We've been on the road for the past couple of weeks. First it was Las Vegas, where we unveiled the new Media Composer 3.0 software, which Avid will be shipping in June. Then we spent a week at the 2008 Department of Defense Visual Information Conference in Baltimore. At both shows, one of the features Avid Government customers were most excited about was the SubCap Tool, which will be shipping with Media Composer 3.0 in June.
The SubCap Tool lets you easily create on-screen subtitles for Section 508 compliance, or for visual translations of foreign dialog. You drop the SubCap tool on your top-most video track and then point it to an EBU-N19 formatted subtitle log file (.STL). You can set the font size, color and placement. Hit play and you have real-time open captions. You can also use the SubCap Tool to create subtitles from scratch, if you don't already have a log file. When you're done, you can export a subtitle file (.STL) for quick creation of subtitles in DVD authoring applications.
Click here for a quick demo of the new SubCap Tool.
The SubCap Tool will be included with Media Composer 3.0, which will be available for download in June for current Media Composer customers with Support contracts. Avid Xpress Pro customers can upgrade and download Media Composer 3.0 for $318 on Avid's GSA Schedule, or purchase a box with documentation and third-party applications for $399. Upgrades are also available from Avid Xpress DV and Avid Liquid. For more information, contact the Avid Government Solutions Team at 800-497-2843.