How to Add Subtitles to a Downloaded Video

This article explains how to create and install subtitle files for a downloaded video on your computer. After creating the subtitle file using a text editor, you can add it to the video using free programs like VLC or HandBrake.

Search for Notepad. This step helps you find the Notepad program on your computer.

Click on notepad. This option is found on the Start menu. Once clicked, the default text editor on your computer – Notepad – will open on the screen.

Enter the subtitle number for the first one. Type 0, then press ↵ Enter to start a new line.

• For the second subtitle, you will type 1, then use 2 for the third, and so on.

Create the timestamp for the subtitle. Each part of the timestamp must follow the format HH:MM:SS.TT, with the start and end times separated by a space and a double dash arrow, as shown below: HH:MM:SS.TT --> HH:MM:SS.TT.

• For example, if you want the first subtitle to appear from the 5th second to the 10th second, enter 00:00:05.00 --> 00:00:10.00 here. In some cases, seconds and milliseconds should be separated by a comma instead of a period.

Press ↵ Enter. This action creates a new line for you to enter the subtitle text.

Enter the subtitle text. The subtitle will appear on the same line unless you press ↵ Enter to create a new line for the text.

• You can also create a second line of subtitle by pressing ↵ Enter once and entering the content for the second line.

Press ↵ Enter twice. This action creates a gap between the previous subtitle and the starting point of the next subtitle.

Create subtitles for the remainder of the video. Each subtitle must include a number, a timestamp, at least one line of content, and a blank line between the subtitle and the next number.

Click on File (File). This is the option located in the upper left corner of the Notepad window. A menu will appear here.

Click on Save As… (Save As…). This option is found within the File menu that's currently visible. The Save As window will appear on the screen.

Enter the name of the video. You will type the name of the video for which subtitles are to be created in the "File name" field in the window that appears. The name must exactly match the name displayed for the video on your computer (including capitalization).

• For instance, if the video name on the computer is "Kermit Has the Moves", you will enter Kermit Has the Moves here.

Click on the 'Save as type' dropdown box. This option can be found near the bottom of the screen. A list of file types will appear here.

Click on All Files (All Files). This option will appear in the menu you’re currently viewing.

Convert the file to an SRT file format. Add .srt to the end of the filename.

• For example, using the previous file name, your SRT file would be named Kermit Has the Moves.srt.

Change the encoding if your subtitle is not in English. If you're not creating English subtitles, follow these steps:

• Click on the 'Encoding' option in the lower-right corner of the window.
• Select UTF-8 from the list of encodings.

Click on Save (Save). This button is located at the bottom of the window. By clicking it, you will save the SRT file to the folder you’ve selected. Now that your subtitle file is ready, the next step is to add it to the video.

Type textedit. This action will search for the TextEdit program on your Mac.

Double-click on TextEdit. This option appears at the top of your search results. This will launch the default text editor for Mac, TextEdit, on your screen.

Enter the number for the first subtitle. Type 0, then press ⏎ Return to start a new line.

• For the second subtitle, enter 1, then 2 for the third, and continue in sequence.

Create timecodes for the subtitles. Each segment of the timecode must be formatted as HH:MM:SS.TT, with the start and end times separated by a space and the arrow with two dashes, like this: HH:MM:SS.TT --> HH:MM:SS.TT.

• For example, if you want your first subtitle to appear from the 5th second to the 10th, enter 00:00:05.00 --> 00:00:10.00 here.

Press ⏎ Return. This action will create a new line where you can enter subtitle content.

Enter the subtitle text. The subtitle will remain on the same line unless you press ⏎ Return to finish the current line.

• You can also create a second subtitle line by pressing ⏎ Return once more and entering the content for the second line.

Press ⏎ Return twice. This action will insert a space between the previous subtitle and the start of the next one.

Create subtitles for the rest of the video. Each subtitle must include a number, a timestamp, at least one line of text, and a blank line between the subtitle text and the number for the next subtitle.

Click on Format (Formatting). This option is located at the top of the screen. A dropdown menu will appear after clicking it.

Click on Make Plain Text option. This option is available in the Format menu that is currently displayed.

Click on File option. The File menu is located at the top left corner of your screen. Clicking it will reveal a list of options.

Click on Save As option. This choice is available in the File menu currently displayed. A Save window will pop up on your screen.

Enter the name of the video. You will type the name of the video for which subtitles need to be created into the subtitle file name field. This name must match the displayed video name on your computer (including case sensitivity).

Add the subtitle file extension. After entering the video name, change the file extension from .txt to .srt here.

Click on Save (Save). This button appears below the window. Clicking it will save the SRT file to the folder you choose. Now that you've created the subtitle file, the next step is to add the subtitles to the video.

Save both subtitle and video files in the same folder. You can do this by selecting the subtitle file, pressing Ctrl+C (on Windows) or ⌘ Command+C (on Mac) to copy the file, then open the video folder and press Ctrl+V (on Windows) or ⌘ Command+V (on Mac).

Open the video in VLC. The process may differ slightly depending on your operating system:

• Windows - Right-click on the video, select Open with and click VLC Media Player from the menu.
• Mac - Select the video, click File, choose Open With and select VLC from the menu.
• If VLC Media Player is not installed on your computer, you can download and install it for free.

Click on the Subtitle (Subtitle). This option appears at the top of the VLC window. A menu will pop up here.

• On Mac, the Subtitle option appears at the top of the screen.

Chọn Sub Track (Track phụ đề). Lựa chọn này có trong trình đơn đang hiển thị. Bạn sẽ thấy một trình đơn khác xuất hiện tại đây.

Nhấp vào Track 1. Đây là một lựa chọn trong trình đơn đang hiển thị. Bây giờ phụ đề của bạn đã xuất hiện trong video.

Chèn tập tin phụ đề theo cách thủ công. Nếu video không hiển thị phụ đề, bạn có thể thêm tập tin phụ đề vào video theo cách thủ công để phụ đề hiển thị đến khi bạn tắt VLC:

• Nhấp vào Sub Track
• Nhấp vào Add Subtitle File... (Thêm tập tin phụ đề…)
• Chọn tập tin phụ đề của bạn.
• Nhấp vào Open (Mở).

Mở HandBrake. Đây là ứng dụng có biểu tượng quả dứa bên cạnh một cốc rượu.

• Nếu máy tính chưa có HandBrake, bạn có thể tải HandBrake miễn phí từ trang https://handbrake.fr/.

Click on File (File) when prompted. This option is found in the menu on the left side of HandBrake. It will open the File Explorer on Windows or Finder on Mac.

• If you can't see this menu, click on Open Source at the top left corner of the window and select File from the displayed menu.

Select a video. Open the folder where the video that needs subtitles is stored, then click on the video file.

Click on Open (Open). This option is located at the bottom right of the window.

Click on Browse (Browse). This option appears in the center of the page. A new window will pop up on your screen.

Enter the file name and choose the save location. Type the name you want for the video that needs subtitles, then select a folder (for example, Desktop) where the video will be saved.

Click on OK. This button is located at the bottom right corner of the window.

Click on the Subtitles tab. You'll find this tab at the bottom of the HandBrake window.

Click on Import SRT option. This choice appears on the left side of the window.

• On Windows, you first need to remove the default subtitle by clicking the red X next to it.
• On a Mac, click the Tracks section and then select Add External SRT... from the dropdown menu.

Select the SRT file. Find the SRT file you previously created and click on it.

Click on Open button. This will add the SRT file to HandBrake.

Đánh dấu vào ô "Burn In". Đây là lựa chọn ở bên phải tên tập tin phụ đề. Thao tác này đảm bảo tập tin phụ đề luôn hiển thị trên video và giúp cho video tương thích với mọi trình phát video.

Nhấp vào Start Encode (Bắt đầu mã hóa). Đây là lựa chọn ở phía trên cửa sổ HandBrake. Như vậy, chương trình HandBrake sẽ thêm tập tin phụ đề vào video.

• Khi quy trình mã hóa hoàn tất, video đã được chèn phụ đề sẽ hiển thị trong thư mục lưu mà bạn đã chọn.

• Bạn cũng có thể dùng YouTube để thêm tập tin SRT vào video, nếu bạn muốn đăng video trực tuyến.
• Tập tin phụ đề có thể tốn nhiều công sức để tạo, nhưng sẽ có độ chính xác cao hơn phần phụ đề được tạo tự động trên các trang như YouTube hoặc dịch vụ của bên thứ ba.

• Be patient, as adding subtitles to a video can take a considerable amount of time.