🚀 Quick Start Guide

Get started with your first video in minutes

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📺 Video Tutorial: Watch the complete Getting Started guide: youtu.be/fI3i6J12ndo

1

Initial Setup

Settings → Application Settings

Configure your API keys:

  • OpenAI API key: For AI-powered content generation (title/description/tags)
  • Local LLM (optional): Use LM Studio or Ollama instead for privacy/cost savings
  • Whisper settings: Choose model size and device (CPU vs CUDA GPU)

Settings → Video Profiles

Create your first Video Profile:

  • Profile name (e.g., "X4_Foundations", "Minecraft_Survival")
  • Videos directory path (where your recordings are stored)
  • Game logo for thumbnails (optional)
  • AI prompts customization (optional - defaults work great!)

Upload Tab → Add YouTube Channel

Authenticate with YouTube:

  • Click "Add Channel" button
  • Browser opens → Sign in with Google → Grant permissions
  • Channel automatically saved for future uploads
  • Note: Requires your own OAuth credentials (see YouTube OAuth Setup)
2

Processing Your First Video

  1. Dashboard Tab: Select your Video Profile from dropdown
  2. Place video: Put my_first_video.mp4 in the toupload/ folder shown in Dashboard
  3. Transcription Tab: Click "Refresh" → Select video → Click "Transcribe Selected"
    • Wait for transcription to complete (progress bar shows status)
    • Generated file: my_first_video_transcript.txt
  4. Content/Metadata Tab: Select video → Click "Generate Selected"
    • AI generates title, description, and tags from transcript
    • Review and edit in built-in editor if needed
    • Generated file: my_first_video_yt.txt
  5. Thumbnails Tab: Select video → Click "Generate Selected"
    • AI selects interesting frame and generates overlay text
    • Preview appears instantly on right side
    • Generated file: my_first_video_123_thumb.jpg
  6. Upload Tab: Select video (marked "✓ Ready") → Click "Start Upload"
    • Video uploads to YouTube with metadata and thumbnail
    • On success: Automatically moves to Done/ folder

🎉 Congratulations! You've published your first video using Loki Studio!

3

Important Files & Directories

Important Files

  • client_secret.json - Your OAuth credentials (root directory)
  • VideoProfiles/ - Your video profile configuration files
  • Assets/Logos/ - Profile logos for thumbnails
  • logs/ - Application logs for troubleshooting

Directory Structure

E:/Videos/Gaming/YourGame/
├── toupload/      ← Place new videos here
├── Done/          ← Successfully uploaded videos
├── Failed/        ← Failed uploads (review and retry)
└── game_logo.png  ← Logo for thumbnails (optional)

🎙️ Pro Tip: OBS Audio Channel Configuration

Configure your OBS audio channels for optimal transcription and AI content generation!

  • Audio Channel 1 (Desktop Audio): Game audio, system sounds, voice lines
    • Used for story-driven games (RPGs, narrative games)
    • AI will extract dialogue and story context for better descriptions
  • Audio Channel 2+ (Microphone): Your commentary and voice
    • Primary source for transcription (pure voice, easier to process)
    • Higher accuracy for Whisper AI transcription

Why this matters: Channel 1 (game audio) + Channel 2 (mic) gives AI both your commentary AND in-game dialogue. This creates significantly better titles, descriptions, and tags, especially for story-heavy games!

Tips for Success

  • Test with small videos first (5-10 min) to verify setup
  • Use "Dry Run" in Upload tab to preview before actual upload
  • Check logs/ folder if something goes wrong
  • Keep _final naming for edited videos (auto-detected)
  • Monitor API costs via OpenAI dashboard
  • Configure OBS audio channels as described above for best AI results
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