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External VobSub subtitles don't work with WMV.

Posted: 13 Sep 2006 00:25
by har-vas
Hi all. In the last period, I start working with Windows Media technology. I am ripping DVDs to WMV files and I use "VobSub Ripper Wizard" to get the subtitles in two files (moviename.idx and moviename.sub). I put these two files in the same folder with the main video (moviename.wmv). When I open the file with VLC 0.8.4 (and now with 0.8.6), the player recognizes the subtitle stream, as it should, and lists it under Video-->Subtitles Track. Until here, all OK. But when I select the subtitles, the latter are not being displayed. Nothing changes in the movie and the video keeps playing without subtitles. Of course with MPC all working perfectly, but I prefer using VLC because is the only player which can change the brightness of a WMV video. I have made 4 films till now and only in one the subtitles can being displayed in VLC. Has something to do with the video and audio codecs selected? Can someone hep me?

PS: Does anybody know if VLC can "see" the WMV's markers and handle them like chapters? I think that it can't, but maybe is a setting I haven't noticed yet. Thanks.

Posted: 15 Sep 2006 01:04
by har-vas
I have been more observant. Well, actually in SOME cases the subtitles are there, but ONLY if I let the movie play from the beginning without interruptions. When I move the slider to another point of the film, eg 10 minutes ahead, the subtitles are getting losted. More precisely, another 2-3 subtitles continue to get displayed from the previous point (which is very annoying) and then are getting off permanently. I am waiting a minute in the case of re-synchronization, but nothing: After moving forward, no subtitles anymore. In some other times, I can see a subtitle for less than a second, but nothing more. Only one subtitle! Is there any problem with the overlay function? Maybe the subtitles are played normally, but they can't being rendered correctly. I think that someone has to take a look to that case. Why these problems with Windows Media?

Posted: 16 Sep 2006 12:50
by VLC_help
http://www.raiska.com/vlc/wmv_vobsub.jpg
seems to work okay here (including forwarding).
Does View -> Messages... show some subtitle errors during playback?

Posted: 17 Sep 2006 05:54
by har-vas
Hi again and thank you for your response. Actually, I haven't noticed this useful View-->Messages window. Here what it says when I am double clicking a file called "Bruce Lee.wmv":
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main error: no suitable access module for `I:\Gaudio\Bruce'
main error: no suitable access module for `Lee.wmv'
---

So I understand that it doesn't like spaces in filenames. I rename my 3 files (wmv, idx, sub) to Bruce_Lee.xxx and I re-open it with a double click. Now the Messages window is clear. After a minute and a few seconds before the first subtitles should come up, I see these messages:
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adjust warning: can't get output picture
adjust warning: can't get output picture
adjust warning: can't get output picture
---

And a few minutes later I see these messages:
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main error: subpicture heap is full
main warning: resampling stopped after 19078000 usec (drift: 668)
main error: subpicture heap is full
---

When I am going ahead with the slider:
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main debug: control type=5
spudec debug: invalid starting packet (size < 4 or pts <=0)
spudec debug: spu size: 0, i_pts: 0 i_buffer: 128
main warning: PTS is out of range (88790000), dropping buffer
main warning: PTS is out of range (88704667), dropping buffer
---
In another wmv file, when I am going ahead:
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main debug: control type=5
spudec debug: invalid starting packet (size < 4 or pts <=0)
spudec debug: spu size: 0, i_pts: 0 i_buffer: 128
main error: seek failed for slave 0 -> EOF
---
The problem with displaying the subtitles from the previous point when I am skipping is still there. But with the correction of the filenames, we have a little progress. Can somebody explain me the reason for the two "main error" messages?
seek failed for slave 0 -> EOF
subpicture heap is full