Capturing Closed Captions (CC) Through 1seg Broadcasts

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2008 2:01 pm Post subject: Post Rating: 0

You provide a great service for the people on this site.

In your first post, you mentioned ways around the whole BCAS system out here.

Do you know how I can get around all of this encryption. I'd like to bring Hi-Vision files to the folks on this site and a few others... but, all of the encryption limits me to downconverting to an analog format. (I can only record 853x480 on my PC).

If you know any way for me to record a straight Hi-Vision stream or transfer it from my Hi-Vision recorder, I'd love to know....

That, or if you know of a place where I can get ahold of a Friio without having to pay around $1000 on Yahoo! Auctions.

But, again, you're providing an amazing service to this community. When I turn some shows on ... it definitely helps to have that subtitle button at times.

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2008 4:48 pm Post subject: Post Rating: 0

Well, this is an interesting thread.

Personally I have found it more useful to have the CC file ope in another window and work with it to the side of the subbing program. The way that rokonoko has the file set up works very well for me.

@rokonoko & siantut I've committed to translating Ryokiteki na Kanojo, so I want to make sure that someone will be able to get the CC for that, so I'm going to start begging now. Smile

Please!

@sapporo girl my brother-in-law is from Alabama, but now he and my sister live in Georgia. The south sort of creeps me out. It's not the PigglyWiggy's or the boiled green peanuts. I like the dialect and the people are nice... it's the ubiquitous Waffle Houses... I never thought any chain would be more prolific than McDonald's but in the south I think the Waffle House wins hands down. Next time I visit my sister I'll try to be brave and go in one. By the way it's cold here in Kansas too. -7 C, but we don't get the joy of snow, just piercing winds so I would be happy to have some of that snow come our way.

Personally I have no use for uni, but kani I would gladly accept any day of the week. We've got one really good sushi restaurant here in town and the chef keeps his nori in a shiroi koibito box. I'm not sure if he is from Hokkaido or not. I never asked. I think Nodame likes those too. ;)

I'm not sure who "Kyle" is, but I eagerly await answers Big Smile

Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 1:07 am Post subject: Post Rating: 0

'First and foremost, Siantut! Please don't allow the script for Daisuki to stress you out. As much as I would love to have it, it isn't worth giving you headaches. Like you said, it's the thought that that counts.

Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 4:11 am Post subject: Post Rating: 0

Ara... Seems like I've been missing a lot of action ; )

@Siantut, thank you for investing your time and money in this project.
I received your PM. Sorry for not mentioning it earlier, but when I try to PM you (last time was today) it says that "This user doesn't accept private messages". I hope you can fix it sometime soon.

As for the subs... Sorry to disappoint you, but CMs do really mess up the timings. And you have to sync the subs manually. Usually you have to sync only one line from each subs file and the others should align automatically (don't forget to select all lines when syncing that one line). And it is better to sync the second or third line in the file. Don't know why, but the first one seems always to be a little bit out of sync with other lines. BTW, all this is the reason why I made XMLSubParser to split subs at the CMs. It makes syncing much easier.
And it really doesn't matter how you record subtitles: in real-time or by playback. I myself did it several times. Things can get messy if you speed playback up, but otherwise there should be no problems. Can you please post that XML file for Daisuki!! from which you got short subtitles. I'd like to test it - there might be a bug in XMLSubParser. If you can please post it in Japanese subtitles thread for Daisuki!!
I hope that everything works out fine : )

@Hikkichan, I actually don't know how to bypass BCAS. I even don't have access to HDTV (too poor for that ; ) I'm not sure that there is any other way than to reencode analog signal. Try asking RAW providers, they surely know more than me.

@Canmield, I'll do the subs for Ryokiteki na Kanojo : )

Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 8:21 am Post subject: Post Rating: 0

Wow. I hope that's not a lot of work.

For my purposes you could leave the commercials in. It wouldn't make any difference to me. I haven't seen Japanese commercials for a while. I kinda miss them. I actually asked one of the RAW providers if I could have some.

I know other people are downloading them though, and it does make it easier to find the line I'm looking for.

I know I keep saying thank you, but it's ridiculous how much easier and faster it is to do these with the CC.

Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 4:50 am Post subject: Post Rating: 0

@Rokonoko: Ah, sorry, I didn't know you couldn't PM me. I think I have fixed it now, but don't worry, my PM at that time is already answered by your wonderful tutorial anyway! I asked only because I wanted to know whether I may PM you next time or not. Thanks!

Nono, I am not disappointed at all, you have done a GREAT job, as no one else seems to ever think about it! I did some googlings and it seems that you are THE only one thinking it up (using DrawTextW to catch CC) About my failure to generate the srt file completely, I found out that it is not because of the CMs. For some reason, my WinAPIOverride32 logs by chops of 10 minutes each. After the first 10 min, it will give the start time of the same start time of the previous 10 minutes. I am not sure if I am being clear. For example, if the first start time is 10:30, it will log until 10:40, but then it will go back to 10:30 again, and runs until 10:40 again, before going back to 10:30 again, on and on. That's why it cannot give the correct srt file with the correct timing. I am wondering if it is the setting of my WinAPIOverride32, as I found out that the same thing also happened with my log of Shika Otoko. Or, could it be because I have the wrong parameters in my Monitoring File?

Here is the content of my API Monitoring File: (saved as User32.dll in txt format)
user32.dll|int DrawTextW( HDC hDC, LPCWSTR lpString, int nCount, LPRECT lpRect, UINT uFormat )|Out

As for the Columns, I checked everything in it (just in case)
I did not load any API Overriding File because I have no idea what to load. Could it be the cause?
Maybe next time I can take screen captures of my setting so you can see what is wrong with my setting. Thanks in advance.

Another thing that I noticed is the s/w PCast for 1 Seg by Buffalo itself. I think there might be a bug/some bugs in it. Though I have bought it since last September, I stopped using it after I noticed that sometimes the video playback doesn't do what it is supposed to do. Or, it will play OK at first, but then for some reason it won't play anymore when I tried to replay the same video a few days later. Or another weird thing: it will suddenly stop playing in the middle of the movie, and will go back to the TV screen all of a sudden, leaving us stranded with an incomplete log. This seems to happen again and again when I tried to log "Daisuki".

Do you think it will be worth buying IO Data 1seg tuner to try this? Because there is always a risk that IO Data could be "smarter" than Buffalo and would not let us spy on it/catch the CC. I don't mind buying it though, just to see if it might work better than Buffalo. As far as I know, IO Data has always been one step ahead of Buffalo in TV Tuners, so maybe it has less bugs in it.

Well, actually I went to Akihabara again yesterday, and bought Bufallo's TV Tuner PC-MV71DX/U2
It does not have 1seg, but it has the s/w PCast TV2.
Knowing that we can catch the CC using PCast for 1seg, I was hoping that I could catch the CC using PCast TV2. It is also by Buffalo anyway. So I went home, installed it and connected it to my digital DVD recorder to catch the digital data stream broadcast with the CC. It can show the CC alright on PC Cast TV2, just like the 1seg. However, when I launched WinAPIOverride32 to log it, nothing came out!! GRRRRR!! To make things worse, when I tried to record some shows, it said: "Because this show is protected by copyright, your recording will automatically stop now."

Here are my XML files for both Daisuki and Shika Otoko (both episode 6)
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=JQ4ICX7M
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=A04VCEV8

For Daisuki, I found out that it is only about half, because the playback suddenly stopped and switched to TV for no apparent reason. Therefore, the CC is all mixed up with a different show. What a mess!
I don't think you can do anything to clear up the mess, because the timings itself is incoorect, in the first place. Thanks anyway for offering to help with Daisuki.

My only problem now is how to make my WinAPIOverride32 logs correctly in chronological time order, instead of logging it in 10-minutes chops that goes to a loop. I will appreciate it if you can point out what might cause it. Thank you, Rokonoko.
Please take your time.

Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 5:04 am Post subject: Post Rating: 0

Sapporo Girl, gomen, I couldn't manage to extract/log the complete CC although I have recorded the whole episode. The video player of the s/w PCast TV for 1 seg keeps stopping and refuses to play completely to the end. I wonder if it has anything to do with copyright protection but I hope not.

Here is the text file of the CC log, but it is messed up in time, and also messed up with another show. Maybe you can just ditch it before you get a hedache.
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=8DCIYPMD

Once again, gomen ne.

Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 9:48 am Post subject: Post Rating: 0

@Siantut, I've checked the logs. The strange thing is that they seem to be only 10 minutes long each. As for the time logging problem with WinAPIOverride32, I first thought that maybe there is a bug in new version (I'm using v3.0). I got a new one (4.01) and tried it. Funny thing, everything works fine. I recorded about 30 minutes (stopped it so not to waste time) of last Shikaotoko and the timings were correct (no 10 minutes loops). Maybe you are doing something in a different way. Here is the description of how I deal with WinAPIOverride32:
1. Start the app.
2. Select "Attach to all new processes" radial button and press "Filters" button.
3. In the field "Inclusion filters" I write 'pcast*' (without quotes) and press OK. I do it because it makes logging scheduled recordings easier.
4. Press big green triangle play button.
5. Then press "..." button close to "API Monitoring configuration" field and select the monitoring file. BTW, your file is good. But it is better to change OUT at the end of the definition to IN. It makes program log parameters before passing them to API function.
6. Press "Load" button.
7. Start PCast and wait for some subs to get logged.
8. In the log window, select the subs which I want to export. Through the context menu (right click) select "Export Selected" and export to XML.
9. Use XMLSubParser to convert xml file to srt.
One final note: it is better to select small size for CCs in PCast so that lines won't break in the middle of the word. And also you don’t have to use any API Overriding files.

I hope it helps, because I can't think of any reasons for your problem. WinAPIOverride32 bases its timing on system clock. If your system clock works fine there should be no problems. Maybe you have some conflict in software.

I also haven't encountered any problems with PCast playback yet. Manufacturer claims that copyright protection is hardware and decoding is done in TV tuner itself. Any hardware problems may cause problems with playback. Also, bad recording conditions (weak signal) can cause such problems. You can try and update PCast to a newer version (I still use the one which came with the tuner).

I don’t recommend you buying any additional hardware right now. It would be better to deal with current problems first.

Please comment if you succeed or not.

Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 1:17 pm Post subject: Post Rating: 0

Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2008 11:21 am Post subject: Post Rating: 0

@Rokonoko, thank you very much again for your detailed instruction. Actually my versions of PCast and WinAPIOverride32 are also of the newest version (v. 1.4 for PCast and 4.01 for WinAPIOverride32). The way I did it also did not differ much from what you did, but regardless I did it your way or my way, the logs still come out in 10 minutes chops. I think you are right, it should be either hardware or software conflict with my PC. The clock on my PC is fine, there is nothing wrong with it.

Good news is that I still have another PC although it is rather old and its specs is not as good as my main PC (less softwares too). When I installed the 1seg tuner and WinAPIOverride32 on it and tried to log the CC, it is successful! The log does not come in chops! I logged a show for about 30 minutes and the timing came correctly. Therefore, I can use my 2nd PC to do this.

Now what might cause the difference? I wonder. Both PC has the same versions of PCast and WinAPIOverride32 with the same setting, both has the same anti-virus s/w with the same setting too. The difference is the OS (my main PC uses XP Pro while my 2nd PC uses XP Home, both Japanese OS), in addition to the hardwares and the softwares installed. Another thing that might cause this could be the fact that I installed 2 Buffalo's 1seg tuners on my main PC (U2 and U2V). When I installed the 2nd tuner, I had to set the setting to be "multi tuners use" at installation. Unless I installed as "multi tuners", it won't work as multi tuners. If you are thinking of getting another Buffalo 1seg tuner to record 2 shows at the same time, please be careful because in my experience, I failed to uninstalled it and I got stuck with multi-tuners (maybe it is in the registry and has to be deleted manually).

About the video players refusing to play or stopped halfway, it happens to both my main and 2nd PC. It is not the antenna or data reception because the video is already in my drive in complete form. One day I could play the file completely, the next day it will just refuse to play or play half way. How weird. Actually, to get a good reception, I connect the tuner to a TV antenna directly, so I don't think it is corrupted data, unless it is made in such a way to be self-destroying after a few playbacks.....

Thanks so much again, Rokonoko. It is still good for me and Sapporo Girl because I can do it on my 2nd PC, but it is worrying that it fails with my main PC without any clue why it fails. It puts a question mark to any prospective buyer whether it will work like your PC and my 2nd PC, or fail like my main PC.

BTW, Pcast version 1.5 is out on Buffalo's OHP, but I didn't install it, just in case it messes things up.

Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2008 11:30 am Post subject: Post Rating: 0

Dear Sapporo Girl,

Good news! I can log with correct timings using my 2nd PC! So I can still do it for you from chapter 7! If I flop in converting to XML, I can send the XML file to Rokonoko maybe, or if you don't mind it in Notepad form, I can always send you the text in Notepad. Next time I will do it in real time, just in case I have problems with video playback again.

Please don't worry or feel bad for me, I enjoy doing this, and it is quite a challenge for me too. Thank you very much for your kind offer, the same things for you too!

Take care and good luck with Daisuki. I will send you chapter 7 around Friday.
*Crossing my fingers it will be OK this time*

Posted: Tue Feb 26, 2008 12:53 am Post subject: Post Rating: 0

Dear sweet Siantut!

Thank you so much! I am looking forward to Friday! I don't mind Notepad form. I still plan to coordinate with Tianj on the timings because she has already spoiled me so much!

Making these subtitles are a pure labor of love for me. It's one of the few things that brings me real joy. For a person like me, having your script just isn't about having the words in front on me. It's about having a firmer vision and more translation options. I'm less skilled than most translators here. I'm still learning. Although I use Japanese every day, I've never had time to formally study. In a way, I'm actually learning on the job. There's no doubt in my mind, the subtitles from episode 7 onwards will be superior to the ones before!

We had a nasty storm a couple of days ago. As a result, our entrance exams were postponed until today. As soon as they are graded and our trip to Tokyo is over, I'll start catching up on Daisuki. For certain, I will be in Tokyo again in September. I hope we can meet and I'll be able to treat you to lunch!!!

Thank you, Siantut! Thank you Rokonoko!! I am looking forward to the new season!

Posted: Thu Feb 28, 2008 3:30 pm Post subject: Post Rating: 0

@ Rokonoko:
I tried to convert the XML to srt format but it does not work. It used to work before.
Let me make sure how to do it.
We put the XMLSubParser and the xml file in the same directory, open DOS to the same directory, and type:
XMLSubParser.exe daisuki07.xml mult
Is that right? When I did it, it gave me a blank text file instead of an srt file.

@Sapporo Girl:

Dear Sapporo Girl,

The captions might have extra lines from later shows, I guess you know where it ends.Gomen about it.

BTW, you are being very modest, I am sure with your love and devotion for subbing, your subs are great! Please enjoy your time in Tokyo, who knows we might bump into each other on the street!

PS: Please check the same URL every week for Daisuki's new CC. I will post them there.

@Canmield:
Gomen I did not offer my services earlier, as I was still having an issue in capturing the CC. I seem to be fine now using my 2nd PC, so if you need any help in the future, pls don't hesitate to ask me. Ganbatte!

Posted: Fri Feb 29, 2008 2:06 am Post subject: Post Rating: 0

[quote="siantut"]
Dear Sapporo Girl,

@Siantut!

These are absolutely beautiful!!! Thank you so much! Although I'm a behind with my translation, I'm so excited to have this extra resource!!! I know I can finish the series before the new season starts. I've bookmarked the blog, so I'll definitely check there regularly! You and Rokonoko are such a blessing!!!

As I said before, I'll take the text in any format. This is absolutely fine for the way I make translations.

I'm so happy! I wish we could meet in March. I'm afraid I'll be actually working then. If you're around in the summer, I know I'll be on Honshu several times and definitely in Tokyo at some point. I know we'll be there in September.

Next season, Henna_Sapporo will do Gokusen 3 . We'll certainly be grateful if you or Rokonoko could snag the text for that drama. We'll take it in any form!

Bows humbly!
SG!!

Posted: Fri Feb 29, 2008 5:05 am Post subject: Post Rating: 0

@ siantut

Oh, I just wanted to make sure that it was going to be covered. I'm beginning to see how complicated this all is from reading this post. I don't know how long I will be at this, but this whole thing is a godsend. I wouldn't have the patience to go through all of that.

Joins Sapporo Girl in humble bowing. Much love to you and Rokonoko!