Close Menu
  • Home
  • COMMUNITY NEWS
  • LOCAL NEWS & EVENTS
  • SCHOOL NEWS
  • MILITARY NEWS
  • CRIME / PUBLIC SAFETY
  • THINGS TO DO
  • HEALTH & WELLNESS
  • HOME & GARDEN
  • NORTHWEST FLORIDA NEWS
  • FLORIDA NEWS
  • Contact
Facebook
Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube
Niceville.com
Niceville.com
Home»IT'S GEEK TO ME»Solving YouTube zoom and flipped video problems
IT'S GEEK TO ME

Solving YouTube zoom and flipped video problems

Niceville.comNovember 10, 20244 Mins Read
It's Geek to Me header illustration for weekly tech column by Jeff Werner
It's Geek to Me is a weekly tech column by Jeff Werner, (Niceville.com)

FLORIDA —

QUESTION: When viewing “Vera” and a few other video series on YouTube, the video periodically zooms way in making the picture illegible. These also have left/right swapped, although that may be a different problem. This problem shows on my Dell laptop as well as while using an MI Box S, which is Android-based.

– Roger H.
Crestview, Florida

Advertisement

ANSWER:  I know of only one thing that causes a YouTube video’s zoom level to change while watching a video, Roger, and that’s the in-built zoom controls that YouTube provides.  By holding Ctrl, then pressing the + (plus) key you can zoom in. Doing the same thing with the – key zooms out. Pressing Ctrl+0 (zero) resets the zoom level directly to the default.

If you accept that the above keystrokes are the only things that can alter the zoom level of a running video, then it becomes a question of whether these keystrokes are accidentally being injected into the system, and if so, how.

I often have “stuff” sitting on the keyboard of my laptop, and while I admit this can occasionally cause inadvertent keystrokes, I’ve never seen anything as specific as Ctrl and plus getting pressed simultaneously, much less this happening on a fairly regular basis. .

If indeed this is a keystroke problem, it’s more likely that the keyboard driver is at fault, but I would think that it that was the case, you would have problems elsewhere with errant keystrokes.

Advertisement

Without a really good causal identification to offer, the next best things I can offer are symptomatic solutions—that is, ways to quickly and easily stop the problem when it occurs.  A good first line of defense is to use Ctrl+0 to return the zoom level to normal.  You might also try toggling what’s called “Theater Mode” which resets video scaling in some cases.  Press “T” then press it a second time to turn it on and off.

You might also try opening YouTube in an Incognito or InPrivate mode window to bypass any cached settings or browser extensions or even malware that might be causing conflicts.

I searched for information about your mirroring problem (the correct term when your video is swapped left-to-right).  Mirroring is a feature commonly available in software that handles video.

It’s used to compensate for rear-projection setups, or instances where the video is bounced off a mirror before being projected on the screen.

Advertisement

There were several suggestions on how to turn screen mirroring on and off, but interestingly enough, I could not find any of the referenced controls when I visited YouTube.

So, like pretty much everything else about your question, this left me stymied.  It’s entirely possible that what you see on-screen while using YouTube is different than what I see, so I suggest you do a Google search on something like “YouTube picture swapped left o right” and see if you have the referenced controls that allow you to toggle mirroring on and off.

l  l  l  l  l  l

Geek Note: After 17 ½ years and over 900 issues, I’m seriously considering whether I should keep the column going.  One of the things that’s weighing on me is that I haven’t received a single question in my queue since the column got removed from the paper, causing me to seriously question whether anyone is even reading it anymore.

I guess what I’m saying is that I need to hear from you.  Are you still out there, reading the column?  Shoot me a line and let me know.  Also feel free to write to places where you used to read it and express your dissatisfaction at its removal!

Jeff Werner, a software engineer based in Niceville, Florida, has been writing his popular “It’s Geek to Me” tech column since 2007. He shares his expertise to help readers solve everyday tech challenges. To view additional content, comment on articles, or submit a question, visit ItsGeekToMe.co (not .com!).

Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
Previous ArticleAlzheimer’s Walk in Okaloosa County raises over $26,000 for research, care
Next Article Historic ship to begin journey as artificial reef in Gulf

Related Posts

It's Geek to Me header illustration for weekly tech column by Jeff Werner

Jeff Werner explains what to do after approving a fake login

June 22, 2025
It's Geek to Me header illustration for weekly tech column by Jeff Werner

Resetting your IP: What to know before using netsh

June 15, 2025
It's Geek to Me header illustration for weekly tech column by Jeff Werner

Windows 10 keeps changing your browser? Try this fix

June 8, 2025
Advertisement
Categories
  • COMMUNITY NEWS
  • CRIME / PUBLIC SAFETY
  • FLORIDA NEWS
  • HEALTH & WELLNESS
  • HOME & GARDEN
  • IT'S GEEK TO ME
  • LARRY WILLIAMS
  • LOCAL NEWS & EVENTS
  • MARKETPLACE NEWS
  • MILITARY NEWS
  • NORTHWEST FLORIDA NEWS
  • OUTDOORS
  • ROADS / TRANSPORTATION
  • SCHOOL NEWS
  • THINGS TO DO
Advertisement
COMMUNITY PARTNERS
  • EGLIN FEDERAL CREDIT UNION
  • EYEWEAR UNLIMITED
  • HAIR EXPRESS
  • MIDBAY VETERINARY HOSPITAL
  • NICEVILLE FARMERS MARKET
  • NICEVILLE INSURANCE AGENCY
  • RUCKEL PROPERTIES, INC.
  • THE WHARF 850
Advertisement
A square digital ad for Midbay Veterinary Hospital with multiple dogs of different breeds, a blue veterinary cross logo, Dr. Maya Chapman’s contact information, and a “Click” button for scheduling an appointment.
Categories
  • COMMUNITY NEWS
  • CRIME / PUBLIC SAFETY
  • FLORIDA NEWS
  • HEALTH & WELLNESS
  • HOME & GARDEN
  • IT'S GEEK TO ME
  • LARRY WILLIAMS
  • LOCAL NEWS & EVENTS
  • MARKETPLACE NEWS
  • MILITARY NEWS
  • NORTHWEST FLORIDA NEWS
  • OUTDOORS
  • ROADS / TRANSPORTATION
  • SCHOOL NEWS
  • THINGS TO DO
Advertisement
A square digital ad for Midbay Veterinary Hospital with multiple dogs of different breeds, a blue veterinary cross logo, Dr. Maya Chapman’s contact information, and a “Click” button for scheduling an appointment.
Advertisement
A horizontal digital banner for Midbay Veterinary Hospital featuring a dog and a cat, a blue veterinary cross logo, contact details for Dr. Maya Chapman, and a call-to-action button that says "Click" to make an appointment

ABOUT NICEVILLE.COM

PRIVACY POLICY

TERMS OF SERVICE

© 2025 Niceville.com. All Rights Reserved.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.