"fields": "pageInfo,nextPageToken,items(id,snippet(title,thumbnails/default/url,channelTitle))",
            }
        ]
    }

    categories = [
        "mostPopular",
        ["Music", "Comedy", "Movies", "Shows", "Short Movies", "Trailers", "Film & Animation", "Entertainment", "News & Politics", "Sci-Fi/Fantasy"],
        ["Music", "Comedy", "Movies", "Shows", "Short Movies", "Trailers", "Film & Animation", "Entertainment", "News & Politics"],
        "topics",
        ["music", "pop", "music video"],
        ["Pop", "Billboard charts", "Rock", "Hip Hop", "Classical", "Soundtrack", "Ambient",
         "Jazz", "Blues", "Soul", "Country", "Disco", "Dance", "House", "Trance", "Techno", "Electronica"],
        "my channels",
        ["Key of Awesome", "Pentatonix"]
    ] 

    # plugin settings 
    config = [
       {

        "Thriller": 41,
        "Shorts": 42,
        "Shows": 43,
        "Trailers": 44,
    }
    # Freebase topics
    topic_id = {
        "music": "/m/0kpv0g",
        "pop": "/m/064t9",
        "billboard charts": "/m/04qf57",
        "rock": "/m/06by7",
        "dance": "/m/0ggx5q",
        "classical": "/m/0ggq0m",
        "hip hop": "/m/0glt670",
        "soundtrack": "/m/0l14gg",
        "ambient": "/m/0fd3y",
        "electronica": "/m/0m0jc",
        "jazz": "/m/03_d0",
        "music video": "/m/05k5h7g",
        "techno": "/m/07gxw",
        "disco": "/m/026z9",
        "country": "/m/01lyv",
        "blues": "/m/0155w",
        "soul": "/m/0gywn",
        "trance": "/m/07lnk",
        "house": "/m/03mb9",
    }


    # just a static list for now
    def update_categories(self):
        i = self.categories.index("my channels") + 1
        self.categories[i] = [ title.strip() for title in conf.youtube_channels.split(",") ]


    # retrieve and parse
    def update_streams(self, cat, force=0, search=None):

        entries = []
        channels = self.categories[self.categories.index("my channels") + 1]
        self.parent.status(-0.1)
        
        # Most Popular
        if cat == "mostPopular":
            #for row in self.api("feeds/api/standardfeeds/%s/most_popular"%conf.youtube_region, ver=2):
            #    entries.append(self.wrap2(row))
            for row in self.api("videos", chart="mostPopular", regionCode=conf.youtube_region):
                entries.append( self.wrap3(row, {"genre": "mostPopular"}) )

        # Categories
        elif cat in self.videocat_id:
            for row in self.api("search", chart="mostPopular", videoCategoryId=self.videocat_id[cat], order="date", type="video"):
                entries.append( self.wrap3(row, {"genre": cat}) )

        # Topics
        elif cat in self.topic_id:
            for row in self.api("search", order="date", regionCode=conf.youtube_region, topicId=self.topic_id[cat], type="video"):
        elif cat.lower() in self.topic_id:
            for row in self.api("search", order="date", regionCode=conf.youtube_region, topicId=self.topic_id[cat.lower()], type="video"):
                entries.append( self.wrap3(row, {"genre": cat}) )

        # My Channels
        # - searches channel id for given title
        # - iterates over playlist
        # - then over playlistitems to get videos
        elif cat in channels:

                entries.append( self.wrap3(row, {"genre": ""}) )
        
        # empty entries
        else:
            entries = [dict(title="Placeholder for subcategories", genre="./.", playing="./.", url="http://youtube.com/")]
 
        # done    
        self.parent.status(1.0)
        return entries
        

    
    # Search for channel name:
    def channel_id(self, title):
        id = self.channel2id.get(title)

    #-- Retrieve Youtube API query results
    #
    def api(self, method, ver=3, pages=5, **params):
        items = []

        # URL and default parameters
        (base_url, defaults) = self.service[ver]
        #params = dict(  defaults.items() | params.items()  )
        params = dict(defaults.items() + params.items())
        params = dict( defaults, **params )

        # Retrieve data set
        while pages > 0:
            j = ahttp.get(base_url + method, params=params)
            __print__(dbg.DATA, j)
            #__print__(dbg.DATA, j)
            if j:
                # json decode
                data = json.loads(j)
                
                # extract items
                if "items" in data:
                    items += data["items"]
                elif "feed" in data:
                    items += data["feed"]["entry"]
                else:
                    pages = 0

            # Continue to load results?
            if items >= conf.max_streams:
            if len(items) >= int(conf.max_streams):
                pages = 0
            elif "pageInfo" in data and data["pageInfo"]["totalResults"] < 50:
                pages = 0
            elif "nextPageToken" in data:
                params["pageToken"] = data["nextPageToken"]
                pages -= 1
            else:
                pages = 0
            self.parent.status(pages / 10.0)
            self.parent.status( (11 - 1.852 * pages) / 10.0 )

        return items



    # Wrap API 3.0 result into streams row
    def wrap3(self, row, data):