STREAMING GLOSSARY
Definitions, examples and related terms for this part of your viewing setup.
TERMS & EXAMPLES
Subtitles display timed text alongside video, often to translate dialogue or make speech readable. They can be carried in different formats, supplied as separate tracks or burned into the picture. A player's subtitle button can select only supported text actually available in the presentation; it cannot generate every requested language from an absent track.
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Closed captions are timed text intended to convey spoken content and relevant non-speech information, such as speaker identification or meaningful sounds. Unlike text permanently burned into the picture, closed captions can generally be selected or hidden in a compatible presentation. Availability, supported format and rendering controls depend on the programme and playback system.
Read more →Audio description adds spoken information about important visual details that might not be clear from the main soundtrack alone. It is usually provided through an available alternative audio arrangement or track. The source must supply it and the player must expose it; a general audio-language menu does not guarantee that descriptive narration exists.
Read more →Forced subtitles are subtitles intended to appear for selected portions of a programme, such as dialogue in a language different from the main soundtrack. They may be indicated through track information or included directly in the image. How they appear depends on the source edition, track flags and the player's handling of those details.
Read more →Subtitle encoding describes how characters are represented in a text-based subtitle resource. The player must interpret those characters correctly as well as understand the subtitle format and timing. A mismatch can produce broken accents or unreadable symbols even when the subtitle language and programme timing have otherwise been selected correctly on the viewing device.
Read more →A subtitle offset moves the displayed timing of subtitle text relative to the video. It can help when a compatible subtitle track is consistently early or late. It does not repair every mismatch: different edits or gradually drifting timings can require the correct subtitle edition rather than one fixed adjustment throughout the programme.
Read more →WebVTT is a text format for time-aligned cues such as subtitles and captions. It can express cue timing and supported presentation information for compatible media systems. The format describes text-track data, while the player determines how supported cues are rendered and which controls the viewer can use to select or customise them.
Read more →Timed Text Markup Language represents text associated with timing information and can describe styling or layout for supported workflows. It is used in subtitle and caption exchange or distribution arrangements. A TTML document is not the video itself, and practical playback depends on a system supporting the particular form and features present in the resource.
Read more →A screen reader communicates interface information through speech or other accessible output. It depends on the operating system and application exposing meaningful controls, names and state. It can help navigate a player, but it is different from audio description within a programme and cannot automatically describe every visual event in a video.
Read more →A focus indicator shows which control currently receives keyboard, remote or other non-pointer input. A visible indicator helps a viewer understand where the next select or directional action will apply. Its clarity depends on application design, contrast and interaction behaviour; focus is separate from a mouse pointer or a permanently selected channel entry.
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