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Captioning FAQ

What are captions?

Captions are text that appear on top of a video to help hearing-disabled users. Although they’re similar to the subtitles used for foreign language films, captions have extra information that a hearing-impaired user might miss out on, such as music playing. Captions are timed to appear at the same time Captions may be open, which means they are displayed for all users all the time, or closed, which means that they may be turned on or off at the user’s discretion. Sacramento State recommends the use of closed captions for accessibility.

What is an audio description?

Audio descriptions are optional audio tracks that accompany a video and describe the action on-screen. Although rare, audio descriptions are a key component of making video accessible to visually-impaired users who have difficulty seeing what is happening. For instance, if a professor is giving a lecture and asks the class “Which of these 5 things is not a liquid?”, the audio description would first say “On the table are ...” and give a brief description of the 5 items. Audio descriptions are not required by Section 508, the law that governs systemwide accessibility standards.

What is a transcript?

A transcript is a text document that contains all the auditory information in a video, plus any relevant interaction. It’s similar to captions plus an audio description, only not synchronized with the video. It contains all spoken words, along with information about who spoke it, any context, and any other information that, without it, would leave the transcript with less meaning than the original content.

A transcript is also used for audio-only files, such as podcasts. In these cases, only the speech and relevant non-speech sounds (e.g. laughter, thunder) are written.

Why are captions/transcripts important?

Captions and transcripts are essential for hearing-impaired users who otherwise would not be able to watch a video. Captioning also makes video usable for non-disabled users in loud environments, or who want to watch the video but can’t use speakers.

Transcripts are useful because they allow the content of the audio or video to be searchable. Any user can search a transcript and skip directly to the part that interests them, and search engines can use the transcript to make it easier to find information.

How do captions work?

For open captions, the text is usually “burned” into the video. This means that the editor of the video has made the captions part of the video itself, just like the other content. They can’t be turned off, and anyone watching will see the captions in any video player.

On the other hand, closed captions have to be turned on and are dependent on using a player that understands caption files. When a video is loaded into one of these players, a user is able to activate captions. If they don’t, the video plays normally and no one knows the difference. If they do, the captions appear at the bottom of the video, synchronized with the action on-screen.

What do I have to do?

As of Fall 2008, all new web pages pertaining to courses or administration must be accessible. In terms of video, this means that any video on the web must have captions, and any audio-only file must have a transcript. Ideally, all video will be captioned and have a transcript.

Additionally, any existing video that is requested by a disabled user to be captioned must be captioned in a reasonable amount of time.

Whoever is posting the video is responsible for captioning. However, there are resources on campus for getting help. The Web Accessibility Specialist, along with the Webmaster can provide guidance along the path to making video accessible.

How do I get my video captioned?

There are several options for captioning video.

  • You can do it yourself
    • This can be time-consuming, and captioning can be a difficult task to master. If you have a lot of time and patience, this might be a good option.
  • You can hire professionals to do it. (recommended)
    • The Chancellor’s Office has negotiated a special reduced rate with Automatic Sync, a company that uses trained stenographers to create accurate captions and transcripts. The price is fairly reasonable, and you can be sure to get back usable files. It is recommended that you use this service rather than hiring a non-professional.

I posted a video on my website a while back. Do I have to get it captioned?

If the audio/video was posted prior to Fall 2008, it does not fall under the ATI requirements unless requested by a disabled visitor. However, by Fall 2012, all videos regardless of posting date must be captioned.

How do I embed the video on my webpage?

IRT is currently working on a drop-in solution for this. The goal is to provide users with a way to provide just the video file and the caption file, and get back cut-and-pasted code that includes an accessible player.

Can’t I just post a transcript of the video?

Unfortunately, no. In order to be accessible, the text alternative (i.e. the captions) have to be synchronized with the video. Since a transcript has no timing information to sync with the presentation, it does not fulfill the requirement.

Come on! Can’t I please just post a link to a transcript?

If you choose to only post a transcript of a video, the page will not be in compliance with the Accessibility Technology Initiative’s requirements. However, you may use a transcript as a temporary measure until captions can be completed.

But what about an audio file? Can I use just a transcript then?

Yes, transcripts are typically acceptable for audio files. Ideally, the audio file is embedded on a page that contains the transcript.

Does classical music require a transcript? There aren’t any words!

No, audio without spoken content does not require a transcript.