KB YouTube Channel
Use the native kb ingest channel for channel resolution, transcripts, dedup/resume, retries, and pacing. The bundled scripts/ingest-channel.py adds topic organization under yt-channels/, metadata, indexes, validation, and a run report.
- Resolve the vault, channel/playlist URL, topic slug/title/domain, video selection (
--limit N or --all), and transcript policy (captions, auto, or stt) from the request. Ask only for choices that cannot reasonably be inferred.
- Check required tools once, reusing current evidence:
kb, yt-dlp, qmd when indexing, and ffmpeg plus the configured provider when STT is requested. Do not install optional networking dependencies as a default preflight.
- Run
python3 <kb-yt-channel-dir>/scripts/ingest-channel.py with --vault, --channel-url, --topic-slug, --title, --domain, selection, and --transcribe. Resolve the helper from this skill directory. Native-language captions are the default; override --sub-langs only when needed. --no-index defers indexing; --embed requests embeddings.
- A preview is optional. The existing
--dry-run creates/updates the topic skeleton and metadata, then lists the ingest plan without transcripts; it is not a read-only preview. Use it only within authorized topic creation/update. Do not require preview followed by a repeated full preflight.
- Inspect the helper's JSON summary and failures. Reuse its completed topic-info/lint/index validation; run additional checks only for missing evidence. When searchability is part of the task, verify one representative
kb search in the topic/collection after indexing.
- Report actual ingested/skipped/failed counts and the report path. Compile wiki articles only if the task includes synthesis; transcript ingestion alone does not imply compilation.
Failures and references
Start with the existing network configuration and native bounded retries/backoff. On rate limits, honor server guidance, lower concurrency, or increase pacing. Configure authenticated cookies or a permitted proxy only when an observed access/network problem requires it; never expose credentials or mandate a residential proxy for large channels.
Read references/channel-topic-contract.md for metadata/output details and references/troubleshooting.md for an actual failure. Resume the same request after repair; native dedup preserves successful ingests. Missing captions can justify auto/STT if that scope and provider cost are authorized. Preserve partial outputs; use the supported refresh path for a specific transcript rather than deleting user data by default.
1---2name: kb-yt-channel3description: Create and maintain Karpathy KB topics from YouTube channels through scaffolding, bulk transcript ingestion, validation, and indexing. Excludes single videos, general summaries, and other sources.4---5# KB YouTube Channel67Use the native `kb ingest channel` for channel resolution, transcripts, dedup/resume, retries, and pacing. The bundled `scripts/ingest-channel.py` adds topic organization under `yt-channels/`, metadata, indexes, validation, and a run report.891. Resolve the vault, channel/playlist URL, topic slug/title/domain, video selection (`--limit N` or `--all`), and transcript policy (`captions`, `auto`, or `stt`) from the request. Ask only for choices that cannot reasonably be inferred.102. Check required tools once, reusing current evidence: `kb`, `yt-dlp`, `qmd` when indexing, and `ffmpeg` plus the configured provider when STT is requested. Do not install optional networking dependencies as a default preflight.113. Run `python3 <kb-yt-channel-dir>/scripts/ingest-channel.py` with `--vault`, `--channel-url`, `--topic-slug`, `--title`, `--domain`, selection, and `--transcribe`. Resolve the helper from this skill directory. Native-language captions are the default; override `--sub-langs` only when needed. `--no-index` defers indexing; `--embed` requests embeddings.124. A preview is optional. The existing `--dry-run` **creates/updates the topic skeleton and metadata**, then lists the ingest plan without transcripts; it is not a read-only preview. Use it only within authorized topic creation/update. Do not require preview followed by a repeated full preflight.135. Inspect the helper's JSON summary and failures. Reuse its completed topic-info/lint/index validation; run additional checks only for missing evidence. When searchability is part of the task, verify one representative `kb search` in the topic/collection after indexing.146. Report actual ingested/skipped/failed counts and the report path. Compile wiki articles only if the task includes synthesis; transcript ingestion alone does not imply compilation.1516## Failures and references1718Start with the existing network configuration and native bounded retries/backoff. On rate limits, honor server guidance, lower concurrency, or increase pacing. Configure authenticated cookies or a permitted proxy only when an observed access/network problem requires it; never expose credentials or mandate a residential proxy for large channels.1920Read `references/channel-topic-contract.md` for metadata/output details and `references/troubleshooting.md` for an actual failure. Resume the same request after repair; native dedup preserves successful ingests. Missing captions can justify `auto`/STT if that scope and provider cost are authorized. Preserve partial outputs; use the supported refresh path for a specific transcript rather than deleting user data by default.
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