Question

Here is the problem: We have some pdf files with youtube videos embedded in them. Obviously if the videos are deleted/changed, we want to know about it. The plan is that we hold some urls on our own server which we embed into the pdfs. Each of these urls are linked to a youtube video. So if for example the youtube video is deleted we don’t have to modify the pdf, but change the youtube video url linked to the url in the pdf. In short we would embed links in the pdf to our own server and these links would redirect to youtube.

I think with cron and md5_file the checking of the video changes can be done, though there is one concern. If i do md5_file on a youtube video page, then i believe it acts on the whole page and will show a change has happened even when only a comment was added to the video. So i guess i would need the direct link to the video and md5_file that.
Another part is that i wonder if the pdf can show the youtube video correctly with this redirect mechanism.

If anyone has some idea or experience with similar stuff, please share your knowledge.
Thank You
Alex

Answer 1

You could use the YouTube-API Retrieving Video Entry, e.g. using Zend Framework’s Zend_GData_Youtube.

edit (for clarification): I haven’t used the YouTube-API myself, but I assume when a video is deleted an error, rather than the usual output, is returned on which you can react.