Transcripts with Timecodes

You can add transcripts to Mandala Audio-Video. These transcripts let you add captions. They are also dynamic: users can click on lines in the transcript to navigate around the video. If you want to use these dynamic features, you should add transcripts in VTT format. (You might want transcription without associating the text with timepoints. In this case, you can upload plain text files. Learn more at [Transcripts].)

WebVTT Format

You can create WebVTT files in any text editor, as long as you save with the extension .srt. Here's an example of a VTT transcript.  

WebVTT  
 
00:00:01.00 --> 00:00:03.01
Hello, welcome to Audio-Video.  
 
00:00:04.00 --> 00:00:05.02
You can create dynamic transcripts with Audio-Video.  
 
00:00:05.15 --> 00:00:7.00
We can help you get started quickly

Each file will consist of the following:

1. This text at the top of the document: WEBVTT
2. The lines of the transcript

Transcript Lines

Each transcript "line" or "unit" consists of...

1. A Transcripts with Timecodes with start and end times
2. The transcript for the timestamp
3. A blank line

Timestamps

Timestamps let you add a start and end time for the transcript. This helps Mandala associate a moment in the video with the text.  Timestamps consist of the following, all on the same line: 

1. The start time for the transcript in a hh:mm:ss.ms format
   • For media assets shorter than one hour, hours (hh:) are optional
2.  Two hypens followed by a greater-than sign: -->
   • Make sure these don't reformat into arrows (→) automatically. Your transcript will not work otherwise. 
3. The end time for your transcript in a hh:mm:ss.ms format
   • For media assets shorter than one hour, hours (hh:) are optional

Multilingual Transcripts

Mandala recognizes multilingual transcripts. This lets you include multiple languages and translations in one transcript file. You can use these transcripts to make multilingual captions. 

Separating languages is more flexible in Mandala than in the official WebVTT standard. You can separate languages by: 

1. Putting each language on a new line, OR
2. Using a sequence of characters to separate languages
   • You can use any set of characters, as long as the set is consistent 

Here's an example using / to separate out languages.

WebVTT  
 
00:00:01.00 --> 00:00:03.01
Hello, welcome to Audio-Video./ 
Hola, bienvenido a Audio-Video. 
 
00:00:04.00 --> 00:00:05.02
You can create dynamic transcripts with Audio-Video./
Usted puede crear transcripciónes con Audio-Video. 
 
00:00:05.15 --> 00:00:7.00
We can help you get started quickly./ 
Nosotros podemos ayudarle a empezar rápidamente.