Should we make Udemy lectures downloadable?

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#21

Hello Dave,

Thank you for expressing your opinion and frustration with regards to not being able to access the video lectures offline.

Answering some of your points below which I hope will help.

Maybe i’m missing something, but why do Android and iOS users get access to download the files but nobody else does?

Udemy provide apps for both Android and iOS, as such you can log in via those apps, on the appropriate device, just as you would on a PC/Mac. Those specific applications are enabled for downloading the content so that it is available offline, as you have mentioned yourself, many providers charge for data usage, so downloading the video content whilst out and about with one of those mobile devices could be incredibly costly.

Is it because the app cost money and they would lose by letting PC users download the exact same files via some other means?

No, the Udemy app is actually free. It just enables you to access your courses on a mobile device just like you would with your PC. So you have access to all of the free Udemy courses and any that you have paid for, once you have signed in.

As for monitoring updated content - Wouldn’t it be possible to utilize a simple (or elaborate) naming convention which clearly indicates what “version” of the video everyone is talking about - a source control system for videos. Seems pretty easy to me, but i may not be seeing the whole picture. A simple prefix like v15.0 or v15.1 to indicate the original video content (x.0) and the newer one (x.1).

Thanks for the suggestions Dave. Sadly, if it was via a filename it would be very easily changed, and, if an overlay was added to the video content, aside from having to obviously apply that to an enormous quantity of existing videos, it is also very easy re-edit and remove. In fact, during my endeavours to have existing pirated content removed from various online locations I have seen various attempts at completely rebranding the material.

With regards to support, which @Marc_Carlyon mentioned above, even with a numbering system like this, it would be incredibly difficult - would we only support people who quote the most recent video content in their query? What if they had downloaded the content before travelling for a few months and didn’t have access to the internet, or, an unstable service which prevented them from re-downloading the more recent updates. It would really make the ability to provide the fantastic support which is already being offered incredibly difficult. This would subsequently have an undesirable effect on the production of new material as the time spent on support would increase.

If I can refer you back to Ben’s initial post on this topic where he outlines the pros and cons, I firmly believe that the reason the majority of people who have voted for “no” on this matter have done so because of the issues ensuring the quality and consistency. The team update content frequently and want the students to be able to have access to, and enjoy, this content as speedily as possible, the current service and configuration enables this, for the vast majority of students.

Yes, my ISP is a problem and believe me i have screamed at them for over a year

[…]

In my case i was lucky enough to buy the course via a coupon, so it didn’t cost me the 100’s of dollars that is the normal price.

I am sorry to hear of your ISP issues but obviously cannot really comment or advise. I have however included some details below which may be of use with regards to specific Udemy issues.

I am glad to hear however that you were able to utilise one of the many promotional offers available for the GameDev.tv courses and hope that this will go some way towards you being able to appreciate the value of the course materials, even if they are not quite as accessible as you would prefer. Additionally, I hope that your ISP is able to resolve the issues you are experiencing in the near future as anyone who uses the internet on a regular basis will appreciate how frustrating this can be.

See also;

1 Like
#22

Hi Rob and thanks for the in-depth response. However, even with everything you say, I would still like to have the same access to the course material that android and ios users have even at the risk that this content might go out of date relatively soon. It’s simply unfair that part of the community can get these resources while the rest cannot. All that’s required is to give all legit students access to the same download links implements by the free app for mobile users. Whatever support issues there may be are already there for these mobile users and I’m sure that a simple disclaimer attached to the downloads could go a long way in educating those who choose to save the content offline and update them at their own convenience if they so wish.

I’m sorry - but I’m still not convinced that denying access is the “best” solution. One thing is most certain - I will be sure to consider any future investment in any other courses very skeptically which is a shame because there’s a lot of content worthy of consideration were it not for this one snag.

Regards,
Dave

#23

Sadly for some people like in my case when I get deployed for months with no internet my phone will not possible be able to hold all the courses I want to use while im gone.

#24

Being able to download the videos is very important to me, the work that i do means that i am at sea with very minimal internet connection, and no mobile phone connection, while i’m at sea there is a lot of dead time in which i could be watching these lectures, and when i’m home i have very little time to watch them, if i could actually download them before shipping out then they would actually be useful to me, but as it is i don’t have enough time to watch the lectures, and my phone just won’t hold them all, so i’ve kind of wasted my money signing up for them.

#25

Maybe I missed this in the comments, but why doesn’t Udemy just make people who have bought the course be able to download the course on the laptop specifically. I know about the app, but it is just too hard to watch on the phone, and it is much much easier on the laptop. All in all, why don’t they create the same thing on laptops, as they do on phones?

Thanks

#26

In general, DRM is bad and doesn’t do much to curb piracy. Technical solutions are not and have never been the answer, and only serve to interfere with legitimate transactions. There are already systems in place for dealing with piracy. Trying to concern yourself with it yourself is much like trying to curb crime in general. Except it’s weirder, because it’s digital stuff being stolen. I’m not advocating piracy by any means, but I certainly don’t think time and resources should be spent fighting it, especially if that fight involves the use of tools (weapons?) that may be used against legitimate customers. Again, it would be nice if something was done about piracy, but trying to implement technical solutions will not do the job.

Ultimately, the best weapon I’ve ever seen for curbing piracy are these courses. Once you change the role of someone from being a consumer of pirated content to a producer of content that doesn’t want his stuff being pirated, you change the whole dynamic at work. It’s the only legitimate weapon I’ve ever seen that I feel has a chance of success. Fighting an idea with tech doesn’t work. Fighting ideas with ideas… maybe, but that’s a whole different crusade.

Energy should be focus should be on providing core services, getting new customers, expanding the reach, broadening the brand, and opening up new markets… not trying to catch a few people who are getting away with stuff, on the side, while they do other illegitimate stuff. That kind of activity shouldn’t even be on your radar. Become massively successful, and you’ll be in a better position to support the efforts of those who are already dedicated to combating it.

I don’t think offering downloads is a good idea. It has very little to do with “lecture version control” since the lessons are dynamic and constantly changing anyway. It has absolutely nothing to do with piracy since I don’t think there’s really anything you can do for or against that. (Logically, you can only prevent events at the cause. You didn’t cause the pirating, so you’re not in much of a position to prevent it.)

In my mind, it’s a matter of focus. It’s a matter of where you want to put your energy, and resources, and perceptions. You’re a streaming content provider. Unless that has become too limiting for you and you see yourself branching your full energy beyond that, or you don’t like the results you’re getting, I don’t see why you should concern yourself with anything other than being as awesome at that as you can be.

#27

If Udemy implemented a system where it notified you that a lecture you downloaded was out of date (with date you downloaded, and date of upload of current version) then I don’t think it would be that bad. Also having warnings that if you have a question about a lecture you downloaded you need to make sure it wasn’t updated before asking, or even flat out denying support for downloaded lectures.

As of right now (unless the app does what I described above) then this problems described in this post already exists, I’m not sure about IOS but getting access to the files downloaded from Udemy isn’t particularly hard so if a person wanted to download the course and also has an Android (and IOS?) they can transfer it to their PC with only a little bit of effort.
So currently this exclusive to people who have bought the course and have an Android(again, IOS?) device.

#28

Hi @ben
I wanted to ask, do the lecture videos downloaded through the udemy mobile app get updated when you make an update to it or quick fix to those videos.
Or
Do I need to re download them to get the updated video.

I have never used the mobile app until now but I planning to…

#29

Yes they will be updated, another benefit of it. You may need to close and re-open the app to trigger it, or just wait. Generally it works really well

#30

An alternate option is to download the Bluestacks Android Emulator on PC and Install Udemy app on it.
Then , login to your course and download the course you want.

The only problem with Bluestacks is that it can be really laggy on some devices.

#31

I think I may have a solution. But you need an Android Emulator

Instructions

  1. Download bluestacks from http://www.bluestacks.com/
  2. Install it
  3. Run Bluestacks emulator, login in to your gmail, go to playstore and install Udemy
  4. Download Udemy app and login
  5. Select your course and download your videos.

Everything else just works as if you’re using Udemy on a mobile phone.
It works on my PC as seen here : https://youtu.be/md2Mt23MbQ8

#32

Some of us follow along on our laptops, and don’t always have access to the internet during certain times of the day. I, for one, have an hour lunch at work and would love to follow some lectures during that time. Also, getting away from distractions at home and hanging out at a park or where ever is nice.

Being able to download a couple lectures at a time is so convenient. If I get through a lecture or two online and it gets updated afterward, I’d still have to go back through it. Besides, actively going through the lectures and doing the examples on a daily basis is very productive. Being away from home 12-14 hours a day due to work, not a lot of time for that.

#33

First, thanks for considering the option, please do allow downloading:

  1. I don’t own the course if I need to stream it.
  2. Offline use enables you to work on a section while on a plane, train, coffee shop, etc.
  3. Not allowing to download won’t prevent pirates from ripping the courses, they can just use online tools which would be a more convenient way of doing it anyway.
#34

Thanks @Manuel_Garcia. Let’s have another poll.

  • Allow Downloads
  • No Downloads

0 voters

#35

Hey there,

I’m new to GameDev.tv and the truth is, I am quite frustrated with the offer.

I would strongly prefer being able to download the courses. I have bought a number of courses on similar sites that sounded interesting but never got around watching them simply because I don’t like being forced to watch them online, and frankly, the app is pretty much useless if courses displaying code are streamed in SD only.

I keep a NAS folder with all eductional videos I bought so I can conveniently stream them in high quality on any device in the house whenever I’ve got the time to watch them. Also this helps me keep a good overview on which courses I own and have yet to view. I am not bored enough to log into 5 or 6 sites, and struggle my way through their interface just to get an overview of what I have left to watch.

And this is another issue I have with your policy - I just figured out that I already own much of the content over at Udemy that I just bought on GameDev.tv, which is quite frustrating. I thought a lot of it sounded familiar, but couldn’t find it in my library. I haven’t logged in to Udemy in months, and the same will probably be true for GameDev.tv. So essentially, it’s pretty much a waste of money for me and no matter how good some of the courses actually are, I will not be able to recommend either site to any of my colleagues.

I understand your concerns about piracy, but to be honest, all the other things you make up in the “cons” are not really worth considering.

To be honest, if someone illegally ripped the courses I bought and put them somewhere for download, I would consider it a service. In my opinion, you make it desirable to try to illegally download or just screen record the videos just for convenience.

People who download the courses illegally will most likely not have ever bought the courses in the first place.

I my opinion, you may be hurting your business more than protecting it by disallowing downloads. In the end, this should be all about the customers. And frankly, as a customer, I feel a little bit like your only priority is not me, but your business model and piracy prevention. If you say this is about teaching and helping, I have a hard time believing it the way it stands.

#36

Hello,
I am not sure if this thread is still active but please allow downloads.

I am subscribed to the unreal engine c++ course and the course itself is fine. However, I live in Lebanon (yes, the poor middle eastern country that is currently in crisis). The issue is: My video barely streams at 360p. I literally ignore the video and just listen to the instructor’s audio to follow along.

I literally have the fastest internet in my area, I even tried offering my ISP more money for more speed but this is the highest bundle according to him.
I am able to get a decent speed at work/other cities but those are temporary and my focus wouldn’t be on watching the course (though I can leave it on download for later).

It is unfair that I have bought this course legit yet I can’t enjoy it.
I know that the mobile apps exist, but the screen is small and hurts my eyes.

Piracy is a service problem not a technical one, everyone knows that. Many courses for various instructors (in non-updated form) are already pirated and exist on some shady website. People can rip shows from Netflix which is way more DRM than Udemy can hope to match. People crack games with the heaviest DRM’s like Denuvo securing them. Udemy is child’s play to real pirates.
Heck, forget scripts and network manipulation. A monkey pirate with a fast internet can just stream in HD (or higher) fullscreen and record their screen. Manual intervention would be needed on non-video lectures but they could time it or something, doesn’t take a genius to figure out.

What about updates? It is the student’s responsibility to check every other while for updates (especially if there is a udemy notification from the instructors).
Let’s be realistic, it is not often that courses get overhauled. Most updates are usually 1-2 videos which happens when minor breaking changes occur or when the video is re-recorded.

I pay for convenience. It is pretty sad that I can’t download what I paid for.

The ideal solution would be: A download link per chapter as a zip file. It is quick, less manual work (for the student), and many non-udemy instructors are doing like CGBoost and Pierrick Picaut to name a few.
issue with this: Given udemy’s policies, it may open avenues of buy → dl → refund which would hurt gamedev.tv

The realistic solution: just enable the download button in udemy.

I see members of the community claiming that they like helping people but they don’t want to help pirates. That’s completely fair and agreeable. But locking the rest of us out is not the way to do it. Especially for non-brand-new-courses. Any pirate can just go ask on the discord server instead of the forum, you have no way of verifying their authenticity.

When something is popular, it gets pirated. No way around that. At least make the service as smooth as possible for those who like to support the creators.

I was able to enjoy a previous unity course back when I lived in another area. I’m aware that my current issue is not with the instructor or C++ course itself but given the circumstances I don’t think I would purchase another udemy course (regardless if gamedev tv or not) if I can’t actually go through it.

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