code-charity / code-charity/youtube

💡[Feature Request] Option to force resume/autoplay video after page refresh

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Feature request good first issue help wanted up-for-grabs
Dominant language
JavaScript
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Forks
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Avg merge
2d 15h
Merged PRs (30d)
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Description

PROBLEM:
When listening to music or background audio on mobile/desktop browsers (e.g., Edge/Chrome/Firefox), refreshing the page or reloading via external automation stops the video completely and requires a manual screen click to resume playback.

SOLUTION:
Add a toggle/setting (e.g., "Auto-Resume / Autoplay on Page Reload") in the Player settings. When enabled, the extension will automatically attempt to call video.play() as soon as the DOM/player finishes loading after a page reload or navigation.

ALTERNATIVES:
Using custom Userscripts or external automation tools, but they frequently fail due to browser autoplay policy restrictions or script execution timing conflicts.

RELEVANCE / SCOPE:
Around 20-30% of users who use YouTube for background music, playlists, or automated playback across mobile and desktop browsers would benefit from this hands-free automation feature.

"SIDE EFFECTS":
None if implemented as an opt-in toggle. Users who do not enable this option will not be affected at all.

CONTEXT:
If restricted by strict browser autoplay policies (requiring user interaction for unmuted audio), starting in muted autoplay or gracefully attempting an immediate play-retry would still provide a much better user experience than staying completely idle upon refresh.

SHORT Table (Summary)
Problem Page refresh stops video playback and requires manual click on mobile/desktop.
Solution Add an "Auto-Resume on Page Reload" toggle to automatically trigger play.
Alternatives Userscripts/automation scripts, which are often unreliable or broken by Autoplay Policy.
Scope ~20-30% of background music and audio-first listeners.
Side effects None, as long as it remains an opt-in setting in the menu.
Context Can default to muted autoplay if unmuted play is blocked by the browser.

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start by tracing the Player settings and the DOM/player loading path to determine where the opt-in setting can trigger video.play() after a reload or navigation. Done means enabled users receive an automatic resume attempt, while disabled users are unchanged and autoplay restrictions are handled without breaking playback.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
javascript
Domain
frontend
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Quiet
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
48/100

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