0:00:01.071,0:00:05.658 Let's talk about the new subtitle info box[br]in the Amara interface 0:00:05.915,0:00:10.446 and about how useful it can be[br]to transcribers and translators. 0:00:12.046,0:00:15.168 Any time you click a subtitle[br]to start editing it, 0:00:15.193,0:00:17.241 you will see this pop-up. 0:00:17.631,0:00:20.503 You may notice[br]that it starts with timing data, 0:00:20.528,0:00:25.704 but here, I'll focus on what you can do[br]with the other information in this box, 0:00:26.173,0:00:29.286 that is, the number[br]of characters in the subtitle 0:00:29.432,0:00:32.009 and the number of characters per second. 0:00:32.655,0:00:34.647 First, let's talk about... 0:00:35.950,0:00:37.657 42. 0:00:38.514,0:00:42.843 In languages that use the Latin alphabet, 0:00:43.192,0:00:46.816 if your subtitle[br]is more than 42 characters long, 0:00:47.083,0:00:49.501 you need to break it into two lines. 0:00:50.153,0:00:53.091 This makes the subtitle easier to follow 0:00:53.513,0:00:59.166 and prevents offline players[br]from breaking it in weird ways. 0:01:00.302,0:01:04.370 In the new info box,[br]you can see both the total subtitle length 0:01:04.497,0:01:07.887 and the number of characters[br]in each of the two lines. 0:01:09.161,0:01:14.442 When the total subtitle length in that box[br]goes over 42 characters, 0:01:14.467,0:01:16.955 it means that you need[br]to break the subtitle, 0:01:17.776,0:01:21.122 but also that you need[br]to think about how to break it. 0:01:21.802,0:01:26.004 After all, it's not like you want to have[br]one line of 42 characters 0:01:26.029,0:01:28.926 and then one line[br]with just one character in it. 0:01:29.872,0:01:36.346 So, break it in a way that the two lines[br]are as close in length as possible. 0:01:36.910,0:01:38.864 And let me give you an example. 0:01:40.169,0:01:43.864 This subtitle is 51 characters long. 0:01:44.599,0:01:46.574 Now, you could break it like this, 0:01:46.599,0:01:51.198 with one line of 14 characters[br]and another line of 36, 0:01:51.839,0:01:56.714 but it will be easier to read[br]if you make the lines more balanced, 0:01:57.136,0:02:04.722 like here, with one line of 27 characters[br]and another line of 23 below. 0:02:05.660,0:02:07.972 When breaking subtitles into lines, 0:02:08.192,0:02:11.660 also try to keep[br]"syntactic wholes" together. 0:02:12.129,0:02:15.570 What this means is that you don't want[br]to break up a phrase 0:02:15.595,0:02:19.165 that linguistically works as "one thing." 0:02:19.869,0:02:21.502 For example, in English, 0:02:21.949,0:02:25.144 you want to keep the article[br]together with the noun, 0:02:25.840,0:02:29.095 the adjective with the noun[br]that it modifies, 0:02:29.120,0:02:33.339 and a preposition[br]with the thing that it refers to. 0:02:35.137,0:02:40.084 You can find out more about line breaking[br]in a guide on our OTPedia 0:02:40.109,0:02:42.306 entitled "How to break lines." 0:02:42.885,0:02:48.382 Now, on to the other thing we can learn[br]from that subtitle info box. 0:02:48.695,0:02:51.585 The number of characters per second, 0:02:52.109,0:02:53.530 which is also known as... 0:02:54.195,0:02:55.419 The reading speed. 0:02:56.187,0:03:00.448 Because after all, it's not only about[br]how long the subtitle is, 0:03:00.722,0:03:03.370 but also about how long[br]it stays on the screen 0:03:03.563,0:03:06.480 and how much time[br]we give people to read it. 0:03:07.721,0:03:12.440 The ideal reading speed for languages[br]that use Latin script 0:03:12.665,0:03:16.541 is about 15 to 21 characters per second. 0:03:17.466,0:03:21.153 But where is this number coming from,[br]and why is it important? 0:03:22.489,0:03:28.868 Well, the reading speed tells you[br]how long your subtitle can actually be. 0:03:29.768,0:03:33.112 For example, if you have[br]a subtitle with 40 characters 0:03:33.480,0:03:35.589 which displays for two seconds, 0:03:36.167,0:03:41.026 you only require the viewer[br]to read at 20 characters per second. 0:03:42.056,0:03:43.801 This is easily manageable, 0:03:43.826,0:03:47.509 so 40 characters[br]would be fine in this case. 0:03:48.112,0:03:52.817 But if the same subtitle were to stay[br]on the screen for only one second, 0:03:53.591,0:03:58.353 the viewer would need to be able to read[br]at 40 characters per second, 0:03:58.887,0:04:01.982 which is impossible for most people[br]to keep up with, 0:04:02.311,0:04:05.584 and it would mean that the subtitle[br]needs to be shortened. 0:04:07.038,0:04:10.922 Fortunately, you don't need to calculate[br]all that stuff in your head, 0:04:11.274,0:04:14.335 because the new info box[br]in the Amara interface 0:04:14.360,0:04:15.844 will do the work for you. 0:04:16.789,0:04:22.432 Let's see an example of why maintaining[br]a convenient reading speed is important. 0:04:22.956,0:04:29.104 In this short clip from a TEDxNoviSad talk[br]by Dragana Marjanović, 0:04:29.463,0:04:35.357 the reading speed in all of the subtitles[br]is above 21 characters per second. 0:04:37.642,0:04:40.012 And what happened right after[br]the first year of our doing this project 0:04:40.037,0:04:42.680 was that I was awarded what was to be[br]my first very big architectural project, 0:04:42.705,0:04:45.495 which was to plaster up all of the surface[br]of the pretty four-story staircase 0:04:45.520,0:04:46.721 that was located in a nice building 0:04:46.746,0:04:48.359 located in the famous city[br]of Grenoble, France. 0:04:48.384,0:04:50.646 This, for me, was a four month long period[br]of work related practice 0:04:50.772,0:04:52.679 which was mostly in France[br]but also partly in Bulgaria 0:04:52.704,0:04:54.398 and after that was concluded,[br]I began to study again. 0:04:54.423,0:04:56.518 This time, it was the earth architecture[br]of Spain and Portugal. 0:04:57.565,0:05:00.605 When I was finally able to return home,[br]I immediately began my graduation project 0:05:00.630,0:05:03.063 which was about the earth architecture[br]of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina. 0:05:03.938,0:05:07.500 So, anyone remembers[br]what happened in Bulgaria? 0:05:07.993,0:05:09.766 And where was the nice building? 0:05:11.837,0:05:15.046 For the previous clip,[br]I modified the English subtitles 0:05:15.071,0:05:19.226 created by Tatjana Jevdjic[br]and reviewed by Ivana Korom, 0:05:19.656,0:05:24.780 and made them longer, with reading speeds[br]much over the comfortable values. 0:05:25.679,0:05:29.655 Here is the same clip[br]with the original subtitles, 0:05:29.882,0:05:34.718 so, with perfect reading speeds[br]of no more than 21 characters per second. 0:05:36.343,0:05:41.106 After the first year,[br]we got the first big job: 0:05:41.497,0:05:46.169 to plaster the four-story staircase[br]in a building in Grenoble, 0:05:46.194,0:05:49.181 after which I had[br]a four-month work practice, 0:05:49.206,0:05:51.680 partly in France and partly in Bulgaria, 0:05:51.705,0:05:54.987 and then I was studying[br]earth architecture of Spain and Portugal. 0:05:56.417,0:05:59.189 I returned home and started[br]a graduation project 0:05:59.214,0:06:01.702 about the earth architecture of Vojvodina. 0:06:03.179,0:06:04.733 Much easier to follow, right? 0:06:05.684,0:06:08.154 The thing about the subtitle reading speed 0:06:08.179,0:06:11.084 is that in addition[br]to reading the subtitles, 0:06:11.390,0:06:13.900 the viewer needs to take in[br]other information, 0:06:13.925,0:06:17.217 like the speaker's body language[br]and intonation 0:06:17.764,0:06:21.369 and some on-screen content[br]like slides and pictures. 0:06:22.413,0:06:25.327 And it may be difficult to follow[br]the subtitles themselves 0:06:25.788,0:06:27.897 if they disappear very quickly. 0:06:28.171,0:06:31.212 Especially if the viewer[br]doesn't understand the original language 0:06:31.237,0:06:33.685 well enough to help them[br]figure out what's going on. 0:06:34.819,0:06:37.270 And thankfully, that new info box in Amara 0:06:37.295,0:06:43.154 helps you see when the reading speed[br]exceeds the 21 characters per second limit 0:06:43.647,0:06:47.179 and thus, it shows you where you can help[br]the viewer in following the talk. 0:06:48.257,0:06:50.132 To fix the reading speed, 0:06:50.609,0:06:56.113 some more advanced users may want[br]to adjust the timing of some subtitles, 0:06:56.777,0:07:01.050 but in almost every case[br]your main tool will be... 0:07:02.519,0:07:03.729 Compression. 0:07:04.894,0:07:10.272 Which means, trying to express[br]the same meaning in a shorter subtitle. 0:07:11.257,0:07:14.089 For example, an almost literal translation 0:07:14.114,0:07:19.672 like "Now, what I would like to give[br]you people here is yet another example," 0:07:20.063,0:07:21.757 with 70 characters, 0:07:21.782,0:07:23.711 can be changed into... 0:07:24.352,0:07:26.188 "I'd like to give you another example," 0:07:26.446,0:07:29.893 which compresses it down to 37 characters 0:07:30.151,0:07:33.814 and which may mean this will allow[br]the viewer to read it 0:07:33.839,0:07:35.573 before it's gone off the screen. 0:07:36.081,0:07:40.143 Trying to find a way[br]to compress the subtitle is fun, 0:07:40.292,0:07:42.767 and the new interface helps you 0:07:42.792,0:07:47.034 by showing you[br]when compressing is necessary, 0:07:47.222,0:07:49.671 but also when you can do without it. 0:07:50.552,0:07:52.946 You can learn more[br]about compressing subtitles 0:07:52.971,0:07:55.479 and find other compression[br]strategies and examples 0:07:55.504,0:07:57.409 in another guide on OTPedia, 0:07:57.575,0:08:00.432 called simply "How to compress subtitles." 0:08:01.153,0:08:03.914 I encourage you[br]to explore the new interface 0:08:04.070,0:08:06.773 and these new,[br]helpful tools that it offers. 0:08:07.414,0:08:10.937 And, for now,[br]happy transcribing and translating!