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YouTube Ad Fast Forward – Chrome Extension

Developed a lightweight Chrome extension that detects YouTube ads and temporarily increases playback speed to reduce ad viewing time without blocking or removing content.

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Technologies Used

JavaScriptChrome Extensions
Youtube Ad Skipper Hero Image

Overview This project is a minimalist Chrome extension designed to accelerate YouTube ads rather than block them. When an ad is detected, the script automatically increases playback speed (up to 14x) and resets it afterward, offering a non-intrusive alternative to traditional ad blockers.

Key Features

  • Ad Detection: Monitors DOM for the .ad-showing class to identify when a YouTube ad is playing

  • Speed Adjustment: Temporarily increases video playback speed during ads (default: 14x)

  • Playback Restore: Remembers and restores user’s original playback speed after the ad ends

  • Efficient Polling: Uses setInterval and MutationObserver to respond to DOM changes in near real-time

  • Zero Network Interference: Does not block or tamper with ad requests—avoids detection by YouTube

Usage Options

  • Chrome Extension: Load as an unpacked extension from chrome://extensions in Developer Mode

  • Tampermonkey Script: Paste content.js into Tampermonkey for quick use on YouTube URLs

Architecture & Logic The extension relies on standard Web APIs:

  • Listens for DOM mutations and polls every 300ms for ad status

  • Uses document.querySelector("video") to access video elements

  • Adjusts video.playbackRate dynamically based on ad state

  • Maintains a persistent reference to the user’s preferred playback speed

Educational Purpose Created as a personal learning project to explore browser automation, content scripts, and video element manipulation. Demonstrates practical knowledge of DOM APIs, user scripting, and building lightweight Chrome extensions.

Disclaimer This is a personal project and not affiliated with or endorsed by YouTube or Google. Use responsibly for learning purposes only.