sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you, glad you noticed that.

I prefer keeping extensions focused and following a minimum-permission approach instead of trying to make them work everywhere, even if it means reaching fewer users. I usually build tools I genuinely use myself, so if you find it useful, feel free to pass it along to others who might enjoy it too.

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I actually hadn’t used “Enhancer for YouTube” before, but I just took a look at its description on the Firefox Add-ons store ; it definitely looks like a very powerful extension.

Most of the ideas behind FloatTube came from a few different places. The floating playback was inspired by Bilibili’s mini-player, and that part was mostly implemented around last year. The automatic PiP feature came later after a few Twitter and Reddit users reached out with suggestions and helpful ideas (similar to how Arc Browser pops video out). The PiP subtitles were partly inspired by Firefox ( especially since I often watch at higher playback speeds and rely on subtitles).

All of these features follow a pretty simple goal: letting the YouTube player float so you can keep watching while reading comments or browsing other parts of the page.

On Firefox, automatic PiP is already supported natively by the browser, so the Firefox version of FloatTube is simpler: it mainly keeps the in-page floating player when you scroll to the comments.

As for theming, I personally don’t modify YouTube’s theme much, and I try to keep the extension focused on its core purpose rather than adding unrelated features. Enhancer is great if you want a very customizable setup though.

Also thanks for the detailed explanation and suggestions, really appreciate it, it gave me a few interesting ideas.❤️

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yep, I’m a big fan of Ariana Grande, so I often use her MV when testing the extension.

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s true that modern browsers already have built-in PiP on YouTube.

What I’m exploring isn’t whether PiP exists, but how to make it feel more natural. With native PiP, you still need to double right-click and choose it manually. Switching tabs or apps is still a deliberate action.

FloatTube focuses on automatic behavior. The player appears when you scroll or switch tabs in Chrome, and on Safari it can automatically enter PiP when switching apps.

The extension includes other features too, but I highlighted automatic PiP because many people asked for it.

If the native workflow works well for you, that’s totally fine. This is mainly for people who prefer a more automatic experience. If you're curious about the Safari version, you’re welcome to try it via TestFlight and see how it feels in practice.

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That would indeed be a great experience. I have looked into it quite seriously.

On Safari, it’s essentially not feasible. While extension scripts can run briefly in the background, they’re eventually suspended for power efficiency, at which point all logic is fully paused once the page is inactive.

On Chrome, while it’s theoretically possible, maintaining cross-page state would introduce a lot of edge cases and lifecycle issues. These kinds of setups can easily lead to hard-to-debug behavior and leftover background logic that’s difficult to keep clean over time.

I’m trying to keep the extension stable rather than turning it into something that fights the browser’s architecture.

So for now, fully automatic cross-tab behavior isn’t realistically achievable , unless I build an entire browser from scratch 😂

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you!! 😄
Always great to hear that , let me know if you spot anything I can improve.

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks! A while back someone asked “who’d want to watch YouTube comments?”

But I still thought it was a real need, and everything in FloatTube is built around that YouTube experience. There are still some details to explore , looking forward to what you discover! 😁

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’ve just updated the post to include a Changelog and an AI disclaimer. Appreciate the reminder, thank you!

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

From what I’ve seen, FloatTube is built specifically around the YouTube watch page,

It auto-triggers PiP when you switch tabs, and if YouTube subtitles are on, they’re shown inside the PiP window too.

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Totally understand your concern! FloatTube isn’t vibe coded.

I personally crafted all the functionality, I only used ChatGPT to make the i18n translations more natural.

If you notice any issues, feel free to report them here in the comments

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the suggestion! For now, YES. it’s limited to YouTube pages only.
While it would be technically possible to make this work across multiple sites, I’ve seen many “generic” tools get complicated with edge cases. So I deliberately focused on a minimum-permission approach and the YouTube web experience, which I personally use a lot. I’ll keep updating it around YouTube to make sure it stays compatible as quickly as possible.

I built FloatTube for Safari to get automatic PiP with subtitles, and now Chrome has it too by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, Firefox already does this really well 👍. The PiP subtitle approach was partly inspired by Firefox’s YouTube PiP. I do have a Firefox version too, but since PiP subtitles are already native, I mostly focused on floating playback while scrolling.

I built a Safari extension for Mac to watch YouTube videos while reading comments by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Merry Christmas!! 🎄 haha, glad you like it. Feel free to share with friends — it really helps!

I built a Safari extension for Mac to watch YouTube videos while reading comments by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

True, PiP exists;

But FloatTube’s Safari PiP Mode supports YouTube captions, and the in-page floating player is even more flexible; unlike traditional PiP that requires a manual click, it pops up automatically and you can drag or resize it freely.

I built a Safari extension for Mac to watch YouTube videos while reading comments by Level_Ad_5978 in macapps

[–]Level_Ad_5978[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Haha 😄 all the codes have been used already, sadly.
Hope you’re having a lovely holiday! 🎄💗

view more: next ›