This quickstart guide explains how to set up a simple page that makes requests
to the YouTube Data API. This quickstart actually explains how to make two API
requests:
- You will use an API key, which identifies your application, to
retrieve information about the GoogleDevelopers YouTube channel.
- You will use an OAuth 2.0 client ID to submit an
authorized
request
that retrieves information about your own YouTube channel.
Prerequisites
To run this quickstart, you'll need:
- Python 2.4 or greater (to provide a web server)
- Access to the internet and a web browser.
- A Google account.
Step 1: Set up your project and credentials
Create or select a project in the
API Console
. Complete the following tasks in the API Console for your project:
In the
library panel
,
search for the YouTube Data API v3. Click into the listing for that API and
make sure the API is enabled for your project.
In the
credentials
panel
,
create two credentials:
Create an API key
You will use the API key to make API requests that do
not require user authorization. For example, you do not need user
authorization to retrieve information about a public YouTube channel.
Create an OAuth 2.0 client ID
Set the application type to
Web application
. You need to use OAuth
2.0 credentials for requests that require user authorization. For
example, you need user authorization to retrieve information about the
currently authenticated user's YouTube channel.
In the
Authorized JavaScript origins
field, enter the URL
http://localhost:8000
. You can leave the
Authorized redirect URIs
field blank.
Step 2: Set up and run the sample
Use the APIs Explorer widget in the side panel to obtain sample code for
retrieving information about the GoogleDevelopers YouTube channel. This request
uses an API key to identify your application, and it does not require user
authorization or any special permissions from the user running the sample.
- Open the documentation for the API's
channels.list
method.
On that page, the "Common use cases" section contains a table that explains
several common ways that the method is used. The first listing in the table
is for listing results by channel ID.
Click the code symbol for the first listing to open and populate the
fullscreen APIs Explorer.
The left side of the fullscreen APIs Explorer shows the following:
Below the
Request parameters
header, there is a list of parameters
that the method supports. The
part
and
id
parameter values should
be set. The
id
parameter value,
UC_x5XG1OV2P6uZZ5FSM9Ttw
, is the
ID for the GoogleDevelopers YouTube channel.
Below the parameters, there is a section named
Credentials
. The
pulldown menu in that section should display the value
API key
. The
APIs Explorer uses demo credentials by default to make it easier to get
started. But you'll use your own API key to run the sample locally.
The right side of the fullscreen APIs Explorer shows tabs with code samples
in different languages. Select the
JavaScript
tab.
Copy the code sample and save it in a file named
example.html
.
In the sample that you downloaded, find the
YOUR_API_KEY
string and
replace that with the API key that you created in step 1 of this quickstart.
Start the web server using the following command from your working
directory:
Python 2.x
python -m SimpleHTTPServer 8000
Python 3.x
python -m http.server 8000
Open the example.html file in your browser. Also open the browser's
developer tools, such as the "Developer Tools" in the Chrome browser.
Click the
load
button on the page to load the Google APIs Client
Library for JavaScript. After you click the button, the developer
console should display a note indicating that the GAPI client loaded.
Click the
execute
button to send the API request. The developer's
console should then display the API response.
Step 3: Run an authorized request
In this step, you'll modify your code sample so that instead of retrieving
information about the GoogleDevelopers YouTube channel, it retrieves information
about
your
YouTube channel. This request does require user authorization.
Go back to the documentation for the API's
channels.list
method.
In the "Common use cases" section, click the code symbol for the third
listing in the table. That use case is to call the
list
method for "my
channel."
Again, in the left side of the fullscreen APIs Explorer, you will see a
list of parameters followed by the
Credentials
section. However, there
are two changes from the example where you retrieved information about the
GoogleDevelopers channel:
In the parameters section, instead of the
id
parameter value being
set, the
mine
parameter value should be set to
true
. This instructs
the API server to retrieve information about the currently authenticated
user's channel.
In the
Credentials
section, the pulldown menu should select the
option for
Google OAuth 2.0
.
In addition, if you click the
Show scopes
link, the
https://www.googleapis.com/auth/youtube.readonly
scope should be
checked.
As with the previous example, select the
JavaScript
tab,
copy the code sample, and save it to
example.html
.
In the code, find the
YOUR_CLIENT_ID
string and replace it with the
client ID that you created in step 1 of this quickstart.
Start the web server using the following command from your working
directory:
Python 2.x
python -m SimpleHTTPServer 8000
Python 3.x
python -m http.server 8000
Go to
http://localhost:8000/example.html
file in your browser.
Open the browser's developer tools, such as the "Developer Tools" in the
Chrome browser.
Click the
authorize and load
button on the page to load the Google
APIs Client Library for JavaScript and initiate the authorization flow.
You should be prompted to grant the application permission to read data
from your YouTube account.
If you grant the permission, the developer's console should display
messages indicating that sign-in was successful and that the API client
loaded.
Click the
execute
button to send the API request. The developer's
console should then display the API response.
Further reading