No doubt the single most annoying thing about watching streaming video on the net is the “buffering” process. Unless one is lucky enough to have a terrific internet connection, these interruptions are annoying enough that most of us wait till some or all of the video has been received before we start watching. That can be a pain if you are watching a long clip.

Buffering is a requirement of streaming media since, unlike a file that can be watched only after it is completely downloaded, this is how it attempts to provide the best uninterrupted watching or listening. In plain English, buffering is nothing more than receiving a few seconds of video in advance before it starts playing on your screen. Thus, if your connection is fast enough, you will continue to receive data in advance at a speed that will not affect your watching. But not all of us are so lucky. There are two ways to get around this: upgrade your internet connection or download the video like any ordinary file and watch at your leisure.

While watching YouTube, Megavideo, MetaCafe and the like, you must have noticed that once the file is received, you can play it even after disconnecting from the net. You can also replay it without needing to buffer again. This means that these files must be saved somewhere on your computer. They are, in fact, cached temporarily, but unfortunately are terribly difficult to locate and use. The good news is, there are ways to get the dirty work done for you. What follows are a few tried and tested methods, though you will be deluged with results if you Google for it.

ClipNabber.com is a handy little site that nabs a video clip as long as you submit the URL. Just enter the URL of the video site page you would usually be watching the video on, click on Nab, and wait for it to ferret out the links to available media files, which you can then download and save to your computer. No installations, no sign-ups. Visit its sister site TuneNabber.com to download audio from streaming sites.

KeepVid.com works on similar lines, but apart from directly entering a URL, you can opt for a bookmarklet as well. When you visit a page with a video you want to download, click KeepVid’s “Keep It” bookmarklet button, and it will take you to a page with details about the video it detected. Another option is Keep-Tube.com, which supports download of HD files and has a Firefox extension.

One of the best Firefox add-ons is at DownloadHelper.net. This installs a little icon on the toolbar, which comes alive if it detects media on the page you’re browsing. Click to get a list of available files. DownloadHelper can also convert videos to a preferred format if you wish, though you will need to download additional files.

Keep in mind that the likes of ClipNabber, Keep-Tube and KeepVid may sometimes ask you to copy and paste the host site’s source code.

This is simple: right-click, then View page source, copy the lot and paste it where asked. You may also need to grant an applet permission to access your computer.

Finally, here’s a word of caution. The videos hosted at YouTube, Megavideo, Veoh, DailyMotion, MetaCafe, Hulu and so on may be covered by copyright and other restrictions. They are meant, possibly with some exceptions, for your personal viewing only, and not meant for republishing, distributing or selling.

Payal Dhar is a freelance technology writer