Forced Subtitles Not Automatic?

Discussion in 'HDD Media player(RTD 1619DR)' started by Nicholas Hewitt, Jun 13, 2021.

  1. Nicholas Hewitt

    Nicholas Hewitt Active Member

    Hey. just wondering if it's possible for Zidoo to play the forced subtitles automatically........ kind of like every media player on the planet. I have to set it every time I remember which is after missing some of the dialogue. They are all labeled as forced so I don't understand why it's not selected automatically. I mean its called forced for a reason, right? Unless I'm missing something. There should be an option at least.
     
  2. Netmask

    Netmask Well-Known Member

    Normally you need to set in the settings, to turn on the subs, in most media players. Then assuming the Zidoo recognises the forced flag in say a MKV file then only that sub track will be activated in the presence of any other's within the file and as long as any of the other subs have not been flagged "default". What I do especially with MKV files is routinely run it through MKVToolNix and untick all subs I don't want and in my case leaving English only as I have age related hearing loss I mark it as the default track.

    If it's a SDH sub then I run the file through Subtitle Edit and select "Remove Text For Hearing Impaired", this removes all the descriptive text and just leaves the dialog and that's all I need for some voices. The definition of forced really relates to only foreign spoken language that may be spoken during a few scenes like in Star Wars where a intergalaxy made up language is spoken, of in Star Trek with encounters with the BORG, although one can now learn BORG if you desire!!! If you only require "forced" subs and none are provided you can generally download them from several subtitle sites, only takes a few minutes.

    Another trick is, if there is a forced track within a MKV file and that forced track is not the default then set it as the default in MKVToolNix and I would untick all others, then remux.
     
  3. Nicholas Hewitt

    Nicholas Hewitt Active Member

    Thanks for getting back to me. I always keep the forced because a lot of movies have foreign language that is set as forced. Like Indiana Jones when they speak German in the first and 3rd Movie and Indian in the second. So what setting exactly do I set it to only play forced.
     
  4. Nicholas Hewitt

    Nicholas Hewitt Active Member

    Nvm I found it. Thanks a lot.
     
  5. johnwoods41

    johnwoods41 New Member

    I had this issue, and all I do is find the track that has the forced subtitles on and use the "header editor" tool in MKVToolNix and add the forced tag back as for some reason make mkv doesn't save this within the file. No need to remix just resave and its instant
     
  6. Netmask

    Netmask Well-Known Member

    [​IMG]

    These are the settings just remux or edit the header
     
  7. Markswift2003

    Markswift2003 Well-Known Member SUPER Administrator Beta test group Contributor

    Er - it does. Or at least mine does.

    Zidoo has honoured the forced flag in MKV since the Z9S, probably before, can't remember.. and the Z9X is no exception (Sorry to state the blindingly obvious, but forced subs only work if standard subs are turned off!).

    I do the same as you - get rid of all subs and audio tracks I don't need on the basis that, with the greatest respect, it's highly unlikely that I will ever learn Croatian or Mandarin Chinese.
     
  8. Nicholas Hewitt

    Nicholas Hewitt Active Member

    I only have the English Audio and Forced English for the foreign languages on all my rips. Some forced Subs don't even show up if I turn forced subs on. They disappear. Like Indiana Jones. I had English forced subs only in my rip and had forced off so I went into the subs menu while the movie was playing and selected the forced sub-track. After the movie, I asked this question then went and turned forced subs on in the settings menu. Then when I went back to that same movie to see if it was working. The forced sub-track was missing.
     
  9. Nicholas Hewitt

    Nicholas Hewitt Active Member

    What do you mean "or edit the header? I thought you had to remux it after you change something anyways.
     
  10. Netmask

    Netmask Well-Known Member

    I’ve not gone the edit header path but I’ve read references on the Doom forum. I always remux.
     
  11. Whitfield

    Whitfield Active Member

    Often remuxing will be necessary.
    But when it's just headers - again, just headers - you can edit them in mkvtoolnix's header editor.
     

    Attached Files:

  12. Sledgehamma

    Sledgehamma Well-Known Member

    Because it remembered the setting for the specific movie.
    Forced subs work absolutely flawlessly with the Zidoo.
    Just make sure the forced flag is set correctly as others have mentioned and make sure to set forced subtitles to “auto” under “playback”-> “forced subtitle”.
     
    Markswift2003 likes this.
  13. johnwoods41

    johnwoods41 New Member

    when I rip my films I only rip with English subtitles say, then I can just use the header tool and select the subtitle track with is the forced version and mark that as forced
    upload_2021-6-14_12-16-33.png
    then just save the file. if you are removing them and removing auto then suppose you would have to remux. there is a googlesheets file somewhere that has a list of films with forced subtitles and timing so it makes it a bit quicker but not sure what rules are on here of sharing that
     
  14. Whitfield

    Whitfield Active Member

    That would be handy indeed. The forced subtitles always have to be checked against what version of the movie is used though. I've seen different versions of the same movie where the forced subs are burned into (thus, a part of) the video, and where the video is "clean" and authored with forced supstreams.


    BTW, did any of you check out latest Argo UHD? I came across an English SUP that's used in that movie. It contains subtitles that are a combined image of "a descriptive text", with different font, somewhere in the middle of the screen and "spoken text" with a default font, on the bottom of the movie. Directly followed by a subtitle that's an image of only the same "spoken text" on the exact location where the previous spoken text was. So during playback, the spoken text appears to be displayed for a longer period than the descriptive. Clever authoring...

    But a drag for people who just want the descriptive text of the SUP (whether you want to flag/author them as forced or not).
    Or for people like me, that tend to home-brew their own SUP from the extracted original.
     
  15. johnwoods41

    johnwoods41 New Member

    Netmask likes this.
  16. Whitfield

    Whitfield Active Member

    Thanks for the link.
    When you have the right srt file, most of the legwork is already done. With Subtitle Edit, it's no big trouble to isolate the 'Navi' text and save it as separate srt. Install font "Papyrus.TTF", use this in Export --> BD SUP and voilá, SUPs only for Navi and with the original style. Mux as "forced". Done.
    Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

    Anyways, should anyone want it, here you go:
     

    Attached Files:

    johnwoods41 likes this.
  17. Nicholas Hewitt

    Nicholas Hewitt Active Member

    OK, but with makemkv do I need to also select the subtitle track on the first option? cause the English forced subtitle track is a branch or sub-branch of the English Sub Track
     
  18. Nicholas Hewitt

    Nicholas Hewitt Active Member

    I still don't understand how my forced subtitle tracks disappeared from the list in subtitle options after turning on Forced Subtitles.... I just watched the movie and had to select the forced subtitle track from the options cause I didn't have forced subtitles on then when I replayed it the forced subtitle track was missing and the only option in the subtitle selection menu was off
     
  19. Netmask

    Netmask Well-Known Member

    I've got into the habit over the years when using MakeMKV I simply leave all the tracks there as MakeMKV doesn't indicate which tracks are forced or SDH or just text. I get the lot! Then I run the MKV file through MKVToolNix and decide what I want or can drop. MKVToolNix normally identifies the subtitle type, SDH, Text and forced. I like to "keep my options open" until the final stage.
     
  20. Whitfield

    Whitfield Active Member

    As for the "forced subs to automatically being displayed"-conundrum respected to Zidoo, on current firmware, you can try this.
    In mkvtoolnix, set the audio-language the same as your desired forced subtitle track-language. For this forced sub track, set the "Forced display" flag to "Yes". Mux.

    Zidoo seems to always auto-play the forced subs in a such authored mkv with following settings in Playback menu:

    Default Language --> Subtitle --> Off
    Forced subtitle --> Follow current audio track

    I'd say that it would suit Zidoo to put effort in interpreting & handling of the various types of subtitlings alltogether. So not only how they are to be properly displayed/overlayed on different types of video-resolutions and -aspectratios. When (forced or not) subs are conditionally authored - which' meanings can be different to each container or format - things can become rather complex.
     

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