Code Geass Ep. 15 subs problems on a Mac? Read this.

[Tribblewing]

I'm new to this forum, to what digi-fansubbing technology is, and the only reason I'm here is because I like Code Geass and I use VLC.

I finally found time this past week to catch up to the series (hence, why I'm roughly 3 weeks late into the game), and if gg pulled their 'sabotage' before ep 12, I might've just given up. Instead, I spent the last two nights trying to understand what the problem was. Some people blamed gg, and gg blames VLC. Fine. (Ultimately, I agree w/ gg, but let's not go there.)

gg says to use MPlayer. I use it and I get this:

MPlayer GUI for Windows Error

- MPlayer interrupted by signal 11 in module: init_audio_codec

- MPlayer crashed by bad usage of CPU/FPU/RAM.
Recompile MPlayer with --enable-debug and make a 'gbd' backtrace and disassembly. Details in DOCS/HTML/en/bugreports_what.html#bugreports_crash.

- MPlayer crashed. This shouldn't happen.
It can be a bug in the MPlayer code_or_in your drivers_or_in your gcc version. If you think it's MPlayer's fault, please read DOCS/HTML/en/bugreports.html and follow the instructions there. We can't and won't help unless you provide this information when reporting a possible bug.

I read the bugreports page. I see the word "recompile" and I cringe. The *only* trouble VLC gave me on first launch was that it wouldn't play the subs.

Meanwhile, I followed rataime's temporary solution.

Originally Posted by rataime

For those who want to use VLC on gg's Ep16 (that's their choice), here's the sub, extracted from gg's release :
http://rataime.free.fr/misc/Geass16_clean.srt

Thanks, rataime.

I demuxed ep 17 and hand-edited 386 lines in Notepad to make: http://home.doramail.com/tribblewing/misc/geass17.srt

I grab and drag it into my VLC window and it works. Great. Now I'm left w/ one question...

Originally Posted by liamroy

I would love to see some enterprising young code monkeys take up the cause and create a build of VLC that has proper .ssa/.ass support. But for now, I or someone else will gladly spend two minutes to create an .srt for future episodes of Code Geass.

...cleaning my .srt took me at *least* 10 min. How can it be done within *two*? Keep in mind, I'm just a nobody.

[TheFluff]

Regular expressions.

[Nicholi]

Actually if you are on Windows, which you seem to be from the MPlayer GUI error, gg would most likely recommend you use CCCP. So I think you missed the whole purpose of them "sabotaging" the subtitles. CCCP contains VSFilter which is essentially the filter that was created around the SSA/ASS standard and has been what has carried us for years on what we can do with it. If you are not on Windows you only have two alternatives essentially, VLC or mplayer, and out of those they would rather prefer you to use mplayer. That is my understanding of the situation.

...cleaning my .srt took me at *least* 10 min. How can it be done within *two*? Keep in mind, I'm just a nobody.

Simple regexp's can be used to remove the junk in the subs.

[Tribblewing]

The terminology within the regexp Wiki article is overwhelming. Likewise, is the stuff with the filters.

Yes, I'm running WinXP. Using CCCP and MPC worked, though MPC didn't work for me before I got the CCCP. Not to put it down or anything, but from what I can tell, CCCP is just a big codec pack with two players included, isn't it? I haven't had to download any codecs in the last two years since I got VLC, and I was under the impression that the technology was enabling people from having to go codecs-hunting.

Wow, the gg subs look so different now, which is to say, they look pretty damn *nice*.

Thanks for the help guys.

[emptyeighty]

Originally Posted by Tribblewing

Not to put it down or anything, but from what I can tell, CCCP is just a small codec pack with two players included, isn't it?

Fixed that for ya

I haven't had to download any codecs in the last two years since I got VLC, and I was under the impression that the technology was enabling people from having to go codecs-hunting.

VLC is unfortunately outdated in some areas. That's where CCCP comes in and once again saves people the trouble of finding and configuring every single codec by providing a small preconfigured package with everything needed to play modern releases.

[Yuzuyu]

Thanx rataime for the softsubs. I decided to stop watching fansubs of gg. I know it's hard and it costs a lot of time to make but i'm not satisfeid with the quality line breaks at wierd places.. sometimes there are still long notes from the one who translate it (do you guys even quality check?) and sometimes a sub has 3 lines and the middle one only has an "a" or more from that wierd stuff.

I play the eps in VLC and mostly that goes ok..

[blueorange]

@yuzuyu

Yes, VLC will render subs like crap. No, it's not GG's fault. You shouldn't be using VLC to play softsubs, especially when you have much better alternatives that are available for free CCCP for Windows, MPlayer for Mac and Linux (as pointed out by the many previous posts in this thread).

Your decision to stop watching GG's fansubs is inaccurate.

GG are one of the best fansub groups at the moment. I can't speak for translation, but the typesetting ( the thing that you are missing out on by using VLC) karaoke, picture quality are all very good.

[TheFluff]

Oh god why do people still not get this...

VLC WILL NOT DISPLAY SOFTSUBS PROPERLY
Do not watch softsubbed stuff in it
DO NOT WATCH SOFTSUBBED STUFF IN IT
DO NOT WATCH SOFTSUBBED STUFF IN IT
DO NOT WATCH SOFTSUBBED STUFF IN IT

[Nicholi]

I think I'm going to take some pictures...just because no one seems to understand what is going on. Or that you just get plain ugly white arial subs with VLC. They don't seem to understand that things will actually look better with VSFilter, its frightening.

[Nicholi]

Final Results in:
VSFilter


MPlayer with libass


MPlayer without libass


VLC


Now I actually noticed GG's script was fairly simple. There weren't any special ASS/SSA overrides used per line, it was just a few styles, and some fairly simple fonts. So even with libass this looks almost exactly as it should. Though for VLC you might say "big deal" it isn't the correct size, color, or outline but for the most part it looks fine. So I did another sample with a script that has a ton of work for styles/fonts/overrides/etc (by a hoser that pwns SSA as if he were Chuck Norris n_n).

VSFilter


MPlayer with libass


MPlayer without libass


VLC


The problems in VLC are much more evident here. First of all, which has been a problem since days of yore, overlapping subtitles. Apparently in VLC subtitles which overlap in time should also be overlapped physically. BRILLIANT! Marty you just aren't thinking 4th dimensionally! Next is the SSA/ASS override parameters. Since VLC cannot render them or even understand them at this point, you would think maybe the correct thing would be to remove them during playback? Nonono, we just display them along with the text! Need more jiggawhats?! And of course the usual no font support whatsoever and there seems to be a particular issue with positioning here, though I think I have seen VLC correctly position subtitles before...maybe. Otherwise as usual VLC sucks. MPlayer libass still has some issues with certain fonts, as you can see here the spacings between letters is a bit more then it should be. There are a few parameters to change some of the ASS rendering like this though. And the secret "font" which is the box doesn't display properly. However there is actually someone working on libass, and he can easily be poked when such oddball things are noticed. Someone working on subs in VLC? lawls.

We say "do not use VLC" for a reason. Especially if you are on windows, my god. You do not need VLC whatsoever on Windows. If someone can seriously think of a reason BESIDES streaming video, which I doubt anyone playing fansubs really uses, I'd like to know what it is. I can understand *nix/Mac newbs fearing mplayer because it is a CLI player even though it has a GUI, but on Windows it is just retarded behavior. VLC is fine in my opinion for anything without softsubs, though still completely unnecessary because you can play all of the same things within DirectShow. But softsubs is where you draw the line n_n.

Why resist the CCCP? Don't understand what it does and does not do? Have no idea that installing it and installing the components separately has no impact on your playback whatsoever? It only installs a few things for the most widely used formats and not every single inane format no one cares about? Breaks the old mindset of what a "codec pack" is? It doesn't install anything to the system folder or touch anything else on your system without asking you first? Actually completely removes itself and has no effect on anything else when you uninstall?
BLASPHEMY!!!

[Nicholi]

Followup with screencaps from the still in progress sub renderer of the future! Our hopeful VSFilter replacement: asa.





Still some work to do, the second script I know is quite trixy :P. Though ASA is still not even in a working state yet, the developer (equinox the hoser :P) poked me and asked for the scripts and screencaps just to see how it would turn out in comparison. One day...one day!

[blueorange]

Nicholi, your post with the screen shots should be given a separate thread and stickied.

asa, looks promising. Hopefully we will see some develpoment through this Google Summer of Code sponsership thing.

[cyth]

Originally Posted by blueorange

Nicholi, your post with the screen shots should be given a separate thread and stickied.

That's a great idea, actually. Perhaps the sticky should be titled Four pictorial reasons why hardsubs are better for the end consumer.

Sorry, it was just too tempting.

[emptyeighty]

Originally Posted by Toua

That's a great idea, actually. Perhaps the sticky should be titled Four pictorial reasons why CCCP is better for the end consumer.

Fixed that for ya.

[cyth]

Ahh, my apologies. I must've missed the newest CCCP *NIX build, and the mplayer build that had font scaling standardized to VSFilter's. Silly times we live in, eh?

[emptyeighty]

mplayer does a good job at rendering SSA and keeps improving. No reason not to use softsubs, especially considering there are actually very few people on *nix.

[rataime]

Yeah, those linux and mac guys can go to hell

[Nicholi]

We all know LytHka is diehard to the end in being righteous. Apparently his new cause is saving the lost *nix brethren which he adores and thinks about non-stop.

So confusing how one man with so much free time has done nothing whatsoever for them except bitch :P. Perhaps your idea of "helping" them involves never having good softsub support on *nix? Oh how courageous you are LytHka, keeping fighting the good fight.

Originally Posted by LytHka

Ahh, my apologies. I must've missed the newest CCCP *NIX build, and the mplayer build that had font scaling standardized to VSFilter's. Silly times we live in, eh?

I think you just missed how mplayer's libass works perfectly fine, no one makes complex softsubs with signs anyways (those seem to be hardsubbed). MPlayer has all of the available parameters to change the font scaling to something similar to VSFilter, you just have to use them. Maybe you should apologize for not reading the manpage either. Silly LytHka.

[emptyeighty]

Originally Posted by rataime

Yeah, those linux and mac guys can go to hell

mplayer's softsub rendering is not what you'd call "hell".

[Nicholi]

Where are we dining tonight again?