Wikeo User Guide

Quick start

1. Open Wikeo and select Add video.
2. Paste the URL of a YouTube video or Short, then select Import Video.
3. Open the video and select Play.
4. While watching, add a note, take a screenshot, or capture a highlight.
5. Add tags or place the video in a collection so it is easy to find later.

Wikeo prevents the same YouTube video from being imported twice.

Find your way around

The sidebar provides access to the main areas of Wikeo:

• Home shows recent videos, collections, and videos with captured knowledge.
• Videos contains every imported video.
• Knowledge brings together notes, screenshots, highlights, summaries, and commentary from across your videos.
• Favorites contains videos and collections marked as favorites.
• Watch Later contains videos and collections saved for later.
• Saved Views stores reusable searches and filter combinations.
• Collections groups related videos.
• Tags provides a flexible way to categorize videos and collections.
• Settings contains license, startup, appearance, transcript, and browser-extension options.

Select the sidebar button in the title bar to collapse or expand the sidebar. When viewing a video or collection, the sidebar may show items related to the current page instead of the standard navigation.

Add videos

Select Add video, paste a YouTube video or Shorts URL, and select Import Video. Wikeo retrieves the title, channel, duration, thumbnail, and publication details when available, then opens the new video.

You can also add content from a connected Wikeo browser extension:

• Safari: The extension is included with the macOS app. Open Safari settings, choose Extensions, and enable Wikeo.
• Chrome, Brave, Arc, and other Chromium browsers: Install the Chrome extension from Settings → Browser Extensions.
• Firefox and Edge: These extensions are listed as coming soon.

Connected extensions appear under Settings → Browser Extensions, where you can review their last activity or disconnect them.

Watch a video and capture knowledge

Open a video and select Play to show the player beside the video document. Wikeo remembers playback progress so you can resume later.

Notes

Select Note or press N while the player is open. Notes are saved at the current playback time.

• Press Enter to save a note.
• Press Shift + Enter to add a new line.
• Press Esc to close the note editor without saving.
• Choose the camera option in the note editor to save a screenshot with the note.

Saved notes appear in chronological order. Select a timestamp to return to that moment. You can edit or delete a note later.

Screenshots

Select Screenshot or press Shift + S to capture the current video frame. Screenshots are stored at the current playback time and appear beside notes from the same moment.

Select a screenshot to view it at a larger size. Screenshots can be deleted independently. If screenshot capture fails, allow Wikeo to record the screen in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen Recording, then try again.

Highlights

A highlight is a named section of a video rather than a text selection.

1. Press Shift + H at the beginning of the section.
2. Continue playing or move to the end of the section.
3. Press Shift + H again.
4. Enter a title and, if useful, additional notes, then save.

You can adjust the start and end times before saving. Existing highlights can be renamed, retimed, played once, looped, or played in sequence. Highlight ranges cannot overlap within the same video.

Summary and commentary

Use Summary for a concise account of the video and Commentary for your own conclusions or general remarks. Both fields can be edited later and are included when Wikeo searches your writing.

Transcripts

Open the Transcript tab to read the video transcript. Select a timestamp to move playback to that line. Wikeo may retrieve a transcript automatically after you create a capture; if none is available, select Fetch Transcript.

Choose the preferred transcript language in Settings → Transcripts. Availability depends on the captions provided for the video. To protect against service limits, Wikeo may ask you to wait before another transcript request.

Search and filter within a video

Use the video document’s search field to find saved text. Filter the timeline to show only notes, screenshots, or highlights. Transcript excerpts may also appear around captured moments when a transcript is available.

Zen mode

Press Z while the player is open to enter or leave Zen mode. Zen mode focuses on playback and capture controls while hiding the rest of the document. Notes, screenshots, and highlights remain available.

Organize your library

Favorites and Watch Later

Open an item’s actions menu to add or remove a video or collection from Favorites or Watch Later. These pages support the same search, filters, sorting, and bulk tools used by the video library.

Tags

Tags can be applied to both videos and collections. From an item’s Organize window, search for an existing tag or type a new name to create one.

The Tags page lets you search, rename, recolor, delete, and merge tags. Merging moves all affected videos and collections to the tag you keep, then deletes the other selected tags. Deleting a tag removes the tag from its items; it does not delete those items.

Collections

Select Create Collection and enter a name. A description and tags are optional. Within a collection you can:

• add a collection note and description;
• add or remove tags;
• search and filter its videos;
• switch between grid and list views;
• sort by date added, title, duration, or number of knowledge items;
• select Play All to begin with the first video; and
• use Bulk Edit to update several videos together.

Some collections are created from external playlists and are locked to protect that relationship. Locked collections cannot be renamed or have videos manually added or removed. Select the lock to make the collection editable. Unlocking is permanent and removes its external playlist link.

Deleting a collection presents two separate choices: keep its videos in the library, or also delete eligible videos. Review the additional protections shown for videos that also belong to other collections, Favorites, Watch Later, or contain saved knowledge.

Organize one video

Open the video’s actions menu and select Organize. Add or remove tags and editable collections, then select Save Changes. You can create a new collection without leaving this window.

Edit several items at once

Select Bulk Edit, choose the videos or collections, and use the toolbar to:

• add or remove tags;
• add videos to a collection;
• remove videos from the current editable collection;
• remove items from Favorites or Watch Later when applicable; or
• delete selected items.

Wikeo displays extra confirmation options when a deletion could affect locked collections, other collections, saved lists, or captured knowledge. Read these choices carefully; deletion cannot be easily undone.

Search, filters, and saved views

Quick search

Press Command + K to open Quick Search. Type normally to search video titles, or begin with one of these prefixes:

Use the up and down arrow keys to move through results, Enter to open the selected result, and Esc to close Quick Search.

Page search and advanced filters

On pages with a search field, press Command + F to focus it. Search normally checks titles and can also include notes and comments or transcripts when those scopes are enabled under Advanced filters.

Advanced filters can narrow results by:

• required tags—match any or all selected tags;
• excluded tags or untagged videos;
• collection membership or imported-playlist membership;
• whether captures, highlights, or commentary exist; and
• published, last-watched, or imported date.

Select Reset all to clear the filter panel. Active filters are shown as a count beside the filter button.

Saved views

After building a useful search or filter combination, select Save as view, enter a name, and save it. A saved view updates automatically as videos begin or stop matching its rules.

Open Saved Views to run, rename, change, or delete a view. Editing a view lets you update its filters, choose whether all or any rules must match, and change its sorting.

Settings

Open Settings from the sidebar.

General

Enable Launch at startup to open Wikeo when you log in to your Mac.

Appearance

Adjust the interface font size from 14 to 20 pixels. Theme selection is visible but not yet available.

Transcript preferences

Choose a preferred language: English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Hindi, Arabic, Japanese, Korean, or Mandarin Chinese. Wikeo uses this preference for future transcript requests when that language is available.

Browser extensions

Install an available extension, review connected browsers, copy an installation link, or disconnect a browser. Disconnecting removes that extension’s access to the desktop app; it can be paired again later.

Updates and support

Choose Wikeo → Check for Updates… from the macOS menu bar to check manually. Wikeo downloads and installs an available update after you confirm.

Use Help → Report a Bug to send a problem report. Licensed users can contact support@getwikeo.com; other questions and feedback can be sent to hello@getwikeo.com.

Free version and licenses

The free version includes the complete app for up to 15 videos. A valid license removes the video limit.

To activate a license:

1. Open Settings → License.
2. Select Enter license key.
3. Paste the key and select Validate license.

A license is assigned to one device at a time. If it is already assigned elsewhere, choose Transfer to this device. Wikeo periodically verifies active licenses over the internet. If verification has not succeeded for 14 days, use Verify now after checking your connection.

If an unlicensed library exceeds the free limit, Wikeo becomes read-only. Existing content remains available, but you must activate a license or reduce the library to 15 videos or fewer before making changes.

Keyboard shortcuts

Shortcuts are ignored while you are typing unless the action belongs to the active editor.

Anywhere in Wikeo

While the video player is open

Editors and selection

Your data and deletion

Wikeo stores its library database and screenshots in the Mac’s application data directory. Notes, tags, collections, saved views, playback positions, and other library details are kept in the local Wikeo database. Screenshots are stored as local image files.

Deleting a video hides it and its associated notes, screenshots, highlights, transcript, summary, and commentary from the library. Wikeo asks for confirmation when saved knowledge is attached. A video in a locked collection cannot be deleted until that collection is unlocked or the video no longer belongs to it.

Wikeo creates a verified database backup before applying a data migration during an update. If Wikeo cannot safely open the database, it starts in recovery mode and offers to export a recovery copy. Keep the reported data directory intact until the issue is resolved.

Troubleshooting

A video will not import

• Confirm that the address is a YouTube video or Shorts URL, not a channel or playlist page.
• Check the internet connection and try again.
• If Wikeo reports a duplicate, open the existing copy from Videos or Quick Search.
• If the free limit has been reached, delete an unneeded video or activate a license.

A transcript is unavailable

• Confirm that captions exist for the video and try the preferred language or English.
• If Wikeo displays a waiting period, retry after the stated time.
• Transcript availability is controlled by the source video and is not guaranteed.

Screenshot capture fails

Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen Recording, allow Wikeo, and restart the app if macOS requests it.

A video cannot be deleted or removed

The video may belong to a locked external-playlist collection. Open that collection and select the lock to make it editable. Remember that unlocking removes the external playlist link.

Changes are not visible

Press Command + R to refresh the current data. If the issue continues, choose Help → Report a Bug.