Using captioning on tv

Karen G · Sep 15, 2014

My husband and I really like to watch the British mystery & detective shows on PBS but often the British accents make it hard to understand the dialogue and follow the plot. We tried it with the captions turned on, and it has made all the difference. Now we can understand what's going on.

Just thought I'd mention it in case anyone else is having the same experience.

Free2Roam · Sep 15, 2014

I almost always have captions on... even shows without accents. I've found that I get more of the dialogue that way. The downside is sometimes I get lost in the captions and forget to watch the show! So I rewind and it takes longer to get thru the program.

BevL · Sep 15, 2014

We too use the captions. We started because Greg likes to watch TV in the bedroom while I like the volume down a bit lower. He can watch and keep up that way.

it drives our friends batty - we don't really care, we have it on all the time.

csxjohn · Sep 15, 2014

We own quite a few British comedy series and once in a while we can' understand what's being said and turn it on just for that portion.

But as freein2010 suggests, it detracts from the sight comedy so it goes off once we figure out what's being said.

I think the show we used it on the most was Last Of The Summer Wine. Of course there are more of those to watch than any other British show we own.

Kay H · Sep 15, 2014

We keep our captiom
Ns on all the time because my dh is hard of hearing and refuses to get a hearing aid.

Passepartout · Sep 15, 2014

Good suggestion. My hearing is not as good as it used to be, and those British dramas and comedies are fun to watch- much more so if you can follow the story. I will give this a go- even though captions drive me crazy. I watch them, even when the audio is perfectly understandible.

Fern Modena · Sep 15, 2014

I'm different than most people, and have a different tolerance set. I can understand many types of accidents since I worked on a 2-way radio dispatch system for many years (and many of the people I responded to were not English as a first language speakers).

What drives me crazy is when somebody is speaking English, and there is OPEN captioning, because whoever did the program thought the person didn't speak clearly enough (one example, the chef Marimoto on FoodTV).

Fern

DeniseM · Sep 15, 2014

I've been watching the Outlander Series where they all have Scottish and English accents, and CC is essential, if you don't want to miss anything.

PigsDad · Sep 15, 2014

Fern Modena said:
What drives me crazy is when somebody is speaking English, and there is OPEN captioning, because whoever did the program thought the person didn't speak clearly enough (one example, the chef Marimoto on FoodTV).

+1

At times I find that quite insulting to both the speaker and to me as the viewer.

Kurt

pwrshift · Sep 15, 2014

I know my hearing is getting worse and solve it by turning up the TV volume...which is often too loud for others in the room.

I can't figure out how to set the cc so it doesn't turn the volume off. On my LG there are many cc choices but I can't find one that allows the volume to play along with the captioning.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Brian

hvsteve1 · Sep 16, 2014

I recently spend a few weeks in London and got together with a group I had met only on line. One of the fellows called my mobile to invite me out and left a long message. When I heard the message I had no idea who was calling or what he was saying for about two or three minutes. The next day one of the other fellows asked me if his friend had called. THEN I knew who it was. When we got together, I still couldn't understand half of what he said (real cockney type of accent). The best way I could see to approach it was to tell him, "It's not you. It's me. Whenever I watch Masterpiece Theatre I need the closed captioning. So please speak more slowly".

VegasBella · Sep 16, 2014

I started using captions when my family and I disagreed about what to watch and began watching different programs on different devices. I used them when headphones weren't reasonable or when there was just too much background noise.

Then I started getting interested in sign language and deafness. I took an ASL class and one of the suggestions was to try to experience life as a deaf person now and then by removing sound from your life deliberately (earplugs).

I started really noticing these captions a lot more - how some programs don't have them, how some programs create them after the video is made, how some programs use the script to create the captions and it doesn't always follow, how some programs have a computer program that does it, etc.

ace2000 · Sep 16, 2014

If we watch a home movie it is always with the captions turned on. Easier to follow the story and not miss something.

persia · Sep 17, 2014

Yes, the subtitles are useful, a lot of actors don't know how to enunciate their words and you can miss the whole meaning of what they are saying. It's likely a by-product of our 200+ station world...

laurac260 · Sep 17, 2014

I don't have a problem with hearing, and find the captioning distracting, though I do appreciate it if the accent is so strong that I have difficulty following.

When I am at the gym, they keep the sound off the tv's, but the captioning going at all times. Captioning for live tv can be quite "interesting"!

PigsDad · Sep 17, 2014

laurac260 said:
Captioning for live tv can be quite "interesting"!

Yes, the computer-generated captioning can make for some very funny transcriptions. :rofl:

Kurt

persia · Sep 17, 2014

I needed the subtitles tonight for the FDR show, some of the real people they interviewed we incomprehensible, like the guy who worked as a kid helping to carry polio victims around the hot springs. I didn't have a clue what he was saying....

Using captioning on tv

Karen G

Free2Roam

TUG Review Crew

BevL

csxjohn

TUG Review Crew: Expert

Kay H

Passepartout

TUG Review Crew: Veteran

Fern Modena

DeniseM

PigsDad

pwrshift

Tug Review Crew: Rookie

hvsteve1

Tug Review Crew: Rookie

VegasBella

ace2000

persia

laurac260

PigsDad

persia