issue, but I watched many different videos with my old accounts dating back to when I was maybe 10 years old, so I want to preserve them. Is there any way to do this?

 

[monk]

You can export your entire account's data with what joogle calls a "takeout" that you find somewhere in settings. You request it, wait some time for the servers to process it, possibly a day or more, then download it. It'll be a giant zip with everything separated into subfolders.
I don't think it's possible to import arbitrary history though. The best you could do is have it in a file somewhere.

 

[Ravioli Chandler]

You can export your entire account's data with what joogle calls a "takeout" that you find somewhere in settings. You request it, wait some time for the servers to process it, possibly a day or more, then download it. It'll be a giant zip with everything separated into subfolders.
I don't think it's possible to import arbitrary history though. The best you could do is have it in a file somewhere.

@LongTallTexan

Instances of Invidious support importing YouTube watch history. The downside is that it requires an account that is only tied to a user id and password, no emails. If you forget the login information, you are locked out. Accounts are also tied to the specific instance you register them on. An account you registered on invidious.nerdvpn.de does not sync automatically with one on inv.nadeko.net.

The main advantage with Invidious is that you can import the watch history from multiple YouTube accounts and then export them out from Invidious again. When you export from Invidious, the watch history will be in a json file along with other account data. CTRL+F "watch_history" and you will find a list of video IDs that make up your watch history.

Invidious does not save when you watched the video, or how long you watched the video for, it only saves the video that you watched in the form of its youtube watch ID.

 

[monk]

@LongTallTexan

Instances of Invidious support importing YouTube watch history. The downside is that it requires an account that is only tied to a user id and password, no emails. If you forget the login information, you are locked out. Accounts are also tied to the specific instance you register them on. An account you registered on invidious.nerdvpn.de does not sync automatically with one on inv.nadeko.net.

The main advantage with Invidious is that you can import the watch history from multiple YouTube accounts and then export them out from Invidious again. When you export from Invidious, the watch history will be in a json file along with other account data. CTRL+F "watch_history" and you will find a list of video IDs that make up your watch history.

Invidious does not save when you watched the video, or how long you watched the video for, it only saves the video that you watched in the form of its youtube watch ID.

If you're talking about external frontends, Newpipe or Pipepipe (which is what I use) also support importing (and I think merging) history

 

[Harry Dresden]

You can export your entire account's data with what joogle calls a "takeout" that you find somewhere in settings. You request it, wait some time for the servers to process it, possibly a day or more, then download it. It'll be a giant zip with everything separated into subfolders.
I don't think it's possible to import arbitrary history though. The best you could do is have it in a file somewhere.

I'm aware of Google Takeout, and I have used it before, but I didn't know a way to merge that with my watch histories.

@LongTallTexan

Instances of Invidious support importing YouTube watch history. The downside is that it requires an account that is only tied to a user id and password, no emails. If you forget the login information, you are locked out. Accounts are also tied to the specific instance you register them on. An account you registered on invidious.nerdvpn.de does not sync automatically with one on inv.nadeko.net.

The main advantage with Invidious is that you can import the watch history from multiple YouTube accounts and then export them out from Invidious again. When you export from Invidious, the watch history will be in a json file along with other account data. CTRL+F "watch_history" and you will find a list of video IDs that make up your watch history.

Invidious does not save when you watched the video, or how long you watched the video for, it only saves the video that you watched in the form of its youtube watch ID.

That is a good idea, but one issue: do you have a trustworthy Invidious instance? I tried importing my history into Invidious awhile ago, but that instance eventually shut down. If I import my watch histories and then export from an Invidious file, can I then put that file into any instance, assuming the instance I exported from gets shut down?

If you're talking about external frontends, Newpipe or Pipepipe (which is what I use) also support importing (and I think merging) history

I might try those if Invidious goes down.

 

[Ann]

If you're talking about external frontends, Newpipe or Pipepipe (which is what I use) also support importing (and I think merging) history

Do you have a link to it? I looked it up and newpipe and pipepipe don't seem to be able to import youtube history, only newpipe history.

 

[monk]

Do you have a link to it? I looked it up and newpipe and pipepipe don't seem to be able to import youtube history, only newpipe history.

No but I know you can export and import their history. You could probably take the history file from the takeout and convert it into something they can import, but I don't know if anyone has already done that.

 

[Ravioli Chandler]

If I import my watch histories and then export from an Invidious file, can I then put that file into any instance, assuming the instance I exported from gets shut down?

Yes, provided you have the exported Invidious data file, you can import it into any other available instance.

 

[Harry Dresden]

Yes, provided you have the exported Invidious data file, you can import it to any other available instance.

Alright, I will do that. Which instance do you suggest I use?

 

[Ravioli Chandler]

Alright, I will do that. Which instance do you suggest I use?

I suggest you use inv.nadeko.net, it's been going strong for several years now.

In the event that it is shut down you can always find an alternative instance by looking at invidio.us which lists the active Invidious instances.

 

[Shlomo XL]

which lists the active Invidious instances.

yeah, all fucking three of them.