fix(playlists): "+N without length" counts every video the sum left out

The label said "without length" but the count held only live videos, so
a video not fetched yet, or gone before it was, was left out of the sum
and named nowhere. The server's `Video.without_length` and the client's
`isWithoutLength` are now one rule (no length, whatever the live
status), and the field, the key and the helpers are named for what they
count. The comments that still quoted "+N live" say the current copy.

backend/app/catalog/models.py

@@ -17,7 +17,6 @@ from sqlalchemy import (
     String,
     Text,
     UniqueConstraint,
-    and_,
     case,
     func,
     literal_column,
@@ -125,7 +124,7 @@ LIVE_OR_UPCOMING = ("live", "upcoming")
 # the stream has run (measured on prod, 2026-11-06: 122,962,914 s), and one such video made a Watch
 # later total read 44,073 hours. YouTube caps an upload at 12 hours, so nothing real is lost. Such a
 # length is unknown wherever a length is used: the API sends none (`Video.length_seconds`), sums leave
-# it out (a playlist's counts it as `live_without_length`), and the duration filter, sort and Home budget never
+# it out (a playlist's counts it as `without_length`), and the duration filter, sort and Home budget never
 # match it. The raw `duration_seconds` stays for what it does prove — that the video is not a Short —
 # and for the jobs that ask whether YouTube has answered yet (test_video_length holds who reads it).
 LENGTH_MAX_S = 24 * 3600
@@ -239,15 +238,16 @@ class Video(Base, TimestampMixin):
         )
 
     @hybrid_property
-    def live_without_length(self) -> bool:
-        """A live video (on air, upcoming, a premiere or an archive) whose length is unknown: what a
-        total leaves out and names as "+N live"."""
-        return self.live_status != "none" and self.length_seconds is None
+    def without_length(self) -> bool:
+        """A video whose length is unknown — live, an archive past a day, or not fetched yet: what a
+        sum of lengths leaves out and names as "+N without length". Every such video, so the count
+        and the sum never disagree about what was left out."""
+        return self.length_seconds is None
 
-    @live_without_length.inplace.expression
+    @without_length.inplace.expression
     @classmethod
-    def _live_without_length_expression(cls) -> ColumnElement[bool]:
-        return and_(cls.live_status != "none", cls.length_seconds.is_(None))
+    def _without_length_expression(cls) -> ColumnElement[bool]:
+        return cls.length_seconds.is_(None)
 
     # Weighted full-text search document (DB-generated, never written by the app): title (A) >
     # creator keywords + search queries (B) > truncated description (C). ts_rank honours the

backend/app/reader/queries.py

@@ -147,15 +147,15 @@ def item_counts(db: Session, ids: list[int]) -> dict[int, int]:
 
 
 def durations(db: Session, ids: list[int]) -> dict[int, tuple[int, int]]:
-    """Each playlist's running time — the sum of its videos' known lengths — and how many live videos
-    it cannot hold (`Video.live_without_length`)."""
+    """Each playlist's running time — the sum of its videos' known lengths — and how many videos
+    it left out for having none (`Video.without_length`)."""
     return {
-        pid: (int(total or 0), int(live or 0))
-        for pid, total, live in db.execute(
+        pid: (int(total or 0), int(left_out or 0))
+        for pid, total, left_out in db.execute(
             select(
                 PlaylistItem.playlist_id,
                 func.coalesce(func.sum(Video.length_seconds), 0),
-                func.count().filter(Video.live_without_length),
+                func.count().filter(Video.without_length),
             )
             .join(Video, Video.id == PlaylistItem.video_id)
             .where(PlaylistItem.playlist_id.in_(ids))
@@ -197,14 +197,14 @@ def covers(db: Session, ids: list[int]) -> dict[int, str | None]:
 
 
 def playlist_totals(db: Session, playlist_id: int) -> tuple[int, int, int, str | None]:
-    """One playlist's item count, running time, live videos the running time cannot hold
-    (`Video.live_without_length`) and cover. An outer join, so an empty list still answers
+    """One playlist's item count, running time, the videos the running time left out for having no
+    length (`Video.without_length`) and cover. An outer join, so an empty list still answers
     (0, 0, 0, None)."""
-    count, total, live = db.execute(
+    count, total, left_out = db.execute(
         select(
             func.count(PlaylistItem.id),
             func.coalesce(func.sum(Video.length_seconds), 0),
-            func.count().filter(Video.live_without_length),
+            func.count().filter(Video.without_length),
         )
         .select_from(PlaylistItem)
         .outerjoin(Video, Video.id == PlaylistItem.video_id)
@@ -217,7 +217,7 @@ def playlist_totals(db: Session, playlist_id: int) -> tuple[int, int, int, str |
         .order_by(PlaylistItem.position)
         .limit(1)
     )
-    return count or 0, total or 0, live or 0, cover
+    return count or 0, total or 0, left_out or 0, cover
 
 
 def playlist_rows(db: Session, user: User, playlist_id: int) -> list:

backend/app/routes/playlists.py

@@ -99,9 +99,9 @@ def _summary(
     has_video: bool | None = None,
     cover: str | None = None,
 ) -> dict:
-    """`duration` is `queries.durations`'s pair: the known running time, and the live videos it
-    cannot hold — the "+N live" beside it."""
-    total_duration, live = duration
+    """`duration` is `queries.durations`'s pair: the known running time, and the videos it left out
+    for having no length — the "+N without length" beside it."""
+    total_duration, left_out = duration
     out = {
         "id": pl.id,
         "name": pl.name,
@@ -111,7 +111,7 @@ def _summary(
         "dirty": pl.dirty,
         "item_count": count,
         "total_duration_seconds": total_duration,
-        "live_without_length": live,
+        "without_length": left_out,
         "cover_thumbnail": cover,
         # When this list last CHANGED (rename, add/remove/move/reorder) — the rail's
         # "recently changed first" sort reads it. See `service.touch` for why it isn't automatic.
@@ -369,8 +369,8 @@ def rename_playlist(
             raise _refused(400, "name_required")
         service.rename_playlist(db, pl, name)
     db.commit()
-    count, total, live, cover = queries.playlist_totals(db, pl.id)
-    return _summary(pl, count, (total, live), cover=cover)
+    count, total, left_out, cover = queries.playlist_totals(db, pl.id)
+    return _summary(pl, count, (total, left_out), cover=cover)
 
 
 @router.delete("/{playlist_id}")

backend/tests/test_video_length.py

@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 
 Measured on prod (2026-11-06): two 24/7 streams' archives report 122,962,914 s and 34,762,459 s, and the
 owner's Watch later total read "44,073 hr 55 min". Such a video now has no length on any API answer, the
-totals leave it out and count it as `live_without_length`, and the duration filter and sort pass it over
+totals leave it out (a playlist's counts it as `without_length`), and the duration filter and sort pass it over
 like a video whose length is not fetched yet. An AST check holds who may still read the raw column.
 DB lane (the AST check needs none).
 """
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ def _seed(db, user):
         ("day", LENGTH_MAX_S, "was_live"),  # exactly a day still is a length
         ("archive", YEARS, "was_live"),
         ("onair", None, "live"),
-        ("unfetched", None, "none"),  # not live: not counted as "+N live"
+        ("unfetched", None, "none"),  # not live, but left out of the sum: counted all the same
     ]
     for i, (vid, seconds, live) in enumerate(rows):
         db.add(
@@ -121,7 +121,7 @@ def test_an_off_catalog_archive_has_no_length_either(db, make_user, as_user, mon
     assert client.get("/api/videos/offshort").json()["duration_seconds"] == HOUR
 
 
-def test_the_totals_leave_it_out_and_count_the_live_ones(db, make_user, as_user):
+def test_the_totals_leave_it_out_and_count_what_they_left_out(db, make_user, as_user):
     user = make_user()
     pl = _seed(db, user)
     client = as_user(user)
@@ -130,19 +130,19 @@ def test_the_totals_leave_it_out_and_count_the_live_ones(db, make_user, as_user)
     assert listed.status_code == 200
     (summary,) = [p for p in listed.json() if p["id"] == pl.id]
     assert summary["total_duration_seconds"] == KNOWN_SUM
-    assert summary["live_without_length"] == 2  # the archive and the one on air
+    assert summary["without_length"] == 3  # the archive, the one on air, the unfetched one
 
     renamed = client.patch(f"/api/playlists/{pl.id}", json={"name": "Later 2"})
     assert renamed.status_code == 200
     assert renamed.json()["total_duration_seconds"] == KNOWN_SUM
-    assert renamed.json()["live_without_length"] == 2
+    assert renamed.json()["without_length"] == 3
 
     channels = client.get("/api/channels")
     assert channels.status_code == 200
     (ch,) = channels.json()
     assert ch["total_duration_seconds"] == KNOWN_SUM
     # The channel table shows the sum alone (the count did not fit its column), so it is not sent.
-    assert "live_without_length" not in ch
+    assert "without_length" not in ch and "live_without_length" not in ch
 
 
 def test_the_duration_filter_and_sort_pass_it_over(db, make_user, as_user):

frontend/src/features/video/liveWithoutLength.test.ts

@@ -1,21 +0,0 @@
-import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
-import type { TFunction } from "i18next";
-import { isLiveWithoutLength, withLiveCount } from "./liveWithoutLength";
-
-const t = ((key: string, o: { count: number }) => `${key}:${o.count}`) as unknown as TFunction;
-
-describe("a total and the live videos it cannot hold", () => {
-  it("counts a live video only when the server sent no length", () => {
-    expect(isLiveWithoutLength({ duration_seconds: null, live_status: "was_live" })).toBe(true);
-    expect(isLiveWithoutLength({ duration_seconds: null, live_status: "live" })).toBe(true);
-    expect(isLiveWithoutLength({ duration_seconds: 5400, live_status: "was_live" })).toBe(false);
-    // Not fetched yet, and not live: left out of the sum like before, not named as live.
-    expect(isLiveWithoutLength({ duration_seconds: null, live_status: "none" })).toBe(false);
-  });
-
-  it("names them beside the sum, or alone when nothing summed", () => {
-    expect(withLiveCount("12 hr 5 min", 2, t)).toBe("12 hr 5 min card.liveWithoutLength:2");
-    expect(withLiveCount("", 1, t)).toBe("card.liveWithoutLength:1");
-    expect(withLiveCount("12 hr 5 min", 0, t)).toBe("12 hr 5 min");
-  });
-});

frontend/src/features/video/liveWithoutLength.ts

@@ -1,18 +0,0 @@
-// A total of video lengths and the live videos it cannot hold. The server decides what a length is
-// (a YouTube "length" past a day is a 24/7 stream's archive reporting the years it has run, and the
-// API sends none for it: `catalog.models.LENGTH_MAX_S`), so this side keeps no copy of that limit. It
-// only names what a sum left out: a live video — on air, upcoming, a premiere or an archive — with no
-// length, as the server's `Video.live_without_length` counts it for the totals it sums itself.
-import type { TFunction } from "i18next";
-import type { Video } from "../../lib/api/feed";
-
-export function isLiveWithoutLength(v: Pick<Video, "duration_seconds" | "live_status">): boolean {
-  return v.duration_seconds == null && v.live_status !== "none";
-}
-
-/** "12 hr 5 min +2 without length": `total` is the formatted sum ("" when nothing summed), `live` the count
- *  it left out. Empty when both are. */
-export function withLiveCount(total: string, live: number, t: TFunction): string {
-  const suffix = live > 0 ? t("card.liveWithoutLength", { count: live }) : "";
-  return [total, suffix].filter(Boolean).join(" ");
-}

frontend/src/features/video/withoutLength.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import type { TFunction } from "i18next";
+import { isWithoutLength, withLeftOutCount } from "./withoutLength";
+
+const t = ((key: string, o: { count: number }) => `${key}:${o.count}`) as unknown as TFunction;
+
+describe("a total and the videos it cannot hold", () => {
+  it("counts every video the server sent no length for", () => {
+    expect(isWithoutLength({ duration_seconds: null })).toBe(true);
+    expect(isWithoutLength({ duration_seconds: 5400 })).toBe(false);
+    expect(isWithoutLength({ duration_seconds: 0 })).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("names them beside the sum, or alone when nothing summed", () => {
+    expect(withLeftOutCount("12 hr 5 min", 2, t)).toBe("12 hr 5 min card.withoutLength:2");
+    expect(withLeftOutCount("", 1, t)).toBe("card.withoutLength:1");
+    expect(withLeftOutCount("12 hr 5 min", 0, t)).toBe("12 hr 5 min");
+  });
+});

frontend/src/features/video/withoutLength.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+// A total of video lengths and the videos it cannot hold. The server decides what a length is (a
+// YouTube "length" past a day is a 24/7 stream's archive reporting the years it has run, and the API
+// sends none for it: `catalog.models.LENGTH_MAX_S`), so this side keeps no copy of that limit. It only
+// names what a sum left out: every video with no length — live, an archive, or not fetched yet — as the
+// server's `Video.without_length` counts it for the totals it sums itself. The two rules are the same,
+// so the count and the sum never disagree about what was left out.
+import type { TFunction } from "i18next";
+import type { Video } from "../../lib/api/feed";
+
+export function isWithoutLength(v: Pick<Video, "duration_seconds">): boolean {
+  return v.duration_seconds == null;
+}
+
+/** "12 hr 5 min +2 without length": `total` is the formatted sum ("" when nothing summed), `leftOut`
+ *  the count it left out. Empty when both are. */
+export function withLeftOutCount(total: string, leftOut: number, t: TFunction): string {
+  const suffix = leftOut > 0 ? t("card.withoutLength", { count: leftOut }) : "";
+  return [total, suffix].filter(Boolean).join(" ");
+}

frontend/src/i18n/locales/en/card.json

@@ -16,8 +16,8 @@
   "restart": "Restart",
   "play": "Play",
   "stream": "stream",
-  "liveWithoutLength_one": "+{{count}} without length",
-  "liveWithoutLength_other": "+{{count}} without length",
+  "withoutLength_one": "+{{count}} without length",
+  "withoutLength_other": "+{{count}} without length",
   "views": "views",
   "info": "Details",
   "noDescription": "No description",

frontend/src/i18n/locales/hu/card.json

@@ -16,8 +16,8 @@
   "restart": "Elölről",
   "play": "Lejátszás",
   "stream": "közvetítés",
-  "liveWithoutLength_one": "+{{count}} hossz nélkül",
-  "liveWithoutLength_other": "+{{count}} hossz nélkül",
+  "withoutLength_one": "+{{count}} hossz nélkül",
+  "withoutLength_other": "+{{count}} hossz nélkül",
   "views": "megtekintés",
   "info": "Részletek",
   "noDescription": "Nincs leírás",

frontend/src/lib/api/playlists.ts

@@ -17,8 +17,8 @@ export interface Playlist {
   dirty: boolean; // linked local playlist has edits not yet pushed to YouTube
   item_count: number;
   total_duration_seconds: number;
-  /** Live videos the total cannot hold (no length): the "+N without length" beside it. */
-  live_without_length: number;
+  /** The videos the total left out for having no length: the "+N without length" beside it. */
+  without_length: number;
   cover_thumbnail: string | null;
   updated_at: string; // ISO; when the list last CHANGED (rename, add/remove/move/reorder)
   has_video?: boolean; // only set when listed with ?contains=<video_id>

frontend/src/modules/channels/channelColumns.dom.test.tsx

@@ -192,10 +192,10 @@ describe("buildChannelColumns — Added", () => {
     const length = cols.find((c) => c.key === "length");
     const row = {
       ...ch({ total_duration_seconds: 7200 }),
-      live_without_length: 2,
+      without_length: 2,
     } as ManagedChannel;
     const { container } = render(<>{length!.render(row)}</>);
-    expect(container.textContent).not.toContain("card.liveWithoutLength");
+    expect(container.textContent).not.toContain("card.withoutLength");
     expect(container.querySelectorAll("span")).toHaveLength(1);
   });
 });

frontend/src/modules/playlists/Playlists.dom.test.tsx

@@ -990,24 +990,25 @@ describe("Playlists · the header", () => {
       )
     ).textContent;
 
-  it("sums what is known, and says nothing about a runtime nothing sums to", async () => {
+  it("sums what is known, and names what it left out beside it", async () => {
+    // Not fetched yet, and not live: left out of the sum all the same, so it is named.
     mount({ 1: [vid("A", 0), untimed("B")] });
-    expect(await meta()).toBe("playlists.itemCount · 50 min");
+    expect(await meta()).toBe("playlists.itemCount · 50 min card.withoutLength");
     cleanup();
 
-    mount({ 1: [untimed("C")] });
-    expect(await meta()).toBe("playlists.itemCount");
+    mount({ 1: [vid("A", 0)] });
+    expect(await meta()).toBe("playlists.itemCount · 50 min");
   });
 
-  it("names the live videos the sum cannot hold beside it", async () => {
+  it("names a live video the sum cannot hold, alone when nothing summed", async () => {
     // A 24/7 stream's archive comes with no length (the server's rule): it is named, not summed.
     const archive = (id: string) => ({ ...untimed(id), live_status: "was_live" }) as Video;
     mount({ 1: [vid("A", 0), archive("B")] });
-    expect(await meta()).toBe("playlists.itemCount · 50 min card.liveWithoutLength");
+    expect(await meta()).toBe("playlists.itemCount · 50 min card.withoutLength");
     cleanup();
 
     mount({ 1: [archive("C")] });
-    expect(await meta()).toBe("playlists.itemCount · card.liveWithoutLength");
+    expect(await meta()).toBe("playlists.itemCount · card.withoutLength");
   });
 
   it("offers the view controls only once there is more than one row to arrange", async () => {

frontend/src/modules/playlists/Playlists.tsx

@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ import {
   playlistViewParamUpdates,
 } from "../../lib/playlistsUrlState";
 import { formatRuntime } from "../../lib/format";
-import { isLiveWithoutLength, withLiveCount } from "../../features/video/liveWithoutLength";
+import { isWithoutLength, withLeftOutCount } from "../../features/video/withoutLength";
 import { applyView, sameOrder } from "../../lib/playlistView";
 import { useOpenLinkedPlayer } from "../../features/player/useOpenLinkedPlayer";
 const PlayerModal = lazy(() => import("../../features/player/PlayerModal"));
@@ -566,13 +566,13 @@ function PlaylistDetail() {
   }, [items]);
 
   // Total playtime of the whole playlist (sums every item, matching the itemCount beside it — not
-  // the filtered `shown` set). Items with an unknown duration count as 0, and a live one is named
-  // beside the sum instead ("+2 without length"); hidden when there is neither.
+  // the filtered `shown` set). An item with an unknown duration is left out of the sum and named
+  // beside it instead ("+2 without length"); hidden when there is neither.
   const totalSeconds = useMemo(
     () => items.reduce((acc, v) => acc + (v.duration_seconds ?? 0), 0),
     [items],
   );
-  const liveCount = useMemo(() => items.filter(isLiveWithoutLength).length, [items]);
+  const leftOutCount = useMemo(() => items.filter(isWithoutLength).length, [items]);
 
   // The row's "…" opens the row menu under itself. Which row's menu is open is part of the
   // cell (aria-expanded), so the columns rebuild when it changes — a cheap array of closures.
@@ -1622,8 +1622,8 @@ function PlaylistDetail() {
                   >
                     <span className="text-xs text-muted">
                       {t("playlists.itemCount", { count: items.length })}
-                      {(totalSeconds > 0 || liveCount > 0) &&
-                        ` · ${withLiveCount(formatRuntime(totalSeconds, lang), liveCount, t)}`}
+                      {(totalSeconds > 0 || leftOutCount > 0) &&
+                        ` · ${withLeftOutCount(formatRuntime(totalSeconds, lang), leftOutCount, t)}`}
                       {filterActive &&
                         ` · ${t("playlists.filteredCount", { count: shown.length })}`}
                     </span>

frontend/src/modules/playlists/PlaylistsRail.drop.dom.test.tsx

@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@ const pl = (id: number, name: string) =>
     yt_playlist_id: null,
     item_count: 1,
     total_duration_seconds: 0,
-    live_without_length: 0,
+    without_length: 0,
     cover_thumbnail: null,
     dirty: false,
   }) as unknown as Playlist;

frontend/src/modules/playlists/PlaylistsRail.rename.dom.test.tsx

@@ -80,7 +80,7 @@ const alpha = {
   source: "local",
   item_count: 3,
   total_duration_seconds: 0,
-  live_without_length: 0,
+  without_length: 0,
   cover_thumbnail: null,
   dirty: false,
 } as unknown as Playlist;

frontend/src/modules/playlists/PlaylistsRail.tsx

@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ import { YouTubeIcon } from "../../lib/brandIcons";
 import { api, type Playlist } from "../../lib/api";
 import { compareText } from "../../lib/collate";
 import { formatRuntime } from "../../lib/format";
-import { withLiveCount } from "../../features/video/liveWithoutLength";
+import { withLeftOutCount } from "../../features/video/withoutLength";
 import { msg, notify } from "../../lib/notifications";
 import { notifyYouTubeActionError } from "../../lib/youtubeErrors";
 import { LS } from "../../lib/storage";
@@ -379,10 +379,10 @@ export default function PlaylistsRail() {
                       </div>
                       <div className="text-2xs text-muted">
                         {t("playlists.itemCount", { count: pl.item_count })}
-                        {(pl.total_duration_seconds > 0 || pl.live_without_length > 0) &&
-                          ` · ${withLiveCount(
+                        {(pl.total_duration_seconds > 0 || pl.without_length > 0) &&
+                          ` · ${withLeftOutCount(
                             formatRuntime(pl.total_duration_seconds, lang),
-                            pl.live_without_length,
+                            pl.without_length,
                             t,
                           )}`}
                       </div>