@rolme/ytscript

A powerful CLI tool and Node.js package for downloading and summarizing YouTube video transcripts using AI (ChatGPT and Claude).

Features

Download transcripts from YouTube videos
Generate AI-powered summaries using:
- OpenAI's ChatGPT for concise, accurate summaries
- Anthropic's Claude for detailed, nuanced analysis
Customize summary style (concise or detailed)
Control summary length and format
Support for multiple languages
Both CLI and programmatic usage
Flexible output options (console or file)

Installation

npm install @rolme/ytscript

CLI Usage

Download Transcript

# Basic usage
ytscript download https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx

# Specify language
ytscript download https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx -l es

# Custom output path
ytscript download https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx -o transcript.txt

Summarize Transcript

# Basic usage with ChatGPT
ytscript summarize https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx

# Use Claude with detailed summary style
ytscript summarize https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx -p claude -s detailed

# ChatGPT with concise summary and max length
ytscript summarize https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx -p chatgpt -s concise -m 500

# Save Claude summary to file with language preference
ytscript summarize https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx -p claude -l en -o summary.txt

CLI Options

Download Command

-l, --language <code>: Language code (e.g., en, es, fr)
-o, --output <path>: Output file path
-f, --format <format>: Output format (text or json)

Summarize Command

-l, --language <code>: Language code (e.g., en, es, fr)
-o, --output <path>: Output file path
-p, --provider <n>: AI provider (chatgpt or claude)
-k, --api-key <key>: AI provider API key
-s, --style <style>: Summary style (concise or detailed)
-m, --max-length <number>: Maximum length of the summary
-f, --format <format>: Output format (text or json)

Output Formats

Text Format (Default)

The default text format outputs the transcript or summary directly to the console or file.

JSON Format

Using --format json outputs structured data in JSON format:

For download command:

{
  "videoId": "xxx",
  "title": "Video Title",
  "transcript": "Full transcript text",
  "segments": [
    {
      "text": "Segment text",
      "duration": 10.5,
      "offset": 0
    }
  ],
  "metadata": {
    "language": "en",
    "lastUpdated": "2024-03-14T12:00:00Z"
  }
}

For summarize command:

{
  "videoId": "xxx",
  "title": "Video Title",
  "transcript": "Original transcript",
  "summary": "AI-generated summary",
  "metadata": {
    "language": "en",
    "provider": "chatgpt",
    "style": "concise",
    "lastUpdated": "2024-03-14T12:00:00Z"
  }
}

Programmatic Usage

Basic Usage

import { getTranscript, summarizeVideo, OutputFormat } from "@rolme/ytscript";

// Download transcript with JSON output
const result = await getTranscript("https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx", {
  format: OutputFormat.JSON,
});
console.log(result.transcript); // Access transcript text
console.log(result.segments); // Access transcript segments

// Summarize video with JSON output
const summary = await summarizeVideo("https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx", {
  format: OutputFormat.JSON,
});
console.log(summary.transcript); // Original transcript
console.log(summary.summary); // AI-generated summary
console.log(summary.metadata); // Access metadata

Advanced Usage

// Configure summarization options
const result = await summarizeVideo("https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx", {
  provider: "claude",
  apiKey: "your-api-key",
  language: "en",
  summary: {
    style: "detailed",
    maxLength: 1000,
  },
});

// Save transcript and summary to file
const filePath = await saveSummary("https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx", {
  outputPath: "output.txt",
  provider: "chatgpt",
  summary: {
    style: "concise",
  },
});

API Keys

The package supports two AI providers:

ChatGPT (OpenAI)
- Set OPENAI_API_KEY environment variable
- Or provide via apiKey option
Claude (Anthropic)
- Set ANTHROPIC_API_KEY environment variable
- Or provide via apiKey option

You can use a .env file to store your API keys:

OPENAI_API_KEY=your-openai-key
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=your-anthropic-key

Error Handling

The package exports error types for specific handling:

import { TranscriptError, AIError } from "@rolme/ytscript";

try {
  const result = await summarizeVideo("https://youtube.com/watch?v=xxx");
} catch (error) {
  if (error instanceof TranscriptError) {
    console.error("Failed to fetch transcript:", error.message);
  } else if (error instanceof AIError) {
    console.error("AI summarization failed:", error.message);
  } else {
    console.error("Unknown error:", error);
  }
}

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

License

MIT

AI Provider Features

ChatGPT (OpenAI)

Ideal for concise, to-the-point summaries
Great for technical content and factual accuracy
Supports multiple summary styles:
- concise: Brief, focused summaries
- detailed: Comprehensive analysis with key points

Claude (Anthropic)

Excellent for nuanced, contextual understanding
Strong at capturing subtle details and themes
Summary styles available:
- concise: Clear, efficient summaries
- detailed: In-depth analysis with context