MP3Sub/SongSubtitler

[devilcoelhodog]

See the links above for that program:

---> http://soft.songsubtitles.org/index.php?title=Main_Page

---> http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=110708 ( in these place the addresses links are displayed correctly. Use them for downloading )

Useful suggestions about the program development are welcome.

PS: if needed, download the following dll's: mingwm10.dll (400kb) QtCore4.dll (1Mb) and QtGui4.dll (5Mb)

contact: info@songsubtitles.org

Thanks.

[CarrierZ]

Won't mind explain what this thing do? I've got an idea. But, it'd be kind if you could put up an explanation of this? (Every link seem dead, 404, rather, you've posted wrong links)

[Sylf]

Not to sound too negative about it, but creating a brand new program isn't the best way to go. This page shows winamp karaoke plugins and how to use it. It's in Japanese, but the idea is there - by using an existing media player, you don't have to worry about playback portion. Right now, your program only supports mp3. What about any other format?

[devilcoelhodog]

(Every link seem dead, 404, rather, you've posted wrong links)

Sorry, I've typed correctly before, but it seems the links are displayed wrong here. I've tested in other forum and they seem to work nice now.

Well, I know that some winamp karaoke plugins can do the job, but I found that program quite interesting and decide to show it to the communnity.

As open source, the great tip is that you can code, change and improve too and give to the author some nice feedback about the program.

Unfortunatelly, I did'nt have some time to test it well.

As I do it, I'll let you know my impressions about the "weak and strong points" about the program and you can tell some interesting features you may suggest to the author to add in his engine program.

Thanks for your time.

Best regards.

[zalas]

Originally Posted by Sylf

Not to sound too negative about it, but creating a brand new program isn't the best way to go. This page shows winamp karaoke plugins and how to use it. It's in Japanese, but the idea is there - by using an existing media player, you don't have to worry about playback portion. Right now, your program only supports mp3. What about any other format?

Ooh, that looks neat. Maybe someone should use that to sub some Drama CDs

[Sylf]

Originally Posted by zalas

Ooh, that looks neat. Maybe someone should use that to sub some Drama CDs

ooooo

I think they should.

[gibb2006]

Originally Posted by CarrierZ

Won't mind explain what this thing do? I've got an idea. But, it'd be kind if you could put up an explanation of this? (Every link seem dead, 404, rather, you've posted wrong links)

Hi !

I am Gibb, the admin of www.songsubtitles.org.
The site's goal is to create a cooperative base of music subtitles.

The project consists of two different things:

* a website for sharing subtitles
* a software you can use to create subtitles easily.

The software can be found at soft.songsubtitles.org.

Gibb

[gibb2006]

Originally Posted by CarrierZ

(Every link seem dead, 404, rather, you've posted wrong links)

Yeah, I have been doing some rewriting of the wiki....

In fact you can now try 2 different softwares to create subtitles : one I made (SongSubtitler) and one a friend of mine made (MP3Sub).

Please give me feedback about which one you prefer (I think my friend's one is better).

Gibb

[gibb2006]

Originally Posted by Sylf

Not to sound too negative about it, but creating a brand new program isn't the best way to go. This page shows winamp karaoke plugins and how to use it. It's in Japanese, but the idea is there - by using an existing media player, you don't have to worry about playback portion. Right now, your program only supports mp3. What about any other format?

Hi !

in fact the soft at soft.songsubtitles.org is for CREATING subtitles.

For showing subtitles with music I recommend VLC media player, it does it (almost) automatically, and by the way it supports almost any file type. (and it's free and open-source as well).

[[darkfire]]

You dont need to tell fansubbers that. The majority of us tend to shy away from VLC. For reasons. Media Player Classic is free and open-source and IMO works better than VLC. Now with subtitles. how will it work. Will it be like the winamp midi subs. Cause I think for just mp3 if it has styling or any sort of effects its overkill

[Sylf]

These programs are best left on doom9 side.

When we see programs like this in this forum, the target audience are current and potential anime fansubbers. And we have quite high demand for programs like this.

1) Two programs are virtually identical. One has built-in mp3 player, and the other doesn't - that's about the only difference as far as functionality goes. Why not just make one that works better?

2) Subtitle format is limited to .srt. SRT was fine once upon a time, but we want something a lot more flexible - SSA/ASS.

3) When it comes to subtitle timing, we already have working solutions - Substation Alpha, Medusa, Sabbu, Aegisub to name a few.

4) On top of that, those working solutions work much better for us.
i) We want accuracy - down to centisecond or even milisecond, at will, not at mercy of real-time mouse click
ii) We want control - adding lead-in/out at will
iii) If we miss a line, go back to the particular spot, and fix it

5) In fansub community nowadays, unicode support is a must-have.

6) And how do you play back the subtitle again? With an audio file? VLC is a video player, not an audio player. Sure, it plays audio files just fine. But when I loaded an mp3 file along with srt file, it doesn't show any subtitles - it has no video area to display the subtitle.

7) Because you're timing something at real time, you have to be very very familiar with the song, or else you'll miss your cue quite easily. And once you miss, you have to start all over from the beginning.

These programs may do well with the casual users, wanting to time the lyrics quickly. (But according to my point 7, those users wouldn't need the lyrics anymore, since he/she would be familiar with the song and lyrics by the time he/she is done timing the song.) But they don't have a place in this community.

@devilcoelhodog:
Before you introduce a program over from one community to another, do your own review first to see such program would benefit that target community or not.

[devilcoelhodog]

we already have working solutions - Substation Alpha, Medusa, Sabbu, Aegisub to name a few.

Yes, I know that.

The goal here is to get some opinion from you in which points the program could improve to reach his main goal: timing mainly lyrics. And you, who deal much with those programs, could point some nice advices to improve the prog.

Subtitle format is limited to .srt. SRT was fine once upon a time, but we want something a lot more flexible - SSA/ASS.

Yes, and using UTF & Unicode too.

But who knows the author could add that in core engine program too? BTW, srt is nice for timing and SSA/ASS help a lot in other aspects, like aesthetical or position/effect ones.

Maybe the author could add some audio / video bar, for those who wanna get precision, like Aegisub or SSA have. Perhaps a feature suggestion.

such program would benefit that target community or not

I agree with you, but as the program is stil in the beggining, many things could be added, including some points you said that are missing.

And some people who are accostumed to time karaoke and animes maybe can give some feedbacks where to improve or not.

I'll take care in next time, before I post, right?

Thanks for help and sorry any mistaky by my side, ok?

[gibb2006]

Hi ! Thanks for your feedback.

Originally Posted by Sylf

Two programs are virtually identical. [...]. Why not just make one that works better?

Yeah, we're going to do that.

Originally Posted by Sylf

When it comes to subtitle timing, we already have working solutions - Substation Alpha, Medusa, Sabbu, Aegisub to name a few.

Can you subtitle *music* with these softwares?

I entirely agree for the accuracy and inconvenience issue -- but our software is still a small one, we made it to be able to begin subtitling.

Originally Posted by Sylf

And how do you play back the subtitle again? With an audio file? VLC is a video player, not an audio player. Sure, it plays audio files just fine. But when I loaded an mp3 file along with srt file, it doesn't show any subtitles - it has no video area to display the subtitle.

Yes, for the moment you have to change 2 settings in VLC. We explain it in the FAQ. There is still a problem on Windows, but it's getting fixed by the VLC developpers...

Thanks for your attention

Gibb

[[darkfire]]

I want to know how you will play back the subtitles with the music. Is it video or some sort of karaoke program like for partys. If the output file for the sub is a standard like srt, ssa/ass. Then yes Aegisub and the works can do it. You dont have to load video in to aegisub. It takes audio file just fine.

[Sylf]

Originally Posted by gibb2006

Can you subtitle *music* with these softwares?

Yes, and more.

Putting time codes to the spoken lines in a show is no different than putting time codes to the lyrics. Most of the programs I mentioned (exluding Sabbu, which only had such feature for a short time during a beta period) has a feature that lets the user time the lyrcis syllable by syllable, creating the karaoke feature. So subtitling songs with them are done. And frequently too.

My biggest feeling was that the simplisity of the program was okay. Maybe a bit too simple. But if you start mimicing the programs I mentioned, you'll quickly lose that simplicity so much that it'll just become yet another difficult to use subtitle timing program. And if the program is to stay simple, then it really has no place in the fansub community.

Just because this is a big subtitling community doesn't mean we're the best reviewer for every subtitle creation programs that comes out. We're way too biased. Take it somewhere else - find a community that will more likely to adopt your program.

[gibb2006]

Originally Posted by [darkfire]

I want to know how you will play back the subtitles with the music. Is it video or some sort of karaoke program like for partys. If the output file for the sub is a standard like srt, ssa/ass. Then yes Aegisub and the works can do it. You dont have to load video in to aegisub. It takes audio file just fine.

For the moment, we use VLC because with the right settings, it can load subtitles automatically when you listen to a song.

Then it displays them like a movie subtitle -- but instead of the film you see a visualization (oscilloscope, specter ...)

Thanks a lot for the tip about the subtitling software. I hadn't heard about it.

Gibb

[gibb2006]

Originally Posted by Sylf

And if the program is to stay simple, then it really has no place in the fansub community.

Just because this is a big subtitling community doesn't mean we're the best reviewer for every subtitle creation programs that comes out. We're way too biased. Take it somewhere else - find a community that will more likely to adopt your program.

Okay, I understand what you mean. Thanks for the clarification.

The problem is, that potentially interested people could be found in movie subtitling communities, as well as in music lyrics communities, but none of these communities perfectly fits for music subtitles.

In fact what we would like to do is create such a community !

Thanks for your time & remarks.