Long subtitles

Contributing Subtitling
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Really? I was instructed not to use line breaks and try to keep everything in one line if possible(because of the line break problem @angelight313_168 mentioned ). If there’s more than one line, we still don’t use line breaks because it’s supposed to do it automatically. I didn’t know we still had the problem of subtitles coming out on both sides of the screen! Must be a Viki problem…

We might have to discuss this, then… We(I’m speaking for the five teams I’ve worked with) just don’t use line breaks anymore for continuous text/speech. They’re only used to separate dialogue from text/TNs.

I do agree that the double line is easier to read, but we’re also trying to use as little space as possible so that viewers can see as much of the video screen as possible. Double/Triple lines cover up a lot of space, so viewers may not be able to see things. I’ve turned off subs more than once just so I could see the whole screen.

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You edit in English, right? Special rules apply there.

The “Don’t use the line break” was supposed to be a temporary solution which turned into a permanent one because Viki never prioritised the issue. And they should. They should really prioritise it. The long one-liners are horrendous.

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As just a regular viewer with no particular challenges, I absolutely prefer double lines/line breaks rather than one continuous line of text. Our brain works in amazing ways, and if I can ‘see’ all the words in one section without having to eye track from side to side, my brain can actually decipher the text much easier and faster. I am much more likely to have to pause the screen to read text that fills the entire width of the screen. That’s just my two cents on the topic.

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The topic and replies are not on the same page. I thought the topic was about subtitles being too long, not the wait times. I have noticed this more and more lately with the Korean dramas. I understand the teams are doing their best to provide a comprehensive and in depth picture of the dialogue. But I end up pausing a lot to read the subtitles that take up 3 to 4 lines with foot notes. This disrupts the flow of the scenes and makes it less enjoyable. Having said that, I are in awe of the time and effort the different teams make to the channel. Happy holidays.

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The topic is about the subtitles themselves being physically too long because they are placed in one line, instead of two. It’s not about the time it is required to wait for the subtitles to be finished.

This time we are actually keeping to the topic of the conversation :grin:

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Does that mean I can just add breaks and it will not bother the viewers who watch it on the app because the problem only exists on Roku? I’ve always wanted & prefered to add breaks, but I thought it was not allowed.

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Sorry, I was reading the message above the topic " Community support over the holiday season"

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I like the middle screenshot most because one can understand/read the whole meaning at once while those long spreaded 1-line-subs are just terrible.

In German it’s even worse bc the language has a more complex grammar than English what means even more words are needed for writing proper sentences.

Viki forces us into such long sentences though for “technical” reasons (that’s another reason why I don’t watch shows here with German subs anymore).

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If some subbers add breaks it can happen that they have to remove it from all parts afterwards because the breaks are usually checked within the community from both, other subbers, mods and viewers who’re volunteers at the same time.

That’s why you can’t do that in my language.

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I do believe that the centered text is way more “reading friendly” and I am in two separate sides of the equation. On the Portuguese team I do add the breaks, and on the English team I don’t. This breaks are a temporary solution for a change that Viki should provide. I have Roku and the last update was heaven. The subs now show the break and the subs are arranged in the middle of the screen. Like Netflix already do. Viki should add the “length of the text” as a feature to chose along with the size and color of the text. Much easier than we manually adding breaks one sub at a time. If we add, on Viki app on cell will be good, but on Roku for example, the line will be double because the limit there to keep in the middle is different. I don’t know if you understand. But, in the end, is just some internal adjustment that Viki’s team can arrange to make the viewers lives better.

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Viki should add more settings to choose from when viewing subs. More sizes, different fonts and perhaps colors. Different people prefer certain settings most comfortable to their reading habits.

This would help so much if the texts weren’t so far apart from each other.

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Hmm… that’s a fair point. I haven’t checked how it looks on the app.

HOWEVER, again, we shouldn’t have to be interested in this. If it bothers the people watching on the app, Viki should create a separate copy of the sub file without breaks to apply to the app. Sub file is probably the smallest of the files involved in video rendering.

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Does this mean that the break problem is now fixed on Roku?

Do you mean that the Subtitle Editor would add automatic breaks? I’ve seen it done in some subtitle programs and the breaks in my language were too often placed in awkward positions. There are some rules when one should insert a break in Croatian. And the subtitle program doesn’t know how to do it because it doesn’t know what a verb is :grin:

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On mine is. :blush:

No. I mean on the Viki app to watch the show. On the preferences where you chose the size, color etc. It should be also the length of the sub. To adjust in the center of the screen.

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36

So the brackets are for the next sentence? Is that always the case?Here I was thinking it was someone thinking to themselves.

There are so many dramas where people talk outloud to themselves instead of just narrating. I wish they would do that more. They give out long speeches walking down the street or doing the dishes. lol Maybe I’m noticing it too much.

Sorry to hyjack.:slightly_smiling_face:

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yes @cerejacult Is correct, users are able to alter the appearance of subtitles within the system settings on various devices. I have particular knowledge of Amazon fire TV devices and android devices (both mobile devices and TV) unfortunately, these settings seem to be particularly well hidden. I don’t for the life of me understand why that is. Below is a link to a topic where in two separate replies I detailed how to access the subtitle settings on both Amazon fire TV devices and android TV devices

For me personally, the two most important settings for subtitle appearance are subtitle/text size and subtitle background colour. Reducing subtitle text size should stop parts of subtitle lines from being cut off.

Although it is fair to say that fire TV devices are better for large screen viewing as the subtitle settings with respect to text size or incremental. On android TV devices. If you change the subtitle text size small, allowing the long subtitle line to be display correctly. Some may not be able to see subtitles clearly from a distance. The difference in text size between small and medium on android TV devices is too large.

Subtitle appearance settings can also be changed and Viki’s browser-based player on the website
My typical subtitle settings are as follows
subtitle/text size: small
subtitle colour and subtitle background colour : white text on a black background

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Usually when someone is talking out loud, the subs are italic

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Not if he actually speaks and opens his mouth while doing so. Only in thoughts.

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@funinthesunkauai_173

The brackets in the past used to separate the dialogue in the drama between two people/actors < br >…(in same segment)
Person # 1: How are you? < br >
Person # 2: I’m fine, thank you.

Italics < i > < /i > I used them in the past for various reason.
When the character/actor/actress is thinking (not talking) and we have to write the sentence/subtitle for the viewer to see.

The italics I used them when the face of the person talking is not seen on the screen, but we still need to write the subtitle bc is part of the scene.

Now, lately all these things are no longer needed because they make that long sentence many people are complaining about (myself included). I feel it looks sloppy, and is very annoying since by the time you finish reading this long sentence, the other subtitle comes into view. You either have to back up 10 seconds or pause to finish reading the darn long sentence that covers the whole screen. Also, as you read in this thread, these long subtitles affect a lot the people with dyslexia condition.

I don’t use ROKU, but did for a short while about 5/6 years ago? and I did see the subtitles splattered all over the screen, and was for me very difficult to read the subs; so I returned it where I bought it, and got a refund. I don’t know if this problem still exist or was resolved, but I don’t use it anymore. so this issue is totally irrelevant for me.

That’s on my personal observation, and I’m not talking for the general public (other countries) some people here tend to think that when I’m talking/writing is to the ‘‘whole world’’ in here. I only mention what I experienced (for example with ROKU) here in USA. I don’t know what works here in USA, that doesn’t work in different European/other countries, and to be honest, I don’t care to know. It’s too much information to grasp that I really I don’t need because is not personally affecting me.

Here at RViki site some people suffer from adding unnecessary words in their translation/ subtitle to add more ‘‘contribution counts’’ in their profile page. In the past < br > count as words which added a HIGH number of contribution in their page, too.

What I always say here that they need to worry more about giving Quality in their work, than a high Quantity of words in their subtitles just for contribution count. They should feel proud of a job well done by them, and that should be their first and foremost priority.

We have here TEAMS with (I heard) 100 people? 30…40 etc. I can tell you, on my part in the 2 language I know: English/Spanish, if there are 100 about 40 to 50 of them will use Google translator (I have evidence). I don’t accuse without proof; that itself would be a crime. There are people here that are always saying: I know Spanish I had it in College but when you see the subtitles in their page it’s obviously ALL Google translate subtitles.

Unless we can speak, read, and write a Language, and have a ‘‘GOOD knowledge of its grammar usage in that language’’’ we can’t say we know that language, and many subbers do just that here at this site. They are even assigned as EDITORS in dramas here which is a shame to see that continuing to happen as I write this words.

It’s a cycle that hasn’t been broken because they no longer have a viki staff working here so that when you report this people/subbers they are removed and or suspended. Shockingly, these same subbers that years after years are here, should have improved/learn something by now, but they stay just as bad as they were many years back. The reason being; that they don’t take their time to learn from doing the work themselves, but continue to use their buddy/buddy/viki bot/ GT/translation tools, and all you see in the chat that ‘‘lista! ‘’(’‘Finished’’ or ‘‘done!’’). When I go to check their subs (the one I suspect used GT etc) it never fails, plenty of Quantity of subtitles that have very little Quality in them bc they are full of plenty mistakes.
Are you doing volunteer work here?

Sorry for the litany :anguished::

More litany …:rofl:

funinthesunkauai_173There are so many dramas where people talk outloud to themselves instead of just narrating. I wish they would do that more. They give out long speeches walking down the street or doing the dishes. lol Maybe I’m noticing it too much.

Yes, they are doing that a whole lot in dramas now. It will be a nice feedback added here if you explain: Why or What is it that you like so much about that? I’m curious to know, and I’ll wait for YOur answer.

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@spaufler_89

Personally, me/myself/ and I, would/ I have added the italics because the image I’m seeing is saying clearly to me: ‘‘I am [thinking] out loud.’’ The person is ‘‘thinking loud’’ not having a [Loud] conversation with another person. I have added the italics, and I feel it should be done bc like I said, the person is ‘‘thinking loud’’ which is another form of ‘‘thinking to him/herself.’’