Wikeo Browser Extension

Requirements

• The Wikeo desktop app
• The Wikeo extension installed in a supported browser
• A YouTube video open on a standard watch page or a Shorts page

Wikeo's sidebar is available on URLs such as youtube.com/watch?v=… and youtube.com/shorts/…. It is not available on the YouTube home page, search results, channel pages, or playlist overview pages.

Set up Wikeo

1. Install and open the Wikeo desktop app.
2. Install the Wikeo browser extension.
3. Select the Wikeo icon in your browser toolbar.
4. Select Connect app.
5. In the desktop app, find the six-digit PIN near the bottom-right corner.
6. Enter the PIN in the extension and select Pair.
7. Open a YouTube video and press B to open the Wikeo sidebar.

The extension popup shows the current connection status. When connected, it also lets you rename the browser's label or disconnect it from the desktop app.

Use the sidebar

Press B on a YouTube watch or Shorts page to show or hide the sidebar. Wikeo remembers whether the sidebar was open and which tab you last used.

The interface follows YouTube's light or dark appearance automatically.

The sidebar contains four tabs:

• Notes: Timestamped notes and screenshots
• Highlights: Saved video segments
• Transcript: Searchable captions linked to the video timeline
• Misc: Tags, collections, summary, commentary, and library controls

Select any timestamp in Notes, Highlights, or Transcript to play the video from that moment. When Wikeo follows the current note or transcript segment automatically, scrolling the sidebar pauses that tracking. Select Resume Tracking to follow the video again.

Save notes and screenshots

Add a note

1. Press N. Wikeo pauses the video and opens the note editor.
2. Enter your note.
3. Select Note, or press Enter, to save the note without an image.

To include a frame from the current moment, select Note + screenshot or press Command + Enter on macOS (Ctrl + Enter on other platforms).

Use Shift + Enter to add a new line. Select Cancel, press Esc, or press Command/Ctrl + E to close the editor without saving. If the video was playing before the editor opened, it resumes when the editor closes.

Capture only a screenshot

Press Shift + S. Wikeo captures the current video frame and saves it at the current timestamp. The extension temporarily hides its own interface and YouTube's player controls if it needs to use a fallback capture method.

Review and manage captures

In the Notes tab, you can:

• Select a timestamp to return to that moment.
• Select a screenshot thumbnail to open the full image in a new browser tab.
• Edit or delete a note.
• Delete a screenshot independently from its related note.
• Search note text.
• Use the Notes options menu to show or hide transcript text beside captures.

Long notes are collapsed automatically; select Show More to expand them.

Create and play highlights

A highlight is a named time range within a video.

1. At the start of the segment, press Shift + H or select + in the Highlights tab.
2. Add a required label and, optionally, notes.
3. Set the From and To times. Select either time field, then scrub the YouTube timeline to update that field precisely. You can also type the time directly.
4. Select Create highlight or press Enter.

Time fields use MM:SS.t for videos under one hour and HH:MM:SS.t for longer videos. The final digit is tenths of a second. A highlight must remain within the video and cannot overlap another highlight.

In the Highlights tab:

• Select a highlight to play it once.
• Select the repeat icon to loop it.
• Select the play icon in the header to play all highlights in chronological order.
• Open a highlight's options menu to edit or delete it.
• Use the Highlights options menu to show or hide the matching transcript text.

While editing a highlight time, press Space to play or pause the video. Press Esc to cancel the form.

Use transcripts

Open the Transcript tab to check for a saved transcript. If one has not been saved, Wikeo may offer Fetch Transcript. Transcript availability depends on the captions provided for that YouTube video and on the languages accepted by your Wikeo app.

When a transcript is available, you can:

• Select any transcript segment to play the video from that point.
• Search the transcript.
• Display matching transcript text beside notes and highlights.

If Wikeo cannot fetch a transcript, turn on CC in the YouTube player and try again. The sidebar will identify the preferred caption language when relevant.

Organize a video

Open the Misc tab to manage information about the current video:

• Tags: Find an existing tag or create a new one.
• Collections: Add the video to an existing collection or create one.
• Summary: Save a concise description of the video.
• Commentary: Save your own broader observations or takeaways.
• Library: Add or remove the video, mark it for Later, or add it to Fav.

You can also press Shift + A to add the current video to your library.

Removing a video from the library also removes its notes, screenshots, highlights, and commentary from the library. Wikeo asks for confirmation when annotations are present. A video cannot be removed while it belongs to a locked collection.

Keyboard shortcuts

Global shortcuts work on YouTube watch and Shorts pages when the cursor is not inside a text field.

Contextual shortcuts:

Command applies to macOS. Use Ctrl where supported on other platforms.

Connection and account status

The popup and sidebar may show one of these states:

• Wikeo app linked: The extension can save to the desktop app.
• Wikeo app not found: This browser was paired previously, but the desktop app is not running. Open the app, then select Check again.
• Desktop app not linked: Open the app and complete the pairing steps.

If you no longer want this browser connected, open the extension popup and select Disconnect. You can pair it again later.

Free-plan usage is shown near the bottom of the sidebar as you approach the video limit. If the library becomes read-only, remove videos until you are within the limit or upgrade to Wikeo Pro. The current limit and usage appear in the app and sidebar.

Troubleshooting

A shortcut does not work

• Confirm that a YouTube watch or Shorts page is active.
• Click outside text fields, comments, and search boxes before using a global shortcut.
• Check that the Wikeo desktop app is paired and running.
• For note, screenshot, highlight, and transcript actions, wait for any YouTube advertisement to finish.

Wikeo cannot find the desktop app

1. Open the Wikeo desktop app.
2. In the extension popup or sidebar, select Check again.
3. If the problem continues, select Disconnect, then pair the extension again with a new PIN.

A note, screenshot, or highlight is not saved

• Make sure the desktop app remains open.
• Wait until a YouTube advertisement ends; Wikeo blocks captures during ads.
• Check the sidebar for a free-plan limit or read-only message.
• Retry after the video has loaded and a visible frame is available.

A transcript is unavailable

• The video may not provide captions in an accepted language.
• Turn on CC in YouTube, then retry the transcript fetch.
• Wait until an advertisement finishes before trying again.

Privacy and storage

Wikeo uses a local-first design. The extension communicates with the Wikeo desktop app running on your computer to save your video details, notes, highlights, screenshots, and transcripts. This content stays on your device and is not stored on Wikeo's servers.

The extension accesses YouTube page content and your actions on supported video pages only to provide its capture, transcript, and organization features.