I also had perian on my mac for years but as I understand it, it was necessary in order for VLC to function.
However, yesterday I purchased Elmedia PLAYER PRO which I have yet to use but will I'm told allow me to download youtube movies and perhaps from other sources too.
Thank you all for your replies.
jaybass
OS 13.6.6 iMac (Retina 5K, 27", 2017, 3.4 GHz Intel Core i5, 24 GB RAM, 2400 MHz DDR4. SuperDuper. 1 TB Lacie HD
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