AnimeSuki Forum - View Single Post - Why do Fansubbers put OP/ED on anime files?

complich8 · 2004-01-30, 00:58

I've seen threads like this before .... something recently suggesting everyone chop the op/ed before release to save like 20-30 megs/ep.... I replied a bit differently there than here but there's a lot of reasons, so here's some more.

As a general rule, I think that it's better to have more options than fewer.

With that in mind, by giving you the op/ed with the pretty karaoke's and translations and all that nifty jazz, not only do we get to put our names in it in places that it looks like it goes (and arguably teach some romanji and kanji, though you've already gotta have a base in it to learn anything from the anime opening songs IMO), we also give you the option of watching it or not.

If you don't wanna watch it, just skip ahead 1:30 from the start of the file. Many players support hotkeys to jump specific distances -- in one of the players I regularly use, "skip the opening" is "press the right arrow key 6 times".

On the other hand, if you do want to watch the opening, and we've chopped it off, we've denied you the ability to do as you please. So by merely offering the option, we don't dictate how you view it, but by denying the option we take away your choice.

<semi-relevant digression>When I was a much younger person, my mom used to take me and my brother to the grocery store on saturday afternoons. Why saturday afternoons, you ask? Because the grocery store we liked to shop at had free samples all over the store then. There were free samples of trail mix and sausage and cheese and crackers and meat and snack foods and you could make about a whole meal out of just walking around the store snagging samples. It was great fun for us, it kept us occupied while my mom got the groceries and kept us happy, and we liked it.

Now the thing about free samples is ... you don't have to take it. Sure, they're nice ameneties, but they're ameneties you can refuse. Think of our karaoke'ed translated nifty openings and ending songs.... you can skip them or you can watch them. We don't really care which you do, whether you eat the free pizza rolls or you decide not to. But we're not going to remove the booth just so you can get around the store easier.
</semi-relevant digression>

More than that though, it's just a completion thing. More than as a fansubber, as a person, as a creator of works, I want to create things that are complete. It's a matter of pride. I can say "I did a halfassed job" or I can say "look at this beautiful complete work that I did my best on." I can't take pride in a house that I built if the house has no rooms and is missing half the floor and a big patch out of the roof. I can't take pride in a research paper I write that has no data or relevant sources. I can't take pride in a program I write that spits out incorrect answers because I didn't take the time to debug it. You see the analogy?

2004-01-30, 00:58	Link #8
complich8 Fansubber Emeritus Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Rockville, MD Age: 43	I've seen threads like this before .... something recently suggesting everyone chop the op/ed before release to save like 20-30 megs/ep.... I replied a bit differently there than here but there's a lot of reasons, so here's some more. As a general rule, I think that it's better to have more options than fewer. With that in mind, by giving you the op/ed with the pretty karaoke's and translations and all that nifty jazz, not only do we get to put our names in it in places that it looks like it goes (and arguably teach some romanji and kanji, though you've already gotta have a base in it to learn anything from the anime opening songs IMO), we also give you the option of watching it or not. If you don't wanna watch it, just skip ahead 1:30 from the start of the file. Many players support hotkeys to jump specific distances -- in one of the players I regularly use, "skip the opening" is "press the right arrow key 6 times". On the other hand, if you do want to watch the opening, and we've chopped it off, we've denied you the ability to do as you please. So by merely offering the option, we don't dictate how you view it, but by denying the option we take away your choice. <semi-relevant digression>When I was a much younger person, my mom used to take me and my brother to the grocery store on saturday afternoons. Why saturday afternoons, you ask? Because the grocery store we liked to shop at had free samples all over the store then. There were free samples of trail mix and sausage and cheese and crackers and meat and snack foods and you could make about a whole meal out of just walking around the store snagging samples. It was great fun for us, it kept us occupied while my mom got the groceries and kept us happy, and we liked it. Now the thing about free samples is ... you don't have to take it. Sure, they're nice ameneties, but they're ameneties you can refuse. Think of our karaoke'ed translated nifty openings and ending songs.... you can skip them or you can watch them. We don't really care which you do, whether you eat the free pizza rolls or you decide not to. But we're not going to remove the booth just so you can get around the store easier. </semi-relevant digression> More than that though, it's just a completion thing. More than as a fansubber, as a person, as a creator of works, I want to create things that are complete. It's a matter of pride. I can say "I did a halfassed job" or I can say "look at this beautiful complete work that I did my best on." I can't take pride in a house that I built if the house has no rooms and is missing half the floor and a big patch out of the roof. I can't take pride in a research paper I write that has no data or relevant sources. I can't take pride in a program I write that spits out incorrect answers because I didn't take the time to debug it. You see the analogy?