Command Line Usage
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CCExtractor's main program is console based. There's a GUI for Windows, as well
as provisions so other programs can easily interface with CCExtractor, but the
heavy lefting is done by a command line program (that can be called by scripts so
integration with larger processes is straightforward).
Running CCExtractor without any parameter will display a help screen with all the
options. As of version 0.68 the help screen is as follows:
CCExtractor 0.68, Carlos Fernandez Sanz, Volker Quetschke.
Teletext portions taken from Petr Kutalek's telxcc
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally based on McPoodle's tools. Check his page for lots of information
on closed captions technical details.
(http://www.theneitherworld.com/mcpoodle/SCC_TOOLS/DOCS/SCC_TOOLS.HTML)
This tool home page:
http://ccextractor.sourceforge.net
Extracts closed captions and teletext subtitles from video streams.
(DVB, .TS, ReplayTV 4000 and 5000, dvr-ms, bttv, Tivo, Dish Network,
.mp4, HDHomeRun are known to work).
Syntax:
ccextractor [options] inputfile1 [inputfile2...] [-o outputfilename]
[-o1 outputfilename1] [-o2 outputfilename2]
File name related options:
inputfile: file(s) to process
-o outputfilename: Use -o parameters to define output filename if you don't
like the default ones (same as infile plus _1 or _2 when
needed and file extension, e.g. .srt).
-o or -o1 -> Name of the first (maybe only) output
file.
-o2 -> Name of the second output file, when
it applies.
-cf filename: Write 'clean' data to a file. Cleans means the ES
without TS or PES headers.
-stdout: Write output to stdout (console) instead of file. If
stdout is used, then -o, -o1 and -o2 can't be used. Also
-stdout will redirect all messages to stderr (error).
You can pass as many input files as you need. They will be processed in order.
If a file name is suffixed by +, ccextractor will try to follow a numerical
sequence. For example, DVD001.VOB+ means DVD001.VOB, DVD002.VOB and so on
until there are no more files.
Output will be one single file (either raw or srt). Use this if you made your
recording in several cuts (to skip commercials for example) but you want one
subtitle file with contiguous timing.
Network support:
-udp port: Read the input via UDP (listening in the specified port)
instead of reading a file.
-udp [host:]port: Read the input via UDP (listening in the specified
port) instead of reading a file. Host can be a
hostname or IPv4 address. If host is not specified
then listens on the local host.
Options that affect what will be processed:
-1, -2, -12: Output Field 1 data, Field 2 data, or both
(DEFAULT is -1)
-cc2: When in srt/sami mode, process captions in channel 2
instead channel 1.
-svc --service N,N...: Enabled CEA-708 captions processing for the listed
services. The parameter is a command delimited list
of services numbers, such as "1,2" to process the
primary and secondary language services.
In general, if you want English subtitles you don't need to use these options
as they are broadcast in field 1, channel 1. If you want the second language
(usually Spanish) you may need to try -2, or -cc2, or both.
Input formats:
With the exception of McPoodle's raw format, which is just the closed
caption data with no other info, CCExtractor can usually detect the
input format correctly. To force a specific format:
-in=format
where format is one of these:
ts -> For Transport Streams.
ps -> For Program Streams.
es -> For Elementary Streams.
asf -> ASF container (such as DVR-MS).
bin -> CCExtractor's own binary format.
raw -> For McPoodle's raw files.
mp4 -> MP4/MOV/M4V and similar.
hex -> Hexadecimal dump as generated by wtvccdump.
-ts, -ps, -es, -mp4 and -asf (or --dvr-ms) can be used as shorts.
Output formats:
-out=format
where format is one of these:
srt -> SubRip (default, so not actually needed).
sami -> MS Synchronized Accesible Media Interface.
bin -> CC data in CCExtractor's own binary format.
raw -> CC data in McPoodle's Broadcast format.
dvdraw -> CC data in McPoodle's DVD format.
txt -> Transcript (no time codes, no roll-up
captions, just the plain transcription.
ttxt -> Timed Transcript (transcription with time
info)
smptett -> SMPTE Timed Text (W3C TTML) format.
spupng -> Set of .xml and .png files for use with
dvdauthor's spumux.
See "Notes on spupng output format"
null -> Don't produce any file output
Note: Teletext output can only be srt, txt or ttxt for now.
Options that affect how input files will be processed.
-gt --goptime: Use GOP for timing instead of PTS. This only applies
to Program or Transport Streams with MPEG2 data and
overrides the default PTS timing.
GOP timing is always used for Elementary Streams.
-nogt --nogoptime: Never use GOP timing (use PTS), even if ccextractor
detects GOP timing is the reasonable choice.
-fp --fixpadding: Fix padding - some cards (or providers, or whatever)
seem to send 0000 as CC padding instead of 8080. If you
get bad timing, this might solve it.
-90090: Use 90090 (instead of 90000) as MPEG clock frequency.
(reported to be needed at least by Panasonic DMR-ES15
DVD Recorder)
-ve --videoedited: By default, ccextractor will process input files in
sequence as if they were all one large file (i.e.
split by a generic, non video-aware tool. If you
are processing video hat was split with a editing
tool, use -ve so ccextractor doesn't try to rebuild
the original timing.
-s --stream [secs]: Consider the file as a continuous stream that is
growing as ccextractor processes it, so don't try
to figure out its size and don't terminate processing
when reaching the current end (i.e. wait for more
data to arrive). If the optional parameter secs is
present, it means the number of seconds without any
new data after which ccextractor should exit. Use
this parameter if you want to process a live stream
but not kill ccextractor externally.
Note: If -s is used then only one input file is
allowed.
-poc --usepicorder: Use the pic_order_cnt_lsb in AVC/H.264 data streams
to order the CC information. The default way is to
use the PTS information. Use this switch only when
needed.
-myth: Force MythTV code branch.
-nomyth: Disable MythTV code branch.
The MythTV branch is needed for analog captures where
the closed caption data is stored in the VBI, such as
those with bttv cards (Hauppage 250 for example). This
is detected automatically so you don't need to worry
about this unless autodetection doesn't work for you.
-wtvconvertfix: This switch works around a bug in Windows 7's built in
software to convert *.wtv to *.dvr-ms. For analog NTSC
recordings the CC information is marked as digital
captions. Use this switch only when needed.
-pn --program-number: In TS mode, specifically select a program to process.
Not needed if the TS only has one. If this parameter
is not specified and CCExtractor detects more than one
program in the input, it will list the programs found
and terminate without doing anything, unless
-autoprogram (see below) is used.
-autoprogram: If there's more than one program in the stream, just use
the first one we find that contains a suitable stream.
-datapid: Don't try to find out the stream for caption/teletext
data, just use this one instead.
-datastreamtype: Instead of selecting the stream by its PID, select it
by its type (pick the stream that has this type in
the PMT)
-streamtype: Assume the data is of this type, don't autodetect. This
parameter may be needed if -datapid or -datastreamtype
is used and CCExtractor cannot determine how to process
the stream. The value will usually be 2 (MPEG video) or
6 (MPEG private data).
-haup --hauppauge: If the video was recorder using a Hauppauge card, it
might need special processing. This parameter will
force the special treatment.
-mp4vidtrack: In MP4 files the closed caption data can be embedded in
the video track or in a dedicated CC track. If a
dedicated track is detected it will be processed instead
of the video track. If you need to force the video track
to be processed instead use this option.
-noautotimeref: Some streams come with broadcast date information. When
such data is available, CCExtractor will set its time
reference to the received data. Use this parameter if
you prefer your own reference. Note: Current this only
affects Teletext in timed transcript with -datets.
Options that affect what kind of output will be produced:
-unicode: Encode subtitles in Unicode instead of Latin-1.
-utf8: Encode subtitles in UTF-8 (no longer needed.
because UTF-8 is now the default).
-latin1: Encode subtitles in UTF-8 instead of Latin-1
-nofc --nofontcolor: For .srt/.sami, don't add font color tags.
-nots --notypesetting: For .srt/.sami, don't add typesetting tags.
-trim: Trim lines.
-dc --defaultcolor: Select a different default color (instead of
white). This causes all output in .srt/.smi
files to have a font tag, which makes the files
larger. Add the color you want in RGB, such as
-dc #FF0000 for red.
-sc --sentencecap: Sentence capitalization. Use if you hate
ALL CAPS in subtitles.
--capfile -caf file: Add the contents of 'file' to the list of words
that must be capitalized. For example, if file
is a plain text file that contains
Tony
Alan
Whenever those words are found they will be written
exactly as they appear in the file.
Use one line per word. Lines starting with # are
considered comments and discarded.
-unixts REF: For timed transcripts that have an absolute date
instead of a timestamp relative to the file start), use
this time reference (UNIX timestamp). 0 => Use current
system time.
ccextractor will automatically switch to transport
stream UTC timestamps when available.
-datets: In transcripts, write time as YYYYMMDDHHMMss,ms.
-sects: In transcripts, write time as ss,ms
-UCLA: Transcripts are generated with a specific format
that is convenient for a specific project, feel
free to play with it but be aware that this format
is really live - don't rely on its output format
not changing between versions.
-lf: Use LF (UNIX) instead of CRLF (DOS, Windows) as line
terminator.
-autodash: Based on position on screen, attempt to determine
the different speakers and a dash (-) when each
of them talks (.srt only, -trim required).Options that affect how ccextractor reads and writes (buffering):
-bi --bufferinput: Forces input buffering.
-nobi -nobufferinput: Disables input buffering.
-bs --buffersize val: Specify a size for reading, in bytes (suffix with K or
or M for kilobytes and megabytes). Default is 16M.
Note: -bo is only used when writing raw files, not .srt or .sami
Options that affect the built-in closed caption decoder:
-dru: Direct Roll-Up. When in roll-up mode, write character by
character instead of line by line. Note that this
produces (much) larger files.
-noru --norollup: If you hate the repeated lines caused by the roll-up
emulation, you can have ccextractor write only one
line at a time, getting rid of these repeated lines.
-ru1 / ru2 / ru3: roll-up captions can consist of 2, 3 or 4 visible
lines at any time (the number of lines is part of
the transmission). If having 3 or 4 lines annoys
you you can use -ru to force the decoder to always
use 1, 2 or 3 lines. Note that 1 line is not
a real mode rollup mode, so CCExtractor does what
it can.
In -ru1 the start timestamp is actually the timestamp
of the first character received which is possibly more
accurate.
Options that affect timing:
-delay ms: For srt/sami, add this number of milliseconds to
all times. For example, -delay 400 makes subtitles
appear 400ms late. You can also use negative numbers
to make subs appear early.
Notes on times: -startat and -endat times are used first, then -delay.
So if you use -srt -startat 3:00 -endat 5:00 -delay 120000, ccextractor will
generate a .srt file, with only data from 3:00 to 5:00 in the input file(s)
and then add that (huge) delay, which would make the final file start at
5:00 and end at 7:00.
Options that affect what segment of the input file(s) to process:
-startat time: Only write caption information that starts after the
given time.
Time can be seconds, MM:SS or HH:MM:SS.
For example, -startat 3:00 means 'start writing from
minute 3.
-endat time: Stop processing after the given time (same format as
-startat).
The -startat and -endat options are honored in all
output formats. In all formats with timing information
the times are unchanged.
-scr --screenfuls num: Write 'num' screenfuls and terminate processing.
Adding start and end credits:
CCExtractor can _try_ to add a custom message (for credits for example) at
the start and end of the file, looking for a window where there are no
captions. If there is no such window, then no text will be added.
The start window must be between the times given and must have enough time
to display the message for at least the specified time.
--startcreditstext txt: Write this text as start credits. If there are
several lines, separate them with the
characters \n, for example Line1\nLine 2.
--startcreditsnotbefore time: Don't display the start credits before this
time (S, or MM:SS). Default: 0
--startcreditsnotafter time: Don't display the start credits after this
time (S, or MM:SS). Default: 5:00
--startcreditsforatleast time: Start credits need to be displayed for at least
this time (S, or MM:SS). Default: 2
--startcreditsforatmost time: Start credits should be displayed for at most
this time (S, or MM:SS). Default: 5
--endcreditstext txt: Write this text as end credits. If there are
several lines, separate them with the
characters \n, for example Line1\nLine 2.
--endcreditsforatleast time: End credits need to be displayed for at least
this time (S, or MM:SS). Default: 2
--endcreditsforatmost time: End credits should be displayed for at most
this time (S, or MM:SS). Default: 5
Options that affect debug data:
-debug: Show lots of debugging output.
-608: Print debug traces from the EIA-608 decoder.
If you need to submit a bug report, please send
the output from this option.
-708: Print debug information from the (currently
in development) EIA-708 (DTV) decoder.
-goppts: Enable lots of time stamp output.
-xdsdebug: Enable XDS debug data (lots of it).
-vides: Print debug info about the analysed elementary
video stream.
-cbraw: Print debug trace with the raw 608/708 data with
time stamps.
-nosync: Disable the syncing code. Only useful for debugging
purposes.
-fullbin: Disable the removal of trailing padding blocks
when exporting to bin format. Only useful for
for debugging purposes.
-parsedebug: Print debug info about the parsed container
file. (Only for TS/ASF files at the moment.)
-parsePAT: Print Program Association Table dump.
-parsePMT: Print Program Map Table dump.
-investigate_packets: If no CC packets are detected based on the PMT, try
to find data in all packets by scanning.
Teletext related options:
-tpage page: Use this page for subtitles (if this parameter
is not used, try to autodetect). In Spain the
page is always 888, may vary in other countries.
-tverbose: Enable verbose mode in the teletext decoder.
-teletext: Force teletext mode even if teletext is not detected.
If used, you should also pass -datapid to specify
the stream ID you want to process.
-noteletext: Disable teletext processing. This might be needed
for video streams that have both teletext packets
and CEA-608/708 packets (if teletext is processed
then CEA-608/708 processing is disabled).
Communication with other programs and console output:
--gui_mode_reports: Report progress and interesting events to stderr
in a easy to parse format. This is intended to be
used by other programs. See docs directory for.
details.
--no_progress_bar: Suppress the output of the progress bar
-quiet: Don't write any message.
Notes on the CEA-708 decoder: While it is starting to be useful, it's
a work in progress. A number of things don't work yet in the decoder
itself, and many of the auxiliary tools (case conversion to name one)
won't do anything yet. Feel free to submit samples that cause problems
and feature requests.
Notes on spupng output format:
One .xml file is created per output field. A set of .png files are created in
a directory with the same base name as the corresponding .xml file(s), but with
a .d extension. Each .png file will contain an image representing one caption
and named subNNNN.png, starting with sub0000.png.
For example, the command:
ccextractor -out=spupng input.mpg
will create the files:
input.xml
input.d/sub0000.png
input.d/sub0001.png
...
The command:
ccextractor -out=spupng -o /tmp/output -12 input.mpg
will create the files:
/tmp/output_1.xml
/tmp/output_1.d/sub0000.png
/tmp/output_1.d/sub0001.png
...
/tmp/output_2.xml
/tmp/output_2.d/sub0000.png
/tmp/output_2.d/sub0001.png
...
Error: (This help screen was shown because there were no input files)
