I've been having some weird issues over the last few days with not being able to search for things in YouTube when I'm logged in via SmartTube account.
So I decided to try accessing it directly. Well guess what? It looks like YouTube now requires age verification in AU.
Sorry Google... I'm not uploading my passport, drivers licence or govt id to watch your shit. I am however now very incentivized to use Tube archivist and Jellyfin, plus cron job to scrape your shit with gleeful abandon.
EDIT: Rather than removed about it, I did something and made Smarttube work without a google account. If that floats your boat, have at it. It supports direct import of your saved playlists via Google Takeout ZIP file, subscriptions etc without needing a youtube account.
Also, remember the excellent TubeArchivist exists if you want even more control.
That happens to me when I use FreeTube. After a few videos, I get an error that my IP address has been blocked.
The blocked my IP some time ago after a binge of yt-dlp. I unplugged my fiber ONT over the weekend and got a new ip, i've been more careful with that one :)
How many gigabytes was the binge, out of curiosity? I'm trying to figure out what the download threshold is.
I'm honestly not sure, since then, i've been careful not to greatly exceed real time vs downloaded time accounting that my wife and kids may be watching as well
I've rebooted my modem to get a new IP, though I have to wait a while before restarting or I'd get the same one. Usually if I just wait a while (a few hours?), YT unblocks me again. But it's irritating.
I feel ya, still better than watching 30% ads tho :)