[tenebrisalietum]

> How should a programming noob interpret this?

The browser is client-facing and everything there is possible to reverse engineer and figure out. So if you design a web-based application, and are depending on client-side Javascript for any security or distribution enforcement, it can be helpful, but can ultimately be unwound and cracked even if obfuscated, etc.

> Be impressed at what was achieved here?

Yes. Try to download a YouTube video with out it or an online service which is probably using it internally.

[Supermancho]

Youtube-dl is impressive. This particular hack is not.

[pwdisswordfish9]

youtube-dl as a whole is not particularly impressive either. It’s a big pile of unresolved technical debt, of hacks-upon-hacks and quick-and-dirty temporary solutions just like this one staying there for years.