How to Play SRT with a Media Player

SRT files allow users to create their own captioning for movies.

In the last 15 years, computers and laptops have transformed from a simple means of using software for productivity to full-gaming and multimedia theaters. For watching movies and video, files were created for captioning or subtitles. These files usually have the extension .srt Many media players today are able to open these files along with a movie in order to show the relevant subtitles as the film plays.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

Install the VideoLan player and the appropriate subtitles

1. Visit the VideoLan website and download its free media player. This full-featured software can play many different media files on your computer, including MP3, MP4 and DVDs.

2. Double-click on the downloaded file to run the installation program. Follow the simple prompts to install the VLC media player. An icon for the program appears on your desktop when the installation is successful.

3. Download the subtitles for your movie. There are several places online where you can download free SRT subtitle files to go with whatever movie you want to watch. The two most popular are the websites Opensubtitles.org and Allsubs.org.

4. Double-click on the compressed or zipped file icon in Windows XP, Vista or 7 to open it, then click on the SRT file in the archive and drag it to your desktop.

5. Open your VideoLan player by double-clicking the icon on your desktop. Choose "Media" then "Open" the file type for the video you have. For example, if you are playing a DVD on your computer choose "Media" and then "Open Disc" when you will be given an option to select your DVD player. The movie will begin playing automatically.

6. Once your movie has actually begun (not at the Title screen if you are watching a DVD), right click anywhere on the screen where the movie is playing and choose "Video" > "Subtitles Track" > "Open file" and an explorer window will open up allowing you to select the SRT file. Browse to the desktop where you saved it and double-click on it. The subtitles should appear on the screen immediately.

Tips & Warnings

• Sometimes the subtitles you get online will not sync very well to the movie. There are free programs you can get online that will allow you to open the SRT file and edit the timings in it.

References

• VideoLan: VLC Free Media Player
• Open Subtitles: Free Subtitles Download
• Softpedia: Subtitle Edit: Free Subtitle Editor

Resources

• AVC: Adding and Editing SRT Files