diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 0ff5626ada..3e5885c1d6 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -9,7 +9,9 @@ tar: yt-dlp.tar.gz
 # Keep this list in sync with MANIFEST.in
 # intended use: when building a source distribution,
 # make pypi-files && python setup.py sdist
-pypi-files: AUTHORS Changelog.md LICENSE README.md README.txt supportedsites completions yt-dlp.1 devscripts/* test/*
+pypi-files:
+	AUTHORS Changelog.md LICENSE README.md README.txt supportedsites \
+	completions yt-dlp.1 requirements.txt devscripts/* test/*
 
 .PHONY: all clean install test tar pypi-files completions ot offlinetest codetest supportedsites
 
@@ -91,10 +93,10 @@ yt-dlp: yt_dlp/*.py yt_dlp/*/*.py
 	rm yt-dlp.zip
 	chmod a+x yt-dlp
 
-README.md: yt_dlp/*.py yt_dlp/*/*.py
+README.md: yt_dlp/*.py yt_dlp/*/*.py devscripts/make_readme.py
 	COLUMNS=80 $(PYTHON) yt_dlp/__main__.py --ignore-config --help | $(PYTHON) devscripts/make_readme.py
 
-CONTRIBUTING.md: README.md
+CONTRIBUTING.md: README.md devscripts/make_contributing.py
 	$(PYTHON) devscripts/make_contributing.py README.md CONTRIBUTING.md
 
 issuetemplates: devscripts/make_issue_template.py .github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE_tmpl/1_broken_site.yml .github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE_tmpl/2_site_support_request.yml .github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE_tmpl/3_site_feature_request.yml .github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE_tmpl/4_bug_report.yml .github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE_tmpl/5_feature_request.yml yt_dlp/version.py
@@ -111,7 +113,7 @@ supportedsites:
 README.txt: README.md
 	pandoc -f $(MARKDOWN) -t plain README.md -o README.txt
 
-yt-dlp.1: README.md
+yt-dlp.1: README.md devscripts/prepare_manpage.py
 	$(PYTHON) devscripts/prepare_manpage.py yt-dlp.1.temp.md
 	pandoc -s -f $(MARKDOWN) -t man yt-dlp.1.temp.md -o yt-dlp.1
 	rm -f yt-dlp.1.temp.md
@@ -147,7 +149,7 @@ yt-dlp.tar.gz: all
 		CONTRIBUTING.md Collaborators.md CONTRIBUTORS AUTHORS \
 		Makefile MANIFEST.in yt-dlp.1 README.txt completions \
 		setup.py setup.cfg yt-dlp yt_dlp requirements.txt \
-		devscripts test tox.ini pytest.ini
+		devscripts test
 
 AUTHORS: .mailmap
 	git shortlog -s -n | cut -f2 | sort > AUTHORS
diff --git a/devscripts/make_issue_template.py b/devscripts/make_issue_template.py
index 811a3e9b57..5a309008e2 100644
--- a/devscripts/make_issue_template.py
+++ b/devscripts/make_issue_template.py
@@ -1,5 +1,4 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env python3
-import io
 import optparse
 
 
diff --git a/devscripts/make_readme.py b/devscripts/make_readme.py
index fd234bf58f..15c4a7c7dc 100755
--- a/devscripts/make_readme.py
+++ b/devscripts/make_readme.py
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 
 # yt-dlp --help | make_readme.py
 # This must be run in a console of correct width
+import functools
 import re
 import sys
 
@@ -12,19 +13,44 @@ OPTIONS_END = 'CONFIGURATION'
 EPILOG_START = 'See full documentation'
 
 
-helptext = sys.stdin.read()
-if isinstance(helptext, bytes):
-    helptext = helptext.decode()
+def take_section(text, start=None, end=None, *, shift=0):
+    return text[
+        text.index(start) + shift if start else None:
+        text.index(end) + shift if end else None
+    ]
 
-start, end = helptext.index(f'\n  {OPTIONS_START}'), helptext.index(f'\n{EPILOG_START}')
-options = re.sub(r'(?m)^  (\w.+)$', r'## \1', helptext[start + 1: end + 1])
+
+def apply_patch(text, patch):
+    return re.sub(*patch, text)
+
+
+options = take_section(sys.stdin.read(), f'\n  {OPTIONS_START}', f'\n{EPILOG_START}', shift=1)
+
+switch_col_width = len(re.search(r'(?m)^\s{5,}', options).group())
+delim = f'\n{" " * switch_col_width}'
+
+PATCHES = (
+    (  # Headings
+        r'(?m)^  (\w.+\n)(    (?=\w))?',
+        r'## \1'
+    ),
+    (  # Do not split URLs
+        rf'({delim[:-1]})? (?P<label>\[\S+\] )?(?P<url>https?({delim})?:({delim})?/({delim})?/(({delim})?\S+)+)\s',
+        lambda mobj: ''.join((delim, mobj.group('label') or '', re.sub(r'\s+', '', mobj.group('url')), '\n'))
+    ),
+    # This creates issues with prepare_manpage
+    # (  # Avoid newline when a space is available b/w switch and description
+    #     r'(?m)^(\s{4}-.{%d})(%s)' % (switch_col_width - 6, delim),
+    #     r'\1 '
+    # ),
+)
 
 with open(README_FILE, encoding='utf-8') as f:
     readme = f.read()
 
-header = readme[:readme.index(f'## {OPTIONS_START}')]
-footer = readme[readme.index(f'# {OPTIONS_END}'):]
-
 with open(README_FILE, 'w', encoding='utf-8') as f:
-    for part in (header, options, footer):
-        f.write(part)
+    f.write(''.join((
+        take_section(readme, end=f'## {OPTIONS_START}'),
+        functools.reduce(apply_patch, PATCHES, options),
+        take_section(readme, f'# {OPTIONS_END}'),
+    )))
diff --git a/pytest.ini b/pytest.ini
deleted file mode 100644
index 52feb4abae..0000000000
--- a/pytest.ini
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,4 +0,0 @@
-[pytest]
-addopts = -ra -v --strict-markers
-markers =
-    download
diff --git a/setup.cfg b/setup.cfg
index 5fe95226ad..4780ee95b7 100644
--- a/setup.cfg
+++ b/setup.cfg
@@ -1,6 +1,34 @@
 [wheel]
-universal = True
+universal = true
 
 [flake8]
-exclude = devscripts/lazy_load_template.py,devscripts/make_issue_template.py,setup.py,build,.git,venv
+exclude = build,venv,.tox,.git
 ignore = E402,E501,E731,E741,W503
+per_file_ignores =
+    ./devscripts/lazy_load_template.py: F401
+
+[tool:pytest]
+addopts = -ra -v --strict-markers
+markers =
+    download
+
+[tox:tox]
+skipsdist = true
+envlist = py{36,37,38,39,310},pypy{36,37,38,39}
+skip_missing_interpreters = true
+
+[testenv]  # tox
+deps =
+   pytest
+commands = pytest {posargs:"-m not download"}
+passenv = HOME  # For test_compat_expanduser
+setenv =
+    # PYTHONWARNINGS = error  # Catches PIP's warnings too
+
+[isort]
+py_version = 36
+multi_line_output = VERTICAL_HANGING_INDENT
+line_length = 80
+reverse_relative = true
+ensure_newline_before_comments = true
+include_trailing_comma = true
diff --git a/setup.py b/setup.py
index adcc42a1c8..eace2f9fb8 100644
--- a/setup.py
+++ b/setup.py
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ REQUIREMENTS = read('requirements.txt').splitlines()
 
 
 if sys.argv[1:2] == ['py2exe']:
-    import py2exe
+    import py2exe  # noqa: F401
     warnings.warn(
         'py2exe builds do not support pycryptodomex and needs VC++14 to run. '
         'The recommended way is to use "pyinst.py" to build using pyinstaller')
diff --git a/tox.ini b/tox.ini
deleted file mode 100644
index d4e80a3682..0000000000
--- a/tox.ini
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,16 +0,0 @@
-[tox]
-envlist = py26,py27,py33,py34,py35
-
-# Needed?
-[testenv]
-deps =
-   nose
-   coverage
-# We need a valid $HOME for test_compat_expanduser
-passenv = HOME
-defaultargs = test --exclude test_download.py --exclude test_age_restriction.py
-    --exclude test_subtitles.py --exclude test_write_annotations.py
-    --exclude test_youtube_lists.py --exclude test_iqiyi_sdk_interpreter.py
-    --exclude test_socks.py
-commands = nosetests --verbose {posargs:{[testenv]defaultargs}}  # --with-coverage --cover-package=yt_dlp --cover-html
-                                               # test.test_download:TestDownload.test_NowVideo
diff --git a/yt_dlp/YoutubeDL.py b/yt_dlp/YoutubeDL.py
index 946b48b101..b1753241de 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/YoutubeDL.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/YoutubeDL.py
@@ -2276,7 +2276,7 @@ class YoutubeDL:
     def _calc_headers(self, info_dict):
         res = merge_headers(self.params['http_headers'], info_dict.get('http_headers') or {})
 
-        cookies = self._calc_cookies(info_dict)
+        cookies = self._calc_cookies(info_dict['url'])
         if cookies:
             res['Cookie'] = cookies
 
@@ -2287,8 +2287,8 @@ class YoutubeDL:
 
         return res
 
-    def _calc_cookies(self, info_dict):
-        pr = sanitized_Request(info_dict['url'])
+    def _calc_cookies(self, url):
+        pr = sanitized_Request(url)
         self.cookiejar.add_cookie_header(pr)
         return pr.get_header('Cookie')
 
@@ -2596,7 +2596,7 @@ class YoutubeDL:
         if list_only:
             # Without this printing, -F --print-json will not work
             self.__forced_printings(info_dict, self.prepare_filename(info_dict), incomplete=True)
-            return
+            return info_dict
 
         format_selector = self.format_selector
         if format_selector is None:
@@ -3052,7 +3052,7 @@ class YoutubeDL:
                                 and info_dict.get('thumbnails')
                                 # check with type instead of pp_key, __name__, or isinstance
                                 # since we dont want any custom PPs to trigger this
-                                and any(type(pp) == EmbedThumbnailPP for pp in self._pps['post_process'])):
+                                and any(type(pp) == EmbedThumbnailPP for pp in self._pps['post_process'])):  # noqa: E721
                             info_dict['ext'] = 'mkv'
                             self.report_warning(
                                 'webm doesn\'t support embedding a thumbnail, mkv will be used')
@@ -3227,11 +3227,9 @@ class YoutubeDL:
                     return
                 info_dict['__write_download_archive'] = True
 
+        assert info_dict is original_infodict  # Make sure the info_dict was modified in-place
         if self.params.get('force_write_download_archive'):
             info_dict['__write_download_archive'] = True
-
-        # Make sure the info_dict was modified in-place
-        assert info_dict is original_infodict
         check_max_downloads()
 
     def __download_wrapper(self, func):
diff --git a/yt_dlp/__init__.py b/yt_dlp/__init__.py
index 893b86a3be..180b92a117 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/__init__.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/__init__.py
@@ -865,6 +865,7 @@ def _real_main(argv=None):
                 'You must provide at least one URL.\n'
                 'Type yt-dlp --help to see a list of all options.')
 
+        parser.destroy()
         try:
             if opts.load_info_filename is not None:
                 return ydl.download_with_info_file(expand_path(opts.load_info_filename))
diff --git a/yt_dlp/downloader/common.py b/yt_dlp/downloader/common.py
index 93eb10f768..0aaf51633a 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/downloader/common.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/downloader/common.py
@@ -43,6 +43,7 @@ class FileDownloader:
     verbose:            Print additional info to stdout.
     quiet:              Do not print messages to stdout.
     ratelimit:          Download speed limit, in bytes/sec.
+    continuedl:         Attempt to continue downloads if possible
     throttledratelimit: Assume the download is being throttled below this speed (bytes/sec)
     retries:            Number of times to retry for HTTP error 5xx
     file_access_retries:   Number of times to retry on file access error
diff --git a/yt_dlp/downloader/dash.py b/yt_dlp/downloader/dash.py
index e6efae4852..d0a0b28934 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/downloader/dash.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/downloader/dash.py
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import time
 
+from . import get_suitable_downloader
 from .fragment import FragmentFD
-from ..downloader import get_suitable_downloader
 from ..utils import urljoin
 
 
diff --git a/yt_dlp/downloader/external.py b/yt_dlp/downloader/external.py
index a9da966709..66eced1b33 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/downloader/external.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/downloader/external.py
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+import enum
 import os.path
 import re
 import subprocess
@@ -5,8 +6,8 @@ import sys
 import time
 
 from .fragment import FragmentFD
-from ..compat import functools
-from ..compat import compat_setenv, compat_str
+from ..compat import functools  # isort: split
+from ..compat import compat_setenv
 from ..postprocessor.ffmpeg import EXT_TO_OUT_FORMATS, FFmpegPostProcessor
 from ..utils import (
     Popen,
@@ -25,9 +26,14 @@ from ..utils import (
 )
 
 
+class Features(enum.Enum):
+    TO_STDOUT = enum.auto()
+    MULTIPLE_FORMATS = enum.auto()
+
+
 class ExternalFD(FragmentFD):
     SUPPORTED_PROTOCOLS = ('http', 'https', 'ftp', 'ftps')
-    can_download_to_stdout = False
+    SUPPORTED_FEATURES = ()
 
     def real_download(self, filename, info_dict):
         self.report_destination(filename)
@@ -91,9 +97,11 @@ class ExternalFD(FragmentFD):
 
     @classmethod
     def supports(cls, info_dict):
-        return (
-            (cls.can_download_to_stdout or not info_dict.get('to_stdout'))
-            and info_dict['protocol'] in cls.SUPPORTED_PROTOCOLS)
+        return all((
+            not info_dict.get('to_stdout') or Features.TO_STDOUT in cls.SUPPORTED_FEATURES,
+            '+' not in info_dict['protocol'] or Features.MULTIPLE_FORMATS in cls.SUPPORTED_FEATURES,
+            all(proto in cls.SUPPORTED_PROTOCOLS for proto in info_dict['protocol'].split('+')),
+        ))
 
     @classmethod
     def can_download(cls, info_dict, path=None):
@@ -324,7 +332,7 @@ class HttpieFD(ExternalFD):
 
 class FFmpegFD(ExternalFD):
     SUPPORTED_PROTOCOLS = ('http', 'https', 'ftp', 'ftps', 'm3u8', 'm3u8_native', 'rtsp', 'rtmp', 'rtmp_ffmpeg', 'mms', 'http_dash_segments')
-    can_download_to_stdout = True
+    SUPPORTED_FEATURES = (Features.TO_STDOUT, Features.MULTIPLE_FORMATS)
 
     @classmethod
     def available(cls, path=None):
@@ -332,10 +340,6 @@ class FFmpegFD(ExternalFD):
         # Fixme: This may be wrong when --ffmpeg-location is used
         return FFmpegPostProcessor().available
 
-    @classmethod
-    def supports(cls, info_dict):
-        return all(proto in cls.SUPPORTED_PROTOCOLS for proto in info_dict['protocol'].split('+'))
-
     def on_process_started(self, proc, stdin):
         """ Override this in subclasses  """
         pass
@@ -382,10 +386,10 @@ class FFmpegFD(ExternalFD):
 
         # start_time = info_dict.get('start_time') or 0
         # if start_time:
-        #     args += ['-ss', compat_str(start_time)]
+        #     args += ['-ss', str(start_time)]
         # end_time = info_dict.get('end_time')
         # if end_time:
-        #     args += ['-t', compat_str(end_time - start_time)]
+        #     args += ['-t', str(end_time - start_time)]
 
         http_headers = None
         if info_dict.get('http_headers'):
@@ -444,7 +448,7 @@ class FFmpegFD(ExternalFD):
             if isinstance(conn, list):
                 for entry in conn:
                     args += ['-rtmp_conn', entry]
-            elif isinstance(conn, compat_str):
+            elif isinstance(conn, str):
                 args += ['-rtmp_conn', conn]
 
         for i, url in enumerate(urls):
@@ -462,7 +466,7 @@ class FFmpegFD(ExternalFD):
                 args.extend(['-map', f'{i}:{stream_number}'])
 
         if self.params.get('test', False):
-            args += ['-fs', compat_str(self._TEST_FILE_SIZE)]
+            args += ['-fs', str(self._TEST_FILE_SIZE)]
 
         ext = info_dict['ext']
         if protocol in ('m3u8', 'm3u8_native'):
diff --git a/yt_dlp/downloader/hls.py b/yt_dlp/downloader/hls.py
index 2e01c7bac5..3327488976 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/downloader/hls.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/downloader/hls.py
@@ -2,12 +2,12 @@ import binascii
 import io
 import re
 
+from . import get_suitable_downloader
 from .external import FFmpegFD
 from .fragment import FragmentFD
 from .. import webvtt
 from ..compat import compat_urlparse
 from ..dependencies import Cryptodome_AES
-from ..downloader import get_suitable_downloader
 from ..utils import bug_reports_message, parse_m3u8_attributes, update_url_query
 
 
diff --git a/yt_dlp/downloader/http.py b/yt_dlp/downloader/http.py
index 12a2f0cc70..c6b6627a56 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/downloader/http.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/downloader/http.py
@@ -136,20 +136,18 @@ class HttpFD(FileDownloader):
                 if has_range:
                     content_range = ctx.data.headers.get('Content-Range')
                     content_range_start, content_range_end, content_len = parse_http_range(content_range)
-                    if content_range_start is not None and range_start == content_range_start:
-                        # Content-Range is present and matches requested Range, resume is possible
-                        accept_content_len = (
+                    # Content-Range is present and matches requested Range, resume is possible
+                    if range_start == content_range_start and (
                             # Non-chunked download
                             not ctx.chunk_size
                             # Chunked download and requested piece or
                             # its part is promised to be served
                             or content_range_end == range_end
-                            or content_len < range_end)
-                        if accept_content_len:
-                            ctx.content_len = content_len
-                            if content_len or req_end:
-                                ctx.data_len = min(content_len or req_end, req_end or content_len) - (req_start or 0)
-                            return
+                            or content_len < range_end):
+                        ctx.content_len = content_len
+                        if content_len or req_end:
+                            ctx.data_len = min(content_len or req_end, req_end or content_len) - (req_start or 0)
+                        return
                     # Content-Range is either not present or invalid. Assuming remote webserver is
                     # trying to send the whole file, resume is not possible, so wiping the local file
                     # and performing entire redownload
diff --git a/yt_dlp/downloader/niconico.py b/yt_dlp/downloader/niconico.py
index 5e9dda03d5..77ed39e5b9 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/downloader/niconico.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/downloader/niconico.py
@@ -1,8 +1,7 @@
 import threading
 
+from . import get_suitable_downloader
 from .common import FileDownloader
-from ..downloader import get_suitable_downloader
-from ..extractor.niconico import NiconicoIE
 from ..utils import sanitized_Request
 
 
@@ -10,8 +9,9 @@ class NiconicoDmcFD(FileDownloader):
     """ Downloading niconico douga from DMC with heartbeat """
 
     def real_download(self, filename, info_dict):
-        self.to_screen('[%s] Downloading from DMC' % self.FD_NAME)
+        from ..extractor.niconico import NiconicoIE
 
+        self.to_screen('[%s] Downloading from DMC' % self.FD_NAME)
         ie = NiconicoIE(self.ydl)
         info_dict, heartbeat_info_dict = ie._get_heartbeat_info(info_dict)
 
diff --git a/yt_dlp/downloader/youtube_live_chat.py b/yt_dlp/downloader/youtube_live_chat.py
index cc528029db..cad6822232 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/downloader/youtube_live_chat.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/downloader/youtube_live_chat.py
@@ -3,7 +3,6 @@ import time
 
 from .fragment import FragmentFD
 from ..compat import compat_urllib_error
-from ..extractor.youtube import YoutubeBaseInfoExtractor as YT_BaseIE
 from ..utils import RegexNotFoundError, dict_get, int_or_none, try_get
 
 
@@ -26,7 +25,9 @@ class YoutubeLiveChatFD(FragmentFD):
             'total_frags': None,
         }
 
-        ie = YT_BaseIE(self.ydl)
+        from ..extractor.youtube import YoutubeBaseInfoExtractor
+
+        ie = YoutubeBaseInfoExtractor(self.ydl)
 
         start_time = int(time.time() * 1000)
 
diff --git a/yt_dlp/extractor/common.py b/yt_dlp/extractor/common.py
index d222fa7efd..eee9080899 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/extractor/common.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/extractor/common.py
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ import sys
 import time
 import xml.etree.ElementTree
 
-from ..compat import functools, re
+from ..compat import functools, re  # isort: split
 from ..compat import (
     compat_cookiejar_Cookie,
     compat_cookies_SimpleCookie,
@@ -3602,9 +3602,7 @@ class InfoExtractor:
 
     def _get_cookies(self, url):
         """ Return a compat_cookies_SimpleCookie with the cookies for the url """
-        req = sanitized_Request(url)
-        self._downloader.cookiejar.add_cookie_header(req)
-        return compat_cookies_SimpleCookie(req.get_header('Cookie'))
+        return compat_cookies_SimpleCookie(self._downloader._calc_cookies(url))
 
     def _apply_first_set_cookie_header(self, url_handle, cookie):
         """
diff --git a/yt_dlp/extractor/testurl.py b/yt_dlp/extractor/testurl.py
index 32cae429ee..d205fe053f 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/extractor/testurl.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/extractor/testurl.py
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ class TestURLIE(InfoExtractor):
     _VALID_URL = r'test(?:url)?:(?P<extractor>.+?)(?:_(?P<num>[0-9]+))?$'
 
     def _real_extract(self, url):
-        from ..extractor import gen_extractor_classes
+        from . import gen_extractor_classes
 
         extractor_id, num = self._match_valid_url(url).group('extractor', 'num')
 
diff --git a/yt_dlp/update.py b/yt_dlp/update.py
index d627ae269a..861e2495b5 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/update.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/update.py
@@ -13,19 +13,27 @@ from .version import __version__
 
 
 @functools.cache
-def detect_variant():
+def get_variant_and_executable_path():
+    """@returns (variant, executable_path)"""
     if hasattr(sys, 'frozen'):
+        path = sys.executable
         prefix = 'mac' if sys.platform == 'darwin' else 'win'
         if getattr(sys, '_MEIPASS', None):
             if sys._MEIPASS == os.path.dirname(sys.executable):
-                return f'{prefix}_dir'
-            return f'{prefix}_exe'
-        return 'py2exe'
-    elif isinstance(__loader__, zipimporter):
-        return 'zip'
+                return f'{prefix}_dir', path
+            return f'{prefix}_exe', path
+        return 'py2exe', path
+
+    path = os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), '..')
+    if isinstance(__loader__, zipimporter):
+        return 'zip', os.path.join(path, '..')
     elif os.path.basename(sys.argv[0]) == '__main__.py':
-        return 'source'
-    return 'unknown'
+        return 'source', path
+    return 'unknown', path
+
+
+def detect_variant():
+    return get_variant_and_executable_path()[0]
 
 
 _NON_UPDATEABLE_REASONS = {
@@ -53,7 +61,7 @@ def run_update(ydl):
     JSON_URL = 'https://api.github.com/repos/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/releases/latest'
 
     def report_error(msg, expected=False):
-        ydl.report_error(msg, tb='' if expected else None)
+        ydl.report_error(msg, tb=False if expected else None)
 
     def report_unable(action, expected=False):
         report_error(f'Unable to {action}', expected)
@@ -93,10 +101,9 @@ def run_update(ydl):
     if err:
         return report_error(err, True)
 
-    # sys.executable is set to the full pathname of the exe-file for py2exe
-    # though symlinks are not followed so that we need to do this manually
-    # with help of realpath
-    filename = compat_realpath(sys.executable if hasattr(sys, 'frozen') else sys.argv[0])
+    variant, filename = get_variant_and_executable_path()
+    filename = compat_realpath(filename)  # Absolute path, following symlinks
+
     ydl.to_screen(f'Current Build Hash {calc_sha256sum(filename)}')
     ydl.to_screen(f'Updating to version {version_id} ...')
 
@@ -125,8 +132,6 @@ def run_update(ydl):
     if not os.access(filename, os.W_OK):
         return report_permission_error(filename)
 
-    # PyInstaller
-    variant = detect_variant()
     if variant in ('win_exe', 'py2exe'):
         directory = os.path.dirname(filename)
         if not os.access(directory, os.W_OK):
diff --git a/yt_dlp/utils.py b/yt_dlp/utils.py
index 78789b1c5b..12204433d7 100644
--- a/yt_dlp/utils.py
+++ b/yt_dlp/utils.py
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ import urllib.parse
 import xml.etree.ElementTree
 import zlib
 
-from .compat import asyncio, functools  # Modules
+from .compat import asyncio, functools  # isort: split
 from .compat import (
     compat_chr,
     compat_cookiejar,
@@ -362,14 +362,14 @@ def xpath_attr(node, xpath, key, name=None, fatal=False, default=NO_DEFAULT):
     return n.attrib[key]
 
 
-def get_element_by_id(id, html):
+def get_element_by_id(id, html, **kwargs):
     """Return the content of the tag with the specified ID in the passed HTML document"""
-    return get_element_by_attribute('id', id, html)
+    return get_element_by_attribute('id', id, html, **kwargs)
 
 
-def get_element_html_by_id(id, html):
+def get_element_html_by_id(id, html, **kwargs):
     """Return the html of the tag with the specified ID in the passed HTML document"""
-    return get_element_html_by_attribute('id', id, html)
+    return get_element_html_by_attribute('id', id, html, **kwargs)
 
 
 def get_element_by_class(class_name, html):
@@ -384,17 +384,17 @@ def get_element_html_by_class(class_name, html):
     return retval[0] if retval else None
 
 
-def get_element_by_attribute(attribute, value, html, escape_value=True):
-    retval = get_elements_by_attribute(attribute, value, html, escape_value)
+def get_element_by_attribute(attribute, value, html, **kwargs):
+    retval = get_elements_by_attribute(attribute, value, html, **kwargs)
     return retval[0] if retval else None
 
 
-def get_element_html_by_attribute(attribute, value, html, escape_value=True):
-    retval = get_elements_html_by_attribute(attribute, value, html, escape_value)
+def get_element_html_by_attribute(attribute, value, html, **kargs):
+    retval = get_elements_html_by_attribute(attribute, value, html, **kargs)
     return retval[0] if retval else None
 
 
-def get_elements_by_class(class_name, html):
+def get_elements_by_class(class_name, html, **kargs):
     """Return the content of all tags with the specified class in the passed HTML document as a list"""
     return get_elements_by_attribute(
         'class', r'[^\'"]*\b%s\b[^\'"]*' % re.escape(class_name),
@@ -1899,15 +1899,14 @@ def write_string(s, out=None, encoding=None):
     if compat_os_name == 'nt' and supports_terminal_sequences(out):
         s = re.sub(r'([\r\n]+)', r' \1', s)
 
+    enc = None
     if 'b' in getattr(out, 'mode', ''):
-        byt = s.encode(encoding or preferredencoding(), 'ignore')
-        out.write(byt)
+        enc = encoding or preferredencoding()
     elif hasattr(out, 'buffer'):
+        out = out.buffer
         enc = encoding or getattr(out, 'encoding', None) or preferredencoding()
-        byt = s.encode(enc, 'ignore')
-        out.buffer.write(byt)
-    else:
-        out.write(s)
+
+    out.write(s.encode(enc, 'ignore') if enc else s)
     out.flush()
 
 
@@ -2970,7 +2969,7 @@ TV_PARENTAL_GUIDELINES = {
 
 def parse_age_limit(s):
     # isinstance(False, int) is True. So type() must be used instead
-    if type(s) is int:
+    if type(s) is int:  # noqa: E721
         return s if 0 <= s <= 21 else None
     elif not isinstance(s, str):
         return None
@@ -3656,26 +3655,21 @@ def dfxp2srt(dfxp_data):
     return ''.join(out)
 
 
-def cli_option(params, command_option, param):
+def cli_option(params, command_option, param, separator=None):
     param = params.get(param)
-    if param:
-        param = compat_str(param)
-    return [command_option, param] if param is not None else []
+    return ([] if param is None
+            else [command_option, str(param)] if separator is None
+            else [f'{command_option}{separator}{param}'])
 
 
 def cli_bool_option(params, command_option, param, true_value='true', false_value='false', separator=None):
     param = params.get(param)
-    if param is None:
-        return []
-    assert isinstance(param, bool)
-    if separator:
-        return [command_option + separator + (true_value if param else false_value)]
-    return [command_option, true_value if param else false_value]
+    assert param in (True, False, None)
+    return cli_option({True: true_value, False: false_value}, command_option, param, separator)
 
 
 def cli_valueless_option(params, command_option, param, expected_value=True):
-    param = params.get(param)
-    return [command_option] if param == expected_value else []
+    return [command_option] if params.get(param) == expected_value else []
 
 
 def cli_configuration_args(argdict, keys, default=[], use_compat=True):
@@ -4910,14 +4904,9 @@ def make_dir(path, to_screen=None):
 
 
 def get_executable_path():
-    from zipimport import zipimporter
-    if hasattr(sys, 'frozen'):  # Running from PyInstaller
-        path = os.path.dirname(sys.executable)
-    elif isinstance(__loader__, zipimporter):  # Running from ZIP
-        path = os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), '../..')
-    else:
-        path = os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), '..')
-    return os.path.abspath(path)
+    from .update import get_variant_and_executable_path
+
+    return os.path.abspath(get_variant_and_executable_path()[1])
 
 
 def load_plugins(name, suffix, namespace):
@@ -5344,12 +5333,14 @@ def merge_headers(*dicts):
 
 
 class classproperty:
-    def __init__(self, f):
-        functools.update_wrapper(self, f)
-        self.f = f
+    """classmethod(property(func)) that works in py < 3.9"""
+
+    def __init__(self, func):
+        functools.update_wrapper(self, func)
+        self.func = func
 
     def __get__(self, _, cls):
-        return self.f(cls)
+        return self.func(cls)
 
 
 class Namespace: