Subtitle Workshop - FAQ

1. How do I save the video file with subtitles?
   
   
   This is by far the most frequent question. What I have to say is that what you want to do does not have anything to do with Subtitle Workshop. The program is not meant for this task and never will. It can only handle text based subtitles and cannot "attach" them to any video. However, this does not mean there is no way to achieve this task, it only means that you can't do it with Subtitle Workshop (although it can help a bit). Note that we do not recommend at all to burn subtitles into video file (unless it's absolutely necessary) since the subtitles won't be able to be removed after and it needs whole re-compression of the movie, due to which you will loose video quality and precious time.
   The first thing you need to do is save your subtitles in SubStation Alpha format (SSA), this is the only part in which you will need to use Subtitle Workshop. Then you need to have this tools: VirtualDub or VirtualDubMod (better), "subtitler" or "TextSub" plug-ins for VirtualDub. There are many guides in many languages on how to proceed, try to search for one on these sites:
   
   

   • DivX-Digest
   • Doom9
2. How can I add subtitles to the DVDs I create?
   
   
   Another of the most frequent questions. Subtitle Workshop does not do the full job, but it can help a bit. You need additional software to achieve this task. Check this guide.
   Note that any comments/suggestions/error reports of the guide must be addressed to the author of it, who has no relationship at all with URUSoft.
3. I try to load a subtitle and I always get the same error message. What shall I do?
   
   
   Every time you load a file, it will be checked to see if it is a valid file and which is it's format. Most of the files will load properly, but if you get the "The file is a bad subtitle or an unsupported format" error message, there is still some chance you can load the file. First of all you must be sure about the format of the file, if you are, then proceed like this:

   1. Click the "File/Load subtitle" menu.
   2. A dialog will pop up, you have to select the right filter in it (there is a combo box where you see the "All supported files" text, you have to click the button with the arrow that is next to it and select the format of the file).
   3. Once you have done this, press the Open button in the dialog.

   This way there will be no automatic format recognition nor file check. If the file still can't be loaded, you will get the error message. In this case, if you are sure the file is a text-based subtitle format e-mail it to DeK.
4. I type X language characters but Subtitle Workshop doesn't display them correctly. What must I do?
   
   
   If you can't see characters properly, enter Settings/Charset section and change "Original charset" and "Translation charset" to the correct value. Do that if the characters are displayed wrongly only in the list & text boxes. If the characters aren't displayed correctly in the menus, buttons, etc. you will need to go to the language file you are using and change the "Font Charset" value to the correct charset (see charsets.txt in the language files directory for a reference). If you still don't see characters properly, go to "Regional and Language Options" in Control Panel, then in the "Advanced" tab, set the default "Language for non-Unicode programs" to your language, and you will see characters fine.
5. Is there a quick way to jump to the next/previous subtitle in the main list?
   
   
   Yes, there is. To jump to the next subtitle, press [Shift]+[Enter] and to jump to the previous subtitle press [Ctrl]+[Enter]. Each time you jump to the next/previous subtitle, the control that has the focus will not loose it, that means, you are editing subtitle 1, you press [Shift]+[Enter] and you can start directly typing the text of subtitle 2. The same thing applies to time values.
6. How can I select various subtitles that are not together?
   
   
   The default Windows selection schemes work under Subtitle Workshop. Hold the [Ctrl] key and then click all the subtitles you want to select. If you want to select many subtitles that are together, select the first one, hold the [Shift] key and select the last one. If you wish to de-select a selected subtitle, hold [Ctrl] and click it.
7. Is there a quick way to jump to the line that contains an error in the main list, from "Information and errors" window?
   
   
   Sure. Double click in the error report and you will be instantaneously transported to the line in the main list.
8. I hate pressing [Ctrl]+[I] multiple times! How can I jump to next error?
   
   
   You need to check errors once by pressing [Ctrl]+[I] or F9. After this is done, you can jump to next error by pressing F12.
9. How can I manually add a FPS to the lists without using "Add FPS from AVI"?
   
   
   Just select the text in the "FPS" or the "Input FPS" fields, type a new FPS (the decimal separator must be ",") and press [Enter].
10. How do I simulate double click on a subtitle, but with the keyboard?
    
    
    Select the subtitle and press [Alt]+[Enter].
11. How do I configure my own shortcuts?
    
    
    Open the "shortcuts.key" file inside Subtitle Workshop's directory with any text editor, read the information on the header, modify the file, save it and run the program.