Posted on 2014/08/292015/12/24 by redphx

QuickStreamer – livestreamer GUI for Google Chrome

QuickStreamer is an extension for Google Chrome that allows you to run livestreamer from your browser, without having to use the terminal.

Demo & Screenshots:

Supported Sites:

Youtube
Twitch.tv
Hitbox.tv
Want more? Comment below

Requirements:

Latest version of Google Chrome
Latest version of livestreamer
VLC Player
Python 2.7.x

Since QuickStreamer use Google Chrome’s Native Messaging API, you need to install both extension and a native messaging host, or it won’t work. The host app is writtent in Python so you can easily view the source code.

Install extension:

Chrome Web Store: QuickStreamer

Install/Update native messaging app:

Please make sure livestreamer work before following these steps.

To update the host app, just do all these steps again.

For Windows:

Install Python 2.7.x (not 3.x) if you don’t have it installed. Install it at default folder: C:\Python27
Download QuickStreamer’s host app, then extract it into C:\quickstreamer\
Open install_host.reg
If you don’t install Python at C:\Python27, edit the path to Python in host.bat
Restart Chrome

For Mac OS:

Run this code in Terminal:
curl -s http://quickstreamer.codekiem.com/host/install.sh | sh
Restart Chrome

For Linux/Ubuntu:

Not yet tested on Linux/Ubuntu 🙁 It may have the same process as Mac OS

FAQs:

( Update later )

How to use:

It’s pretty simple. Go to any live channel on supported sites ( Twitch, Hitbox, … ), then click on the QuickStreamer icon on the right side of the address bar. Select the quality you want and click “Open livestreamer”. Wait for a few seconds and the VLC Player will be opened.

Changelogs:

0.4.2: 2015/12/24. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
- Add support for Crunchyroll.com (you have to add your crunchyroll account in to livestreamer’s config file first)
- Allow other extensions to open livestreamer using QuickStreamer. Soon you’ll be able to do this in Twitch Now.
0.4.1: 2015/11/02
- Add support for Azubu.tv and MLG.tv
- Reverse the quality list. Now it sorts from best to worst.
0.4: 2015/07/25
- New host app version. Mac users don’t have to open Chrome in Terminal anymore. Yay!
- Rewrite many lines of code. Now it’s easier to add more sites.
- Add support for Youtube.
- Add “Open chat popup” for Twitch.
- Remove unnecessary permissions.
0.3: 2014/12/13
- Update for Twitch API change (requires livestreamer 1.11.1 or later)
0.2: 2014/08/31
- Update the host app
- Optimize memory usage
- Add QuickStreamer into context menu.
0.1: 2014/08/29
- First version.

Hope you’ll find this useful. Any comments and suggestions are welcomed 🙂

cbpneuma

Hi redphx,

This extension is a great idea! I really like how streamlined this process can become, instead of having to go into terminal or a separate GUI all the time.

I have trouble getting it to work however.
I’m on the PC and I get the error “Cannot connect to to host app. ( Native host has exited. )”

I installed Python and quickstreamer host app to the default locations as suggested

I have these extensions running:
– QuickMark QR Code Extensions
– Quickstreamer (duh 😉 )
– Turn Off the Lights
– uBlock

Things I’ve tried:
1. I’ve tried completely killing the chrome process and restarted but it still doesn’t work.
2. I have tried disabling uBlock which might have been the cause but with no avail.
3. Tried un/reinstalling the extension

I’m running out of ideas so maybe there are other issues?

Hopefully in there future there will be a way to handle these tasks without separately installing a host app.

Couple of suggestions for the extension:
– As an ambitiously lazy person :P, it would be nice if we can take this already simple 2 click process (click quickstreamer, click Open livestreamer) and reduce it into 1 click!
While I understand having the options for stream quality is important, for the most part I will only use one preset option – best quality; so why don’t we save ourselves that one click and just use the preset settings?
For the odd times I want to use a different quality, maybe I can middle click or go to context menu for that.

– Maybe having some kind of feedback on click would be nice. It takes a couple of seconds before the GUI appears and I find myself clicking on the quickstreamer button more than once not knowing it’s probably working in the background.

-YouTube support! 😛 Or can I already do it through qs Tab and paste URL? I couldn’t test because I couldn’t get it to work

Sorry if it sounds like I’m asking for a lot.
Please keep up the good work,

cbpneuma
- Kiln
  
  Hi,
  
  I’ve an issue. When I launch quickstreamer, I get: “Livestreamer not found.” I run on OS X (10.10.4).
  
  The result of which livestreamer in the terminal is: /Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.7/bin/livestreamer
  
  Any idea?
  
  Thanks for quickstreamer btw xD
Jonny

I tried this extension then “Cannot connect to to host app. ( Native host has exited. )” appeared even running on Windows7. I installed livestreamer, python 2.7 and 3.4. how can I use it?
- Jonny
  
  PS. Fixed after a night but I don’t know why…
PeteOdeath

Awesome extension I use it daily. Would it be possible to add the audio only option to the extension. I know livestreamer and twitch supports this feature now.
- redphx
  
  added in 0.4.0
#Shawty

Doesn’t work for me as of 0.4 “Error when communicating with the native messaging host.Please follow this instruction to install host app first.” Same message after following instructions. Latest chrome/livestreamer tried re-installing the extension, idk what else to try.
- redphx
  
  I made some changes in the host file. Please try to download & install it again. Sorry about the problem.
  - #Shawty
    
    Works fine now, thanks. I don’t remember the context menu being available on the twitch page itself, I used to have to right click a link, what this always here?
    - redphx
      
      Glad that it worked.
      Yeah it’s new. Now you can only access QuickStreamer in context menu (the one on address bar has been removed).
redphx

Please download & install the host app again. Sorry about the problem.
- James
  
  Thank you for the quick reply, the new version works. I have noticed that the context menu on the twitch page only opens when you right click the page itself. not the stream window like it does with hitbox. just stating for clarity. I assume it was done this way for reasons.(or maybe it’s just me) either way, it is working. Thanks for your work on this. Much handier than doing it all manually. 🙂
  - redphx
    
    In the new version you can only access QuickStreamer in context menu (to simplify the code). Maybe I’ll add the icon on address bar back in future versions. If you have time, please leave a review on Chrome Webstore or spread the word about this extension. Thanks for using 🙂
fartyg

Is it possible to have the same menu show when right-clicking a twitch stream embedded on another site rather than twitch.tv itself? For example: When I want to watch Dota2 I go to liquiddota.com to see what tournaments are being played or what players are currently streaming (same with hltv.org for CS:GO). It would be nice to be able to right click the actual flash player and choose to open the stream in VLC via livestreamer.

Livestreamer is great and I get much better performance on my rather slow laptop using it instead of the flash player. The only hassle has been using the command prompt to start a stream, as I tend to swap between streams a lot (due to how much downtime there is within so many twitch streams). This extension solves that problem, great work!
- redphx
  
  I really want to do that but currently you can’t add context menu into flash videos using extension
noom

Just updated Quickstreamer and I can’t see the icon in the adress bar anymore, must go back to the previous page and right click on the thumbnail to launch QS.

Any idea what’s happening ?
- redphx
  
  That’s intended. But now you can access QS from the current streaming page from the context menu
  - noom
    
    Didn’t notice that, thanks a lot ! 🙂
Chris Lee

i get the error “livestreamer not found” in a quickstreamer popup
OSX
- redphx
  
  Did you install livestreamer using easy_install?
  Please open Terminal, run “which livestreamer” and tell me the result
  - Chris Lee
    
    -bash: which livestreamer: command not found
    
    & yes I used easy_install – easy_install -U livestreamer
  - Chris Lee
    
    Processing livestreamer-1.12.2-py2.7.egg
    
    livestreamer 1.12.2 is already the active version in easy-install.pth
    
    Installing livestreamer script to /Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.7/bin
  - Chris Lee
    
    any progress?
leme

Is it supposed to work on Win10? I get “Native host has exited.” Tried with python 32 and 64bit.
- leme
  
  Not sure what fixed it as I downloaded a lot of stuff since then but it’s working fine now.
  - redphx
    
    you should install python 2.7, not 3.x
    - leme
      
      Yea it was 2.7 both 34 and 64 bit idk why it didn’t work in the beginning but w/e, works now.
- xvpower
  
  Yeah same issue on Windows 10 I did some quick dirty debugging and looks like the json from data only returns the first character after getting data out of msg.
  
  Attached some of the debugging information.
Kiln

Hi,

I’ve an issue. When I launch quickstreamer, I get: “Livestreamer not found.” I run on OS X (10.10.4).

The result of which livestreamer in the terminal is: /Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.7/bin/livestreamer

Any idea?

Thanks for quickstreamer btw xD

Sorry, I didn’t notice I wrote in the wrong spot
LinuxUser

Can you please write a complete instruction about how to install in Ubuntu? Thanks.
Nyo_ryuuji

Is it easy to change the player from VLC to MPC?
ADarkHero

I always get “Native host has exited” as error message on Windows 7. I did everything like in the tutorial.
Michael Tokarev

Specified native messaging host not found.
Please follow this instruction to install host app first.
Windows 8, russian.
James

Hello again 🙂

Updated per instructions, “Error when communicating with the native messaging host.Please
follow this instruction to install host app first.”

Windows 7 x64 SP1
Google Chrome latest stable channel 46.0.2490.80 (Official Build) m (32-bit)
Python 2.7 @ D:Python27 (I edited the bat file same as the last version which worked)
QuickStreamer 0.4.1
I also restarted OS to see if this would help, and it did not.
Reverting to the last version, and it worked again. please let me know if you find out anything. thanks
ahab

Hi,

just wanted to let you know, that the install_hosts script doesn’t work on Linux. However, I was able to manually reproduce what the script does within < 5 minutes and now everything works fine. Thanks for the work!
MrX

Ye this doesn’t work. I’ve installed python 2.7.8(32bit), run the registry file(directly from downloads folder since i didn’t change the location), restarter chrome, still say it can’t find the host app.

On windows 10 64bit, chrome Version 47.0.2526.106 m
Uriei

“Specified native messaging host not found.
Please follow this instruction to install host app first.”
Installed it step by step, nothing.
Justin

Works great ! Thanks dude 🙂

A cool thing would be to be able to configure the chrome extension once then remove the quickstreamer sub menu 🙂 This will reduce to two clicks : right click on video & left click on quickstreamer 🙂

Is your code on Github ? can I help/fork ?
Michael Ezeh

It will always say specified native host is not found what am I missing?
smalls

DOES NOT WORK FOR CHROME ! Please keep this crap updated
Azured

Been using this great plugin for months with no issue.

Suddenly stopped working today, without me making any changes, any idea?

I can still launch streams with cmd –> livestreamer , so it must be something with the plugin / chrome, but no idea where to start..
Dennis silén

How do you use this with subscriber only VODs? Is there a way to link quickstreamer with my twich acc?
KoBa4

I can not download “QuickStreamer’s host app”, the site is unavailable