Broadcast Writer

I use Telestream CaptionMaker’s (for Windows) “Ripple Timecode” feature when I combine individual segments into a program or dividing a program into individual segments.

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Select the caption line where you want the timecode ripple to start.

• If you select only one caption line, CaptionMaker will apply the timecode ripple to that caption line and every caption line after that.
• If you highlight multiple caption lines, CaptionMaker will ONLY apply the timecode ripple to the caption lines you have selected.

Select the new starting timecode.

• Cue the videoplayer’s framehead to the frame where you want the first caption’s timecode to start.
• OR
• Make a mental note of the desired starting timecode and manually type that timecode into the Timecode Ripple GUI.

OPEN RIPPLE TIMECODE GUI

There is a keyboard shortcut to open the Ripple Timecode Menu.

I’ve got my CaptionMaker set to open Ripple when I press ALT + 7. But I may have customized the shortcut. The default shortcut might be something like Alt + R or CTRL + R.

You can view and change shortcut settings in the Tools Menu → Customize Keystrokes → Time Code Commands → Ripple Timecode.

You can either:

• Type in the new starting timecode “New starting time code for selected range.”
• Line up the video player with the new starting timecode and click “Set starting time code to current movie time.”
• Add of subtract a certain number of frames. Number of frames to add to all time codes..”
  • If you want to subtract frames, type a minus sign before the number of frames.

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😊Remember, you can access the CaptionMaker Manual any time by pressing the F1 key. It’s almost too easy to open the manual.

I accidentally hit the F1 key multiple times a day. Then, Adobe Acrobat launches and the Manual pops up.

[sigh…] The F1 key valuable keyboard real estate. I’ve asked Telestream Tech Support to make the F1 key assignable to no avail. If you feel the same, perhaps you could email Support at Telestream dot net 😊

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🎯ProTip: For those of us fancy captioners who do cut-to-scene-change caption switching, you can save yourself time in the future if you use CaptionMaker’s Notes field to note when a caption starts on a cut.

I use the Notes column all the time when I’m converting individual segments into a program or cutting a program into segments.

When I’m re-using caption files later on, I can ensure that the captions line up by checking each caption where I’ve previously marked a scene change cut to verify that the caption switch still falls on the cut.

Timecode can drift a little between file versions. So if the caption time no longer lines up with the video cut, I use Ripple Timecode to get that caption and all subsequent captions back on track timewise.

The Notes field is also handy for noting details that I still need to verify.

🎯

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