Overview

Kaltura users can upload a text-only transcript to an entry and have the system generate a time-based caption file that will display while the video plays.

While Kaltura users can edit their captions by using Kaltura's web-based editor or edit their captions by downloading and editing them on their computer, they can also choose to work with a text-only version (without any timecodes) and use Kaltura's "machine alignment" feature to have it generate timings for a new caption file, which will display the words on screen at the appropriate time while the video is being played.

This feature is available to all Kaltura users at UC San Diego (faculty, students, staff, etc.). A transcript can be uploaded in either Canvas or MediaSpace.

Critical Concepts

Things to Keep in Mind

• 1
  00:00:05,150 --> 00:00:06,735
  Hello.
  
  2
  00:00:06,735 --> 00:00:08,400
  Today we're gonna be
  teaching you how to
  
  3
  00:00:08,400 --> 00:00:10,140
  record a PowerPoint
  presentation with…

  Hello. Today we're gonna be teaching you how to record a PowerPoint presentation with a voice-over narration and how to export it as a playable video. Note that this video is gonna be for Mac based computers only and that a separate tutorial for Windows users is available…

  "Captions" and "Transcripts" aren't the same thing. People sometimes use "captions" and "transcripts" like they mean the same thing, but they’re not quite the same, especially when working with video tools like Kaltura. Captions are text synchronized with the video. They include timecodes that tell the player exactly when to show each line of text. Caption files typically have a .srt or .vtt extension. Transcripts are just the plain text version of what’s spoken in the video: no timing info, no formatting. It’s usually just one long .txt file. In Kaltura, the transcript is automatically generated based on the captions. So if you edit your captions, the transcript updates too. If you’re using a Kaltura player with the transcript widget, you’ll notice it’s a little smarter than a plain text file, though — it highlights what’s being said in real time and lets you click on the text to jump to that part of the video.
• Why edit a transcript and not captions? As you can see from the illustration above, caption files necessarily contain timecodes. If you're editing the text, it may be easier for you to deal with just the words without any timecodes in the way. In addition, you have the ability to add paragraph breaks to a pure text version, which makes the overall document more legible. This could come in handy if you want to offer a text-based version of your video content at some point (a best practice within the Universal Design for Learning instructional design framework).
• We discuss how to download the transcript that Kaltura generates elsewhere. If you want to download and edit a transcript that Kaltura has created, you can follow our instructions in another knowledge base article, Download a Transcript for a Kaltura Entry.
• You must have a .txt file. In order to upload a file as a transcript, it must be a file with a .txt extension. You can't upload a Word document, a PDF, or any other type of document.

Known Issues

• This function isn't available when clicking "Caption & Enrich" on the main page of "My Media." You may have noticed that you can check the box for "Caption & Enrich" from a pull-down menu on the main "My Media" page. This allows you to request captions or alignment for multiple entries at the same time. However, "machine alignment" isn't an option if you do it this way — you have to follow our instructions below (and do it from the so-called "media page," one entry at a time). Kaltura has acknowledged this limitation.

Steps to Take

Machine alignment can be performed in either Canvas or MediaSpace, but the steps differ enough that we've written separate instructions for each. Use the links below to jump to the one you need.

• Convert a Transcript to Captions in Canvas
• Convert a Transcript to Captions in MediaSpace

Convert a Transcript to Captions in Canvas

1. If you're not already logged in:
   1. Go to https://canvas.ucsd.edu.
   2. Enter your active directory credentials.
2. Within Canvas, click My Media in the left navigation.
3. Find the entry in question and click on its title or thumbnail.
4. Under the media player, click Actions and select + Caption & Enrich from the menu that appears.
5. In the "Order Captions & Enrichment Services" section that populates below, ensure that the following options are selected:
   • Service: Machine
   • Source Media Language: English
   • Feature: Alignment
6. Click Upload txt.
7. Click + Select File.
8. Locate and select the transcript on your computer and click Open.
9. Enter a title and description for the transcript if desired. (These are optional.) They'll be visible if you or viewers click on the "attachments" tab under the media player.
10. Click Save.
11. Select the radio button for the text file you just uploaded.
12. Click Submit.

You should see a message appear indicating that your request has been received.

You'll receive an email notification once the machine alignment process is complete. The process will create a new set of captions that will become the default captions for the entry. It will also hide any machine captions from viewers that were previously visible in the player.

Convert a Transcript to Captions in MediaSpace

1. If you're not already logged in:
   1. Go to https://mediaspace.ucsd.edu.
   2. Click the profile icon at the top right of the page and select Login.
   3. Enter your active directory credentials.
2. Click the profile icon and select My Media.
3. Find the entry in question and click on its title or thumbnail.
4. Under the media player, click the kebab (three dots) and select Reach captions & enrich from the menu that appears.
5. In the window that opens, click +Order.
6. In the next window, ensure that the following options are selected:
   • Feature: Alignment
   • Service Type: Machine
   • Source Media Language: English (only English is supported at present)
7. Click Add a txt file.
8. Click Upload.
9. Locate and select the transcript on your computer and click Open.
10. Enter a title for the transcript if desired. (This is optional.) The transcript will be visible if you or viewers click on the "attachments" section below the media player.
11. Click Save.
12. Click Order.

You should see a message appear indicating that your request has been received.

You'll receive an email notification once the machine alignment process is complete. The process will create a new set of captions that will become the default captions for the entry. It will also hide any machine captions from viewers that were previously visible in the player.