RE: Balanced lines

Glenn,
 
Interesting, I was unaware that there was a type-setting term for this. I'm
not surprised though.
 
[GA] I can't imagine that any subtitle/cc user agent would implement it.
 
It's true that the majority of current distribution formats assume that
there is little or no UA re-layout of content, that's because these formats
are distribution formats. TT-AF is not. I anticipate that there will be a
requirement to translate TT-AF into distribution formats for many
applications - not just subtitling / captioning. Since these distribution
formats may well implicitly impose various display limitations (e.g. fixed
line lengths, colour limitations, font sizes), the inclusion of mechanisms
within TT-AF to hint at the preferred end results would be useful.
 
Line balancing is hardly rocket science...
 
BTW - I'm not suggesting a sentential analysis of the content.
 
But certain basic rules.
 
1) In a fixed size region - move words from line to line until line lengths
balance.
2) avoid short (i.e. 1 character or 2 charater words at the ends of
sentences)
 
e.g. 
She was annoyed because
I didn't ask her to come with us.

 

is preferred over

She was annoyed because I
didn't ask her to come with us.

 

regards 
John Birch 

The views and opinions expressed are the author's own and do not necessarily

reflect the views and opinions of Screen Subtitling Systems Limited. 


 

-----Original Message-----
From: Glenn A. Adams [mailto:glenn@xfsi.com]
Sent: 13 August 2003 15:29
To: Johnb@screen.subtitling.com
Cc: public-tt@w3.org
Subject: RE: Balanced lines



The type of line break behavior you refer to below is considered to be an
advanced typesetting feature only available in fairly high-end pre-press
systems (it is known in typesetting as "river control"). I can't imagine
that any subtitle/cc user agent would implement it.
 
See http://www.coathook.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/comp/comp3a.htm
<http://www.coathook.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/comp/comp3a.htm>  for some
discussion of river control.
 
Also, clearly a UA is not going to perform sentential analysis to determine
line break points.
 
G.

-----Original Message-----
From: Johnb@screen.subtitling.com [mailto:Johnb@screen.subtitling.com] 
Sent: Wednesday, August 13, 2003 11:02 AM
To: Glenn A. Adams
Cc: public-tt@w3.org
Subject: Balanced lines


Glenn 

[JB> ] CSS wrap-option property does not have a value that produces balanced
lines. Justification properties do not appear to help either. 

GA: What do you mean by "balanced lines"? If you mean left and right block
justified, then the text-align property would be used to specify justify.
Whether to perform soft layout, i.e., UA line wrapping, is independent of
the alignment of line areas in the containing block area.

[JB> ]  No I don't mean block justified. It's an issue of where in the lines
to put a line break. 
 
So given a content of "Scooby dooby doo where are you?" a typical line break
mechanism might break this as follows for a 22 character 2 line display (for
ease lets assume a fixed font - as in Teletext).



Scooby dooby doo where 
are you?

The more balanced lines would be
 
Scooby dooby doo 
where are you?

From Australian Caption Centre guidelines
 
" Where possible, caption lines should also be similar in length because
this makes them much easier to read." 

 

YMMV

 

There are a number of other 'rules' regarding line breaking that may or may
not be desirable. However most of these require a detailed understanding of
grammar....which I think is probably straying well outside the remit....

 

regards 
John Birch 

The views and opinions expressed are the author's own and do not necessarily

reflect the views and opinions of Screen Subtitling Systems Limited.