“At some point the decision was made that we need to draw a line between what is innocuous and the database can handle and all of a sudden serious business,” he said. “The proportion was calculated to be at about 300.”
So why 301? Blame it on one YouTube programmer’s errant less-than-or-equal-to sign. The code tells the database to keep counting views up to and including the time when the count is equal to 300, allowing one final view to get counted before it freezes.
“Whoever wrote this code probably did not realize the magnitude of what they were doing,” said Hamilton. “It is now one of the idiosyncrasies of YouTube.”
When the Daily Dot reached out to YouTube last July after the freeze first appeared, a company spokesperson told us they were “working on it.” However, Hamilton’s explanation should clear up the confusion once and for all.
Update: In 2009, YouTube personality HappyCabbie also explained the 301 bug in an informative video. Watch it here.
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