but they do:
@thegolddimension @lynnmayc, @jadecloud88, @moonandstars
I believe moonandstars is fixing Scarlet Heart 1
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I believe that i have other reason of dislike of help subbing is when you try write of channel or moderating pass months and never answer you.(someone)
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Yes, there is a lot of that. And, when a subber does it, it’s one thing. But I’ve seen many instances where a moderator or CM does it!
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I’m answering because you asked 
No, I don’t like managing, nor moderating because of all the items I said before (and I think I forgot some : p). That’s why I don’t ask for these positions on dramas. If you see me as Cm or moderator, either it’s because the channel is a test to try new tools in a relaxing way, either because I wanted to help a friend or to prevent abusers.
Strangely, I feel more freedom when I subtitle or when I segment. Maybe because “I only manage myself and not others” ? I don’t know how to explain it. It’s more responsabilities and less enjoyable.
All I know is I feel more fun subtitling or segmenting than other things and having fun for volunteers, that’s also what is important for everyone I guess : )
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Bumping this because it’s always relevant. And it’s difficult to hunt down.
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I guess recently I have been popping up some quiet topics into vision again 
Anyway, I was really pleased to know about other contributors’ POV on contributing. It has really broadened the way I perceive other Vikians.
Things I dislike about volunteering:
- I have to repeat same guidelines to every single new subtitler that contacts me. None of their fault, obviously. But sometimes, I get tired of repeating everything again and again. I would have been really happy if I also had a mentor but I guess others just want to complete this… complete that… complete this and that every time, so they don’t take out time for newbies.
- Being a moderator made me really picky; especially when it comes to subtitlers. I just don’t blindly trust anyone that comes upto me and says they are native speakers of Hindi. Okay, so you are a native speaker. Does that guarantee you know every nitty-gritty details of the language? Are you aware of Hindi punctuation rules? You’re a speaker, can you also write correct spellings without messing up big time because of your keyboard? I hate this one thing. Every 3 out of 5 applications I get are by these so called native speakers who wouldn’t even know what’s correct between जाएगा and जायेगा.
- Rejecting applications - I also have a great difficulty with rejecting applications. I need to tell them politely why they can’t volunteer, why they still need to get out of primary school’s grammar book and why they are by far no means a translator with the current situation of their knowledge in the language. I don’t want them to feel bad, I don’t want my image to be ruined in front of someone who just wanted to help but at the same time, I need them to understand that their tiny help messes up big time in Subtitle Editor and later on in front of viewers.
- Recruiting - I used to send out invitations to other volunteers to join my team (only selected whom I can trust) but I stopped doing that recently. Invitations are now a no for me and it’s also difficult to find volunteers who’ll give correct subtitles without mistakes in every 3rd segment. When I was new to moderating, I gladly sent out invitations to people I could trust, some of them accepted, some of them rejected. Most of the time, the volunteers were good but sometimes I mistakenly brought volunteers who were not responsible about their job. Not ready to accept feedbacks, mark me themselves “know-it-all”, would not acknowledge their mistakes or if they were really bad subtitlers in general, I couldn’t blame them since I was the one who invited them in first place. A sad story about why I stopped sending invitations and rather wait for people to approach me or I’ll do the job alone.
- Quantity over quality: I can’t get past these people who’ll have really prolific profiles and then when I peep into their RCs, the punctuation is messed up (I really have a soft spot for punctuation and just can’t see anyone getting it wrong), spellings are messed up, vocabulary is either too ancient or too Englishized. I just can’t see people making 50K+ subtitles and not even knowing if “ji” should be attached with someone’s name of not. Average subtitles are okay, they’ll do for me but I can’t make myself watch them. I’ll switch to English immediately because of the editor’s/subtitler’s ignorance of Hindi punctuation.
- Getting misinterpreted - I am often afraid of making the first move because I don’t want anyone to misunderstand me. In my beginner days, maybe because of my communication skills or what, I was often misunderstood by others. “If I send them a message to correct this, will they think I am rude?”, “If I ask them about their opinion about a certain thing, will they think I want to boast about my knowledge?”, “This moderator is an abuser, if I complain about them to the CM, will the CM think I am doing this only to snatch away the project?”. I have a few moderator names that I can give right now and prove how they are not giving quality but quantity but I never approached anyone out of this constant fear.
- The ones with good intentions but bad techniques: I often get this vibe from my subtitlers who want to help and give back something to their dramas but the techniques they use or knowledge they have about Hindi is just bad. I wish I could help them more in a way than I am doing right now.
Things I like about volunteering
- Constant learning: I admit, there are a few things I could learn only after joining Viki as a contributor. In order to give more refined and polished subtitles, I did immense research on my language (am still doing) and I am proud of the things I learnt. I learnt more about the know-how of Korean names. I could improve my knowledge on Japanese Kanji. I realized I liked working in teams both as a leader and as a member. I came across different POVs which I couldn’t have experienced if I only was a viewer. And of course, the science behind Google Sheets.
- I couldn’t have discovered discussions if I wasn’t volunteering. I know people around the globe and I got to know work culture of different countries, experiences, mindsets, traditions and so much more.
- Should I say I became fluent in European languages? Of course not the fluent any ordinary person would understand but now I can differentiate between European languages just by looking at the words. Ohhh, this one is fantastic.
- The chance to get to know my own language in details.
- Editing: This one is my favorite. Nothing can match the pleasure of making natural and flowing subtitles. I sometimes watch shows in Hindi and I really appreciate the efforts some people put into subtitles. You can just look at them and say, “This one was done by a perfectionist.” You can call me a weirdo but I sometimes imitate character on-screen, nod just like them, “sing” their dialogues and imagine myself as them. How would I say it if I was a 37 years old conglomerate? Which word would I use if I was a 86 years old grandma? Solving dilemmas of choosing between word A and word B, translating songs (this one, again is my favorite). I like to go through Urdu dictionaries to pick out the perfect poetic word that exists to translate, “You’re the one, my love”. I make sure, either all of the songs I translate are rhyming in Hindi or they are rhyming with corresponding Korean lyrics.
- Making it easier for my subtitlers to work. Not giving them stiff schedules (you do part A, you do part B, etc.) but something that even they can enjoy. I work like English teams, not giving them fixed parts but the liberty to choose their own segments they’ll like to work on. This way, my team even avoids deliberate translations, as in, “Since you do part C, you’ll have to translate this entire scene where the characters are talking about medical conditions.” I let them choose, they can translate segments where they feel comfortable and leave the segments which they don’t understand. I also enjoyed making Google Sheets but now I just copy-paste existing sheet into another to avoid heavy work load. The result is still the same though.
- Giving and getting feedbacks is one of my favorite things. I always go in the direction of exchanging knowledge. I am always curious of what others think about my work. Did I do well? Did I make some blunder? Can you please tell me how I can correct this mistake? What is the exact word for this difficult term? Did I improve myself in past couple of weeks? Working under someone’s guidance is always a profitable thing.
- Completely editing an episode and locking subs after that.
- Indian English: Umm… Hindi has a lot of English loanwords and some words even replaced existing Hindi words in recent decades. I feel taken aback when I see someone using American/British English for these loanwords. I mean, no, that’s not it. We don’t say ‘elevator’, ‘hallways’, ‘exams’, ‘homeroom’ as much as we say ‘lift’, ‘corridor’, ‘paper’, ‘classroom’ for these words. Why would you translate ‘third year of high school’ literally to ‘third year of high school’ when we say ‘12th class’. Working majorly in dramas with young characters, I want the characters to sound like any young Hindi speaker would do rather than a 40 years old man. It’s relaxing to see usage of common words we use daily rather than words used by people back in the days. It’s soothing to correct such mistakes and expanding knowledge when it comes to such fields.
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Do you say “12th class”? Not many people say that as much as they say “12th standard”, in my opinion, at least. I’ve heard more adults saying “12th class” than students.
I love the effort you put in to produce subtitles 
I always love it when I come across people who put their whole heart into their jobs… makes me want to keep striving to do better, too.
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Things I dislike about volunteering
-
Finding a job
But in a way, it’s a good thing. I used to feel so bad whenever I got rejected, but I’m slowly learning how to take rejection well. However, the process of requesting to join teams still makes me uncomfortable. -
Slow projects. This is a pet peeve of mine even in real life. I just cannot take it when people don’t seem interested/don’t give enough time for a project they’ve committed to doing. I usually take a maximum of three projects and no more, so there’s no pressure. I like finishing my work on one episode within three days of its release. So I really, really dislike it when the project comes to a standstill
I don’t know how to ask others to pick up the pace without it sounding rude and impatient. And I probably shouldn’t expect long projects to keep up the one-episode-in-two-weeks rhythm till the end. -
Rejecting an invitation. I feel really, really bad when I reject invitations. I don’t like breaking my three-projects-at-a-time rule and I also don’t like committing to a project I think I’ll hate just looking at the plot. I don’t mind long or draggy dramas. I know I can’t always have the best of the best. But sometimes I just don’t want to do the project, and I have a terrible time writing a rejection message. I welcome suggestions on how I could write rejections better.
Things I like about volunteering
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My job! I love working as an English Editor. I’m glad I’m able to do it well. I’m constantly learning. My long-term goal is to learn enough Korean/Chinese to become more helpful as an Editor. My grammar has definitely improved. I love the endless challenges this job gives me. Editing subtitles is such an art… It has to be simple and easy for OL volunteers to understand. At the same time, it has to be concise and easy for viewers to read. It should feel like the character is actually saying the lines. Like @shraddhasingh explained in the previous post, I want it to look like a natural thing the speaker would say. I play the segment over and over again while reading the English subtitle that goes along with it to make sure it sounds normal. I spend a lot of time looking through my online thesaurus to find better, clearer substitutes for words and phrases. My vocabulary has grown. I’m always scared of having “Editor’s block”— I know the sub isn’t good enough, but I can’t think of a better substitute.
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Pre-sub editing. This needs a separate point because pre-subs present a very different challenge. I’m free from the burdens of a GE because the TEs and GEs come after me. I’ve been having quite a lot of fun tackling The Prince who Turns into a Frog’s pre-subs. They are TERRIBLE.
It’s fun trying to guess what the person is trying to say using all the Asian cultural context I’ve grown up with. Luckily, most Asians seem to have very similar English usage. I also love correcting terrible punctuation. -
I like explaining things to people. I like learning everything there is to know about a subject so I can help others. Though it gets repetitive, I can explain the same things over and over again if the person is responsive/interested. I like taking screenshots and writing instructions
I don’t care about the number of times I do it. -
Learning from my sunbaes and senseis. I feel blessed to have been able to work with some of the best trainers and teammates ever. I’ve learned so much about how to be a leader, how to communicate well, how to encourage my teammates, and how to write good subtitles/cut good segments. They all taught me with so much patience and kindness. Their dedication makes me want to do my best and help others just as they’ve helped me.
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Interacting with people. I find myself growing a lot while I do the things I do on Viki. I learn about working in teams and interacting with different people. I think I’ve become much kinder, sensitive, and formal with the language I use.
With the amount of talking I do, I’ve put my foot in my mouth quite a few times. I’m sorry to the people I’ve unconsciously hurt. I keep trying to improve my language.
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“Standard” isn’t that uncommon here in North as well but it has always been a fancy word for me. All the schools I have been to, used class just a bit over standard. I guess because other school terms also contain class…? Classroom, class teacher, class work? But that’s just my assumption. Standard might be the standard in South (bad pun, I know ). Class or standard might be under the same shed as chaaku or chhuri?
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LOL. But I’ve lived in two cities: Bangalore and Mumbai, and gone to three schools. Mumbai counts as north, right? It’s always been “standard” in both places.
Is it because of the board? All the schools I went to were ICSE/ISC. They’re usually "fancier"
Goodness, Hindi changes a lot across India. It must be difficult for you!
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I do definitely feel disappointed by seeing a monopoly of the moderator role! I don’t want to sound rude or anything, but… why do the same people get to be the moderator? Is it just because they’re fast? Is it because they just do things fast and, for sure, don’t even care about the drama? If so, then I’m afraid I might change my habit of taking care of a drama and watch it very closely. Does that mean that my “caring” is slowing me down? Does that mean I’m not good enough just because I take time to deliver the best for those who really enjoy watching dramas on VIKI? (Of course, the time I’m talking about is not a 2 weeks period.)
I don’t think monopoly is the best response to the ones who really want to help. I speak for myself who doesn’t accept seeing a channel getting a CM and, almost automatically, getting a mod who prevoiusly has worked with the CM and did everything “pretty fast”; leaving, of course, as any other human being, little mistakes on subs since they do it “fast”. ('Cause that’s the excuse we get to ours applications. That’s the meaning behind the message.)
The same goes to the CM thing, monopoly it is not the best way to handle things. Even though we have this CM and Co-CM thing, I believe that sometimes this is not very effective, as we’ve been seeing the same ones getting things and working with the same team. - I’m not complaining about the quality (yet). I’m just complaining about how unfair it is to the ones who wants to help out.
This is just a thought that I’m pretty sure I share with some others, specially subbers nowdays.
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Basically, there are 2 groups of people benefitting from that.
- Newbies who can now arrange getting their first channel instead of just hoping it ever happens
- The serial CMs who because of the previous 2 years of favoritism now have all the “experience” in the world so that “training newbies” becomes yet another excuse to give them all the channels.
That still leaves a huge group of unappreciated, experienced, hardworking people.
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Oooh, my first post in Discussion. I wanted to add something here because I was just thinking about this topic the other day.
Subbing: Good subtitling feels a bit like writing. You are the person who is helping the viewer experience this lovely, funny, or scary moment. Do your best job to convey accurately what is being spoken by the character. Capture every nuance. A well-written subtitle can convey this well.
It’s very satisfying when you get it right. 
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Indeed right, Karina!
Very warm and lovely your comment on this topic. I agree with your point 
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Hi! I’m new to the contributing side of Viki and trying to find my way around. I have a lot of editing experience and would really like to be an editor. Can someone guide me on how to get started? Thank you! 
From your name I assume you mean English editor, right?
You also don’t have Vikipass, so you cannot access most on-air shows.
This means you have to aim on old, unfinished projects, until you prove yourself and until you make the 3000 contributions (subtitles) that will enable you to have a free Vikipass from Viki.
If I were you I would write to veteran CEs. You can find their names on the show pages.
Go to team tab, scroll down until you find the so-called “cover page”, which is a long image that is created by the volunteers (as opposed to made automatically by the system).
On the round thumbnails all you can see is “English moderator” but you don’t know whether they are Translation Editors, General English Editors (the one you want to become) or Chief Editors (the ones you want to write to). Whereas on the “cover page” their role is clearly written.
Once found a list of names, send a personal message to each one (click on the name link, go to their profile page, click on the envelope under their name). Saying who you are (specifying skills, credentials etc.) and what you want (to be a General Editor under them). You can also say that you are willing to undergo a test, since you may be experienced in Real Life but are new here and nobody knows your work.
At least that’s how I would go about it.
Another, more uphazard way, which may or may not give fruits but possibly is also worth trying, is hunt for coming-soon small projects like films and web dramas, or Thai non-BL dramas, the ones that are not “prize projects”. Then, you could write to the Channel Manager as soon there is one, and offer your services as an editor.
And lastly, find some very old projects which have been abandoned by the English editors and are just lying there. Some 50-episode Korean stuff from the 2000s with execrable over-acting and totally makjang plot (you can search about what makjang is!). There, the channel managers are desperate for someone, anyone, to take the job.
How to find those? Once upon a time we had search by year, but sadly Viki has taken away the good Explore page and substituted with a crappy one with less options. I’m afraid you have to do it the hard way.
You can sort by “Watch free” (which you want to do anyway) but then your only other options are “popular” and “new on Viki”. I suppose you might put either one and then scroll down all the way until you find the oldest or less popular.
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