EEVBlog Video Length

[EEVblog]

- They are LENGTHY. What is said there could be said in half the time, to say the least

Yes, but who's going to spend twice, three, or five times as long to create that more concise content?
Would you like to do it?

- Repetitive rants about foreseeable things (Cheap electrolytics, scraped chips, font and button styles, ...) of debatable importance

Debatable importance to you, incredibly valuable info to others.
Also, if I repeat stuff across many videos it's because I have to assume that someone hasn't heard me mention that is some other video, that this video is the only one they will watch.

Of course I know that Dave (is this a joke ?) has a background in dramatic arts

  it's a joke.

so all the above is probably inevitable and cannot be changed.

It can't be changed, because I make videos the way I want to make them. And not every one is going to like that, and that's perfectly fine, I don't expect to be able to please everyone. In fact it is literally impossible to please everyone.

[mickmake]

I am not too big a fan of Daves videos, because:

- They are LENGTHY. What is said there could be said in half the time, to say the least
- A lot of homecoming cows, new uncles, hunkey-dories, ... In a computer language it would be COBOL.
- Repetitive rants about foreseeable things (Cheap electrolytics, scraped chips, font and button styles, ...) of debatable importance

I know of several people who listen to Dave’s videos in the background at 1x. Nothing wrong with that and it helps him out on the metrics.

[Terry01]

Is it just me thinking/doing this or do others do it too??

If a video is getting on a bit or if I need to head out or something like that.....I take note of the timer at the bottom of the video then watch the rest when I get back in or whatever.

It really isn't rocket science!

Do a video on it next Dave.... call it "How to pause a video"

If it's "The next big thing" and everybody ends up at it i want a mention!

[EEVblog]

The YouTube algorithm is a complex thing, but we know that it does favour those videos that have an audience retention rate of more than 50% for more than 90% of the video. There’s some magic thing that kicks in once you hit that mark.
So I’m gathering Dave has adjusted for that metric.

Nope, I don't try and follow the ever changing algorithm, I just make the content I want to make and it either gets views or it doesn't.
BTW, do you have a reference for that? I have not heard of something "kicking in" at that limit.
Also, a longer retention rate is antithetical to the new longer watch time metric the algorithm is favoring, you can't really have both.

[Wolfgang]

- They are LENGTHY. What is said there could be said in half the time, to say the least

Yes, but who's going to spend twice, three, or five times as long to create that more concise content?
Would you like to do it?

I might try one day, when I find a subject thats worth discussing. It would be my first video, howver .

- Repetitive rants about foreseeable things (Cheap electrolytics, scraped chips, font and button styles, ...) of debatable importance

Debatable importance to you, incredibly valuable info to others.
Also, if I repeat stuff across many videos it's because I have to assume that someone hasn't heard me mention that is some other video, that this video is the only one they will watch.

"Invaluable" information for a button labelled with a font you dont like is a bit much, dont you think ?
There should be a better line of discrimination between hard facts of engineering and pure matters of taste. Meddling those up devaluates the whole thing.

Of course I know that Dave (is this a joke ?) has a background in dramatic arts

  it's a joke.

Hard to believe (not serious), but of course accepted if you say so.

so all the above is probably inevitable and cannot be changed.

It can't be changed, because I make videos the way I want to make them. And not every one is going to like that, and that's perfectly fine, I don't expect to be able to please everyone. In fact it is literally impossible to please everyone.

Dont even try to please everyone. I you believe in your style, just proceed. There is still a fast forward button left for me. As long I can destill the information I need I'm fine.

Thanks anyway
  Wolfgang

[PartialDischarge]

Who cares about the length, its about the content delivered in that time. Dave is not slow explaining things, or speaking, so some topics will take 20mins another 1 hour.

However take MrCarlsons videos, although I enjoy them, they are so slow paced and repeats itself so many times that they could be edited into 1/3 of the time

[tautech]

Dont even try to please everyone. I you believe in your style, just proceed. There is still a fast forward button left for me. As long I can destill the information I need I'm fine.

Thanks anyway
  Wolfgang

THAT ^^^^ 

[Pete F]

I don't follow or understand the Youtube algorithm, but can do opinion

I'm always more than happy to share my opinion! Especially when somebody asks to provide that in the comments section or on their Blog. That's the way social media works. Those on the receiving end may agree, they may not agree but take it on board, or they may not agree and think I'm a dickhead. It's their train set so it makes no difference to me, I have no skin in the game and if somebody has a different opinion that's entirely their right to do so and I don't take it personally.

What I have noticed over the years is that algorithm or not, those who listen to their "customers" and people around them generally do well, those who don't listen often don't do so well ... and then generally wonder why it didn't work out. It's remarkable how often people will ask for feedback, then take it personally when that feedback doesn't coincide with their own opinion.

As Dave said, don't like it, watch another channel! That's fine, fair comment, and that's what I do. I see there's one of Dave's video suggested to me on sniffing an IR remote controller and using an Arduino to spoof the code. Sounds good and based on what I've been watching no surprise it was suggested to me. Guess what, haven't watched it. It's 24 minutes long. No doubt I will eventually, but it's late, I'm off to bed, I'm not going to watch a 24 minute video. A 10 minute one I probably would, and did. I watched instead a Great Scott video on I2C. Very much an intro video and I didn't really learn much, but at least I watched it I'm often grabbing content when I can in between doing something else. That's the way modern society digests information now ... and I'm an old fart, nothing modern about me!

[rt]

How many people watch Dave's videos at 1.25, 1.5 or even double speed?

The Aussie accent can get a bit harder (and high pitched ) at faster speeds but it gets you through sections with less interesting/known (to me) content to a piece of interest (e.g. Power supply teardown I'm waiting for him to take the can off the voltage reference).  Anyway, personal preference.

And Dave, can you as channel owner see who watches content at higher speed and if that makes a difference to their average viewing time?

rt

 

[Pete F]

Is it just me thinking/doing this or do others do it too??

If a video is getting on a bit or if I need to head out or something like that.....I take note of the timer at the bottom of the video then watch the rest when I get back in or whatever.

It really isn't rocket science!

Do a video on it next Dave.... call it "How to pause a video"

If it's "The next big thing" and everybody ends up at it i want a mention!

Well apparently it is rocket science mate, because you don't even need to hit pause, you close the window and Youtube knows where you stopped watching ... even across multiple devices.

The point I was making has nothing to do with pausing a video or coming back to it. I subscribe to what I believe is now over 100 channels, and I don't het the subscribe button willy-nilly. Most of them are from good people who spend a bucket load of their time putting up really good content. Most of them don't do it professionally and really don't make much money out of it, if any at all. I would love to show those creators respect and watch all that content but it is just impossible, it would be more than a full time job just doing that! So the reality is I watch those who can provide the best bang for the buck, and the rest just disappears into the ether. People who don't watch as much Youtube are possibly more than happy to wander back and forth or don't care if a video runs an hour. No right or wrong here.

[EEVblog]

What I have noticed over the years is that algorithm or not, those who listen to their "customers" and people around them generally do well, those who don't listen often don't do so well ... and then generally wonder why it didn't work out. It's remarkable how often people will ask for feedback, then take it personally when that feedback doesn't coincide with their own opinion.

I've been trying to patiently explain why content creators can't just magically takes viewers advice and act on it. I'll say it again, it literally impossible to do so.
Contents creators get hundreds of different (and contradictory) opinion and advice from viewers, we can't act on all of them or even a majority of them.
Ok, but your opinion is more important than other people's opinions, yours is more valuable than theirs, yours is more right than theirs, ok fine, but it's still impossible.
I don't "take it personally", quite the contrary. Here I am, past midnight, a content creator with over half a million subscribers patiently trying to explain things to a couple or viewers, and probably repeated for the hundredth time to people who have suggested the same thing. I care, if I didn't I wouldn't be here typing this. I'm just trying to explain why it's not as simple as you might think.

As Dave said, don't like it, watch another channel! That's fine, fair comment, and that's what I do.

To be fair, I don't say that to be smart arse, or I enjoy telling people to piss off, I say that because it is and always will be a practical reality of Youtube content creation. Every Youtuber has to say that (even if they don't) to X percent of their viewers.

I see there's one of Dave's video suggested to me on sniffing an IR remote controller and using an Arduino to spoof the code. Sounds good and based on what I've been watching no surprise it was suggested to me. Guess what, haven't watched it. It's 24 minutes long. No doubt I will eventually, but it's late, I'm off to bed, I'm not going to watch a 24 minute video. A 10 minute one I probably would, and did. I watched instead a Great Scott video on I2C. Very much an intro video and I didn't really learn much, but at least I watched it

I don't want to create videos that people just watch and don't learn much. Great Scott and others are welcome to those views. Welcome to Youtube were there is not only content to suit everyone, but were everyone wants content catered just to their own need.
You own example is classic. My video was too long at 24min, and 10 minutes was just the right length for you, yet you then complained that you didn't learn much from that highly polished content that Great Scott no doubt spent a dozen or two hours creating. Do you expect me or someone else to magically create a 15 minute version that teaches you exactly want you wanted to know? If not 15 minutes, how long? Do you think Great Scott could have done better in the 10 minutes?

[Wolfgang]

@MasterTech

If you want something speedy for a change  try "The Signal Path". from Shariar.

[PartialDischarge]

@MasterTech

If you want something speedy for a change  try "The Signal Path". from Shariar.

Yep, watch him too, an example of long and interesting videos
Another example would be Sam Ben Yaakov videos on power electronics, highly condensed stuff as he is a College professor

[EEVblog]

So the reality is I watch those who can provide the best bang for the buck

No, you don't. You said i yourself, you have a arbitrary time limit.
My longer video could easily provide greater bang-per-buck than someone else's shorter videos. But you've said you simply won't chose to watch longer videos.
What if my 30 minute video can teach you 5 times more than a 10 minute video?

[madires]

In case someone hasn't figured out how to use YouTube, you can pause and resume videos, or stop and watch the remaining part later or the next day. You can even fast forward. If people have such a short attention span to be able to watch videos for 12 minutes at maximum, how do they cope with their job working on something for more than a few minutes? And for me it's not just the EE content, it's also the entertainment provided by Dave (AKA waffling). If a topic is interesting I'll watch a 2 hour video. Much better than the BS broadcasted by TV stations.

[Wolfgang]

Too much of waffling can kill a good thing in the end. Maybe it is a good idea to open an "electronic comedy channel" that takes care of the people where entertainment is the top priority and to have more engineering in the others. I would suggest that John Cleese is hired as an actor for the electronic comedy channel. 

[ucanel]

I'd personally rather see a complicated topic broken down into 2-3 shorter videos that follow in logical sequence vs one long one.

I agree but of course not for the mailbag.
And timestamps is very helpfull.

Dave seems to talking much but he has to,
his nearly every word has a big background backstory
and tells us so many things in a short way.

Good work  Dave I am grateful for that hard work.

[Bud]

Too much of waffling can kill a good thing in the end. Maybe it is a good idea to open an "electronic comedy channel" that takes care of the people where entertainment is the top priority and to have more engineering in the others. I would suggest that John Cleese is hired as an actor for the electronic comedy channel. 

"Electronic drama channel", starring Louis Rossmann

[NiHaoMike]

Maybe it is a good idea to open an "electronic comedy channel" that takes care of the people where entertainment is the top priority and to have more engineering in the others.

Are Simone Giertz, Photonicinduction, and ElectroBoom not enough?

[Wolfgang]

What about the batteriser people ?
They have everything a good sitcom is made of:

- They are evil characters
- They have no clue how the world works
- They try to cheat everybody (probably even themselves) but they fail so miserably that is hilariously comic
- There are even animals in it (no cows, but snails).

... just an idea. 

[ttelectronic]

I'll watch Great Scott occasionally, but really I don't find his videos that useful. If it's something I enjoy of any youtubers videos I can watch them for an hour+ easy. Really for me it comes down to the subject. If it's something I'm interested in, I prefer a longer video. Sometimes I get more interested in a particular area then go back and watch videos I haven't watched normally.

I always do enjoy the mailbag and prefer them long. I'm sure some people don't find it as enjoyable. 

[Mr. Scram]

The average attention span time on Youtube hasn't changed much, and it still the 8-10 minute mark. My channel gets and average watch time of 10-12 minutes across all my videos.
What has changed is that the Youtube algorithm now values watch time. That doesn't mean that people are watching for longer, it's just that it now matters more. So those science youtubers who spent a month creating one highly polished 5-10 minute are screwed.
I doubt any channel has an average watch time in the 20 minute range, mine is on the high side.

10 to 12 minutes isn't enough for your type of content, so it doesn't seem to make sense to cater to it anyway. Or is it an attempt to cater to both groups?

[TheDefpom]

I, much like Dave, am conscious about video length.

When I first started I would just record the entire thing, and upload basically an un-edited video, they would easily get to an hour and a half, even 2 hours at times.

Then I started to look at the statistics and saw that very few people even made it to the end, so I started to shorten them.

I now keep them less than an hour, always, and if possible I try and get them below certain lengths, such as 44 minutes, 39 minutes, 29 minutes, 24 minutes, 19 minutes, 14 minutes, purely because people are more likely to watch a 29 minute video than a 34 minute one for example.

I stil try to ensure that the content I want to show is there so I don’t strictly go to any actual formula, I just try to get them down to a number that encourages people to start watching them.

The down side is that it takes a lot longer to edit whilst doing this, a 30 minute video may take me well over an hour and a half to edit.

[firewalker]

I do not mind longer videos, in fact i prefer them, as long as the creator does not repeat himself as Louis Rossman does.

You should watch Mr Carlson's Lab videos then!

[Bud]

Actually I used to watch him but the my problem with Mr Carlson is he takes his explanations too much down to earth. This is certainly valuable for newbies but not my level (no arrogance here).