Section 3.2: Creating accessible video and audio, Part 1
Captioning
This is a technique intended for users who are hard-of-hearing or deaf. Generally, captions benefit those who are unable to hear the spoken part of a video. Captions are the "text equivalent of the dialog synchronized with the multimedia event" [ 7, p.379 
].
Considerations in the creation of captions
- Although users typically prefer a verbatim presentation of the audio, sometimes editing is needed to allow for a reasonable reading speed. If the dialog is very fast paced, it may be difficult to keep up with the captioning.
- If the video uses dialog, the captions need to identify who is speaking.
- "...all sounds that contribute to understanding should be represented in the captions" and should be typologically distinct from content that is spoken
[ 7, p.374-375 ].
- The width of the video determines how many lines of text will appear in each caption. [ 5 ]
Activity 1
You can experience closed captioning on your television. Turn on the closed caption option on your TV and turn off the sound. Note the different elements and events and how they are "represented in the caption - dialog, music, background noises, other sound effects." [ 7, p.372 ]
