How do you consume AMVs?

[CrackTheSky]

Things have changed. Once, long ago, before my time, AMVs were distributed in archaic ways, through file sharing and mailing lists. Not everyone had their own hosting and the .org in its infancy didn't have local storage, so people wouldn't always be able to have their files hosted online if they couldn't afford it, or didn't know anyone who would be willing to share.

Then the .org got servers with enough space to store all AMVs locally, and this was good. All you had to do was sign up for a free membership and this granted you access to every single AMV that could be hosted. Streaming wasn't a thing yet (at least, not a thing available to the masses) so the .org was the go-to place for AMVs. People downloaded videos directly from the .org's servers and kept them on their hard drives.

And then YouTube became the biggest thing on the Internet since...well, I don't really know if there was anything comparable to YouTube before it hit. But this also changed AMVs, and now with HD streaming and the general user-friendliness of YouTube, most editors have moved over there. Nothing new here, it's a discussion that's been run into the ground, but I'm not interested in the current state of the .org or anything like that.

What I want to know is, specifically for those of you who have been through one or more of these transitions, how has this changed the way you actually consume AMVs? Do you bother downloading them and keeping them on your HDD at all anymore, or do you just stream a video when you want to watch it? If you have shifted to the YouTube/streaming side of things, do you feel this has changed the way you fundamentally view AMVs as an entertainment medium?

Logic would dictate (in my mind, anyway) that with the advent of streaming and the convenience this affords, AMVs have now become just another thing we watch without thinking too much about it, as with the availability of any video to stream instantly, we become less picky with what we choose to watch. I would also assume that this shift corresponds to a minimization of the editor, as the creator of the video in this kind of culture is less important than the product itself. (And I would argue that this was different 5+ years ago). With an overabundance of videos available on demand, it seems that it would be easier to ignore the specifics of the creation and just focus on the video itself.

I can't speak to any of that from experience, as I'm stuck in the mid-2000s. I'm pretty staunchly anti-streaming if it can be helped, and even if a video is YouTube-only I'll still download it using third-party services. I like to keep all my videos stored locally so that I can call them up in case my Internet is running slow, or I want to put them on my tablet so I can watch them when I won't be in range of wi-fi. Also, I find that downloading, renaming my videos so they're all named in a consistent manner, and organizing them helps me to pay attention to/remember the editor and the specifics of the video. It keeps me focused, and I like having a collection I can immediately summon in any situation.

Thoughts?

[AceD]

I still download videos to watch. I still don't really browse streamed videos to watch either, there's too many of them and it can take ages to stumble onto something that was decent. The only thing that's really changed for me is I know longer store videos on my PC for the long term. I basically stopped that when the risk of youtube channels been taken down was gone, and it's not hard to find a download link for videos any more either.

[Sephirothskr]

I never download. ALWAYS stream. At least with mine, mine are rendered so the quality looks almost the same on youtube as if I were viewing locally. So I just developed that habit.

[Shui]

I never watch a Stream. I just download and the ones I like I archive. (but who am I kidding? shit gets lost in the download folder far too often >_>)
If there's just stream I sometimes watch it but I'll bitch about not being able to dl if I liked it. Doesn't happen too often though, good editors usually provide a dl Link.

[Scintilla]

Mostly downloading to hard drive, along with the consistent renaming you mentioned.

[seasons]

I definitely prefer to download although at this point I'm not sure why, exactly. It might just be a habit. But I suppose that overall, I've never found very much on Youtube or anywhere else that was worth watching that also wasn't available for download here, so I've never felt like I was missing much.

I've always been into collecting media even as the idea of that has become really antiquated.

[*inverse*]

Streaming can be a pretty convenient tool to search for good videos, and I keep copies all the ones I like on a hard drive. They all get renamed according to the source.

[chambeyc]

Ha ha, I do feel stuck in the mid-2000s as well ^^"....

I've subscribed to BestAMVsofAllTime channels (which is kept up-to-date by you AceD if i'm not mistaken: thanks a lot for the job) to keep track of good stuff that I might miss. However, if I like what I've discovered on the stream, I'll always search for the link to download the AMV.
Having the file on disk just feel ... more confortable. And even with the 1080p and 60fps youtube is now able to deliver, the original file ultimately looks better.

... along with the consistent renaming you mentioned.

Damn, I should have done that too !

[ngsilver]

I don't exactly feel stuck in the 2000's really. After all, the tools I use now are much mroe advanced. Back then I was downloading anything with AMV in the filename from Kazaa or Morpheus. Now it's the org or ripping from YT. I do keep physical copies of the files in my own personal archive. I like having copies I can call up at any time from any system at home and it also helps for the conventions to since trying to queue up lists of videos from YT is not as easy in that format. While for a lot of uses YT quality isn't bad, it isn't a good as the file itself. Also, tons of older videos are lost if you stream only. I have stuff that used to be on VHS only, and for sure isn't on youtube. There's also stuff that gets uploaded to YT and is then taken down. It's just volitile and I don't like volitility cuz' I do like to go back and watch older stuff.

[Mol]

I got used to preview thingy , so i kinda do both if like amv nowadays, yt- is fine if there is dl for it . Though, stream feels much less comfortable for amvs for some reason. Especially if i feel like leaving a detailed review its annoying d;.
Bad side of dls is that sometimes have to re-download it if its start to fill up hdd / lose it/too lazy to search through dvds (its gets messy if you dont categorize few k of vids ) .