DuckDuckGo

Search using DuckDuckGo

Actions4

Overview

This node performs video searches using the DuckDuckGo search engine. It allows users to query for videos based on specific search terms and refine results with options such as region targeting, safe search filtering, video quality, duration, and license type. The node supports caching to improve performance on repeated queries and can optionally return raw API responses or processed, user-friendly results.

Typical use cases include:

Finding relevant videos for content curation or research.
Automating video discovery workflows in marketing or media monitoring.
Integrating video search capabilities into larger automation pipelines without manual browsing.

For example, a user could search for "latest tech reviews" videos restricted to the United States region with moderate safe search enabled, retrieving up to 20 results for further processing.

Properties

Name	Meaning
Locale	Specify the language/region locale for the search. Options include English (US), English (UK), Spanish (Spain), French (France), German (Germany), Italian (Italy), Japanese (Japan), Russian (Russia), Chinese (China), etc.
Use API Key	Boolean flag to enable API key authentication for accessing the DuckDuckGo API.
Video Search Query	The search terms used to find videos. This is a required string input.
Video Search Options	Collection of options to refine the video search: - Maximum Results: Number (1-100) specifying max videos to return. - Region: Target region for videos (e.g., US, UK, Brazil, Japan, Worldwide). - Safe Search: Content filtering level (Strict, Moderate, Off). - Return Raw Results: Boolean to return raw API response instead of processed data.
Error Handling	How errors are handled during execution: - Break on Error: Stop execution on error. - Continue on Error: Proceed even if errors occur.
Debug Mode	When enabled, includes detailed request and response logs for troubleshooting purposes.
Cache Settings	Controls caching behavior: - Enable Cache: Whether to cache search results. - Cache TTL: Time-to-live for cached results in seconds (60 to 86400).
Enable Telemetry	Whether to send anonymous usage data to help improve the node (no personal data collected).
Proxy Settings	Configure proxy for all requests: - Use Proxy: Enable proxy usage. - Proxy Type: HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS4, SOCKS5. - Proxy Host: Proxy server hostname or IP. - Proxy Port: Proxy server port. - Proxy Authentication: Enable proxy auth. - Proxy Username/Password: Credentials for proxy authentication.

Output

The node outputs an array of JSON objects representing the search results. Each output item corresponds to one input item and contains:

success: Boolean indicating if the search was successful.
query: The original search query string.
result: The full raw API response object when "Return Raw Results" is enabled or debug mode is active.
count: Number of results returned (when no results found, this is zero).
results: An array of processed video result objects (if raw results are not requested), each typically including fields like:
- title: Video title.
- content or url: Link to the video.
- description: Video description.
- duration: Length of the video.
- embed_html / embed_url: Embed code or URL for embedding.
- provider: Source of the video.
- published: Publication date.
- uploader: Uploader name.
- Other metadata such as statistics or images.

If no results are found, the output will indicate success with an empty results array.

In case of errors, the output includes:

success: false
error: Error message string
Optionally detailed error stack and request options if debug mode is enabled.

No binary data output is produced by this node.

Dependencies

Requires access to the DuckDuckGo video search API or scraping library.
Optional API key credential if "Use API Key" is enabled.
Supports proxy configuration for network requests.
Caching mechanism is internal but configurable via TTL and enable flags.
Telemetry reporting is optional and anonymous.

No additional external services beyond DuckDuckGo and standard HTTP(s) connectivity are required.

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Missing or invalid query: The video search query is required; empty or whitespace-only queries will cause errors.
API key required but missing: If "Use API Key" is enabled, an API key must be provided; otherwise, the node throws an error.
Network or proxy misconfiguration: Incorrect proxy settings may cause request failures.
Rate limiting or API changes: Unexpected errors from DuckDuckGo API might occur due to rate limits or API updates.
Cache stale or inconsistent results: Cached results may not reflect the latest data until TTL expires.

Error Messages and Resolutions

"API key is required when 'Use API Key' is enabled!": Provide a valid API key credential.
"Query is required for search operation": Ensure the video search query parameter is set and non-empty.
Errors logged with detailed stack traces appear when debug mode is enabled; review these logs to identify issues.
Network errors related to proxy should be resolved by verifying proxy host, port, and authentication credentials.
If fallback search is triggered (due to primary search failure), it attempts alternative methods but may still fail; check network and API availability.

Links and References

This summary covers the video search operation of the DuckDuckGo node, detailing its inputs, outputs, dependencies, and common troubleshooting tips based on static analysis of the source code and provided property definitions.