The First Public Release of B-ROLL, July 2026

When was B-ROLL first released?#

B-ROLL’s first public release was published on GitHub Releases on July 30, 2026, under the tag v1.0. The release carried two Windows files: BROLL-Setup.exe, an installer, and BROLL-portable.exe, a single exe that runs without installing.

Both files were 64-bit builds for Windows 10 and 11. The release notes said macOS and Linux builds would follow through automated builds; both are still planned, with no date. The original files and notes stay on the B-ROLL releases page on GitHub.

What could the first B-ROLL release do?#

The first B-ROLL release covered the path from a YouTube link to a file ready for the timeline: find, trim, download, convert, caption and credit. The table lists what that build did, area by area.

Marking parts in the player is covered in YouTube clip downloader with preview and in/out points, and the credit blocks in automatic credit files for every YouTube download. Playlists and channels are in the YouTube playlist and channel downloader page; channel downloads were off until you switched them on in Advanced options, and they still are.

On first launch, that build fetched yt-dlp, ffmpeg and Deno in the background, the tools every B-ROLL download still runs on.

Why was B-ROLL built?#

I’m Ema Zamboni, a video editor, and I built B-ROLL to collect b-roll for my own YouTube edits, which I cut in DaVinci Resolve Studio on Windows 11.

On my timeline, 4K60 AV1 footage downloaded from YouTube was heavy to play back in DaVinci Resolve, and AV1 or VP9 downloads crashed Resolve at times. B-ROLL’s automatic conversion was built to solve that problem: the download finishes, then B-ROLL converts the file into a ProRes or DNxHR .mov for the timeline. The details of that step are in download YouTube videos in ProRes or DNxHR.

I’m not a developer, so I made B-ROLL with Claude as my coding assistant. The About dialog says it in my own words: “I needed this app, so I made it with Claude since I’m not a developer.” The full story is in building a YouTube downloader with Claude as coding help.

What has changed in B-ROLL since the first release?#

B-ROLL has changed in three places since July 2026 that an editor notices: the codec tier, clip downloads and the preview player. The B-ROLL changelog and release history is the record of each version; the list gives the reasons behind the three changes.

• Codec tier. The first release always used the heaviest tier: ProRes 422 HQ, or DNxHR HQ (HQX for 10-bit sources). The current B-ROLL picks the lightest tier that still preserves the source, as explained in how B-ROLL picks a ProRes or DNxHR tier automatically.
• Clip downloads. Clips from deep inside long videos could stall. B-ROLL now prefers YouTube’s HLS streams for clips, and that fixed the stalls.
• Preview player. The first release previewed only YouTube’s combined video and audio streams. As of September 2026, YouTube rarely serves those streams, so that old preview often shows “Couldn’t load this video.” The current preview plays separate video and audio streams and falls back to HLS.

One fix needed no new code. When YouTube started answering my downloads with “Sign in to confirm you’re not a bot”, exporting a fresh cookies.txt from my signed-in browser and loading it in B-ROLL fixed it. Cookies expire, so the message can return; the fix is to export again.

What is planned next for B-ROLL?#

macOS and Linux versions of B-ROLL are planned, with no release date. The code already has branches for both systems and the build scripts exist, but no macOS or Linux build is published yet, so B-ROLL runs on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11 only.

The price is not planned to change. B-ROLL stays free, with no account, no ads and no paid tier; donations through the Support me link, which opens PayPal, are voluntary. Beyond that, I promise no features and no dates. New work arrives as a GitHub release, and the in-app update check tells you when one exists.

How do you get the current version of B-ROLL?#

The current version of B-ROLL comes from the download box on this site or from GitHub Releases, as an installer or a portable exe for 64-bit Windows 10 and 11. Both are free and need no account.

If you already run B-ROLL, the app checks GitHub 4 seconds after launch and shows “Update available” when a newer version exists. Update now downloads the new installer and starts it; the portable exe is not replaced, so portable users get the installer too. You can also check by hand: open About (ⓘ) and choose Check for updates.

B-ROLL is not code-signed, so Windows SmartScreen may show “Windows protected your PC” before the first run; choose More info, then Run anyway. More release notes and behind-the-scenes posts live on the B-ROLL Blog: Releases and Behind the Scenes.