I use an Dell docking station with my laptop. Any webpage with Spotify embed turns off my external displays because somewhere along the line the video signal loses the DRM certification. It’s infuriating.

If it doesn’t use servers, where is the content stored? Or stuff just disappears when a user whose computer used to serve the files is turned off?

YouTube reencodes your uploads so I don’t see how could you decode your original data.

With some clients and addons + debrid, you can set up a Netflix/HBO clone, with no downloads necessary and instant streaming. You just browse the shows (it automatically downloads info and images form Trakt, TVDB, etc.), select play and it plays just like any streaming site.

Depending on the jurisdiction it’s also legal to stream video, while downloading or torrenting is not.