Activating Digital Closed Captions From Pay TV Services - Page 2

Thanks very much, Andrew, for the detailed posting and the injected humor---and the icons, too! You did a great job making this very readable and humorous. I also really liked the specific details you provided.

What settings did you end up using for your digital captions? I think it can be helpful to share this information for people who don't want to spend a lot of time tweaking the captions but who do want to get some colors in their captions. For example, I often use yellow for the text in the captions but sometimes use green (which happens to be a bright green), and I'll use either black for the background or purple (a color only available from my Sharp HDTV so far).

FYI, captions are not required for programs that air between 2 am and some later hour---don't remember whether it's 6 a.m. or an earlier hour. But that might not explain why you fell asleep with captioning but woke up without it, especially if a re-boot brought the captioning back.

It's odd that you're getting weather alerts via captioning and not the usual text crawl. You're supposed to be able to continue seeing the captions for the program AND the weather alert. There may indeed be some kind of improper setting, or maybe engineers at the TV station generating the weather alert need to be educated on the difference between the two topes of messaging. This is probably an error caused by the TV station, by the way, not the cable company. Cable companies generally only relay programming provided by other stations or content providers; they don't usually produce their own news. My understanding is that they also generally only relay captioning; they don't create it. I suppose if you see this problem on more than one channel, then you *would* have reason to suspect your cable company is causing it, but if you only see it from one, then it's probably the station for that channel.

If anyone would like to discuss general captioning issues, there's an email list called Captioning at http://groups.yahoo.com. (I don't own that list but I'm on it.)

Again, thanks for the terrific guide, Andrew!

Dana

I noticed recently that Dish Network now has a link to "Closed Caption" on its web site, which then points to:

http://dishnetwork.com/customerServi...n/default.aspx

(Update: on 1/3/2010, I tried this link above again. Dish has changed the page and is now providing links to chats with Closed Caption specialists. It also explains how to find online support about captioning. The information below may thus be obsolete.)


By browsing further, I found the following information about how to set up captions (under the problem area: "Closed Caption does not display at all"), though the embedded links did not transfer. Unfortunately, the instructions for the High Definition set-top boxes look too simplistic since they do not address at all how to customize the advanced captions and actually caution the reader about changing them. The instructions provided earlier for Dish set top boxes would thus appear to be useful still for customizing the advanced captions.


(The following is quoted verbatim from the Dish Network web site and is somewhat confusing at times, like when it directs EVERYONE to consult their TV manual to turn on captions when this is not needed if the captions are provided by the HD set top box.)



First, ensure you are set-up to control and display captions. Consult your TV user’s manual to verify that Closed Captioning is turned-on and adjusted correctly. Click here to view a list of support phone numbers for most TV manufactures, in case you are unable to reference the TV user’s manual.

For Standard Definition (SD) satellite receivers: SD satellite receivers rely on the caption functions in your television. Our SD satellite receivers pass the CC information along to your TV to read. Click here to view a list of Standard Definition (SD) receiver

DISH 111, Solo 301/311, Duo 322, DuoDVR 522/625, DISH 501, DISH Player-DVR 508/510, DISH 1000, 2800, 3000, 3750, 3900/4900, 5000, 6000, JVC IRR

If you are unsure of the model and want to find out, click on the link below. What's my model?

The receiver's model number is located on the lower left corner of the front of the satellite receiver. You can also find this information on the System Info screen. Use any of the following procedures to get to this screen. Press the SYSTEM INFORMATION button of the front panel of the satellite receiver. If not present, remove the Smartcard located behind the door of the front panel. Remember to reinsert the Smartcard once you have the needed information. If no Smart Card or SYSTEM INFORMATION button, power the receiver off from the front panel and press the up or down arrow button. Press MENU on the Remote. Go to System Setup, Installation, and then System Info.

For High Definition (HD) satellite receivers: HD satellite receivers rely on the caption functions built-in your satellite receiver. Click on your model of satellite receiver below to start troubleshooting

Solo ViP® 211 or DISH 411
Go to the Closed Caption Menu by pressing the following remote control button sequence; MENU : 8 -Preferences : 6 - Closed Caption Press 1 for Closed Captions On/Off and select the on option. Once complete select Done.

*Be cautious when adjusting any additional setting within the Closed Caption menu.

DISH 811
Go to the Closed Caption Menu by pressing the following remote control button sequence; MENU : 6 -System Setup : 9 - Closed Caption Press 1 for Closed Caption On/Off. Select the on option. Once complete select Save.

*Be cautious when adjusting any additional setting within the Closed Caption menu.

Duo ViP® 222, DuoDVR ViP® 622 or 722
Go to the Closed Caption Menu by pressing the following remote control button sequence; MENU : 8 -Preferences : 7 - Closed Caption (For Duo ViP® 222: 6 - Closed Caption) Press 1 for Closed Caption On/Off. Select the on option. Once completed select Done.

*Be cautious when adjusting any additional setting within the Closed Caption menu.


Closed Captioning Contact Info, 888-809-1143, Fax 720-514-7660, or closedcaptioning@dishnetwork.com. Written complaints: Marciedes Metzger, Closed Caption Compliance Manager, P.O. Box 9040, Littleton, CO 80120.