2. Overview of the process

Making a DVD fansub consists of the following steps:

1. Rip the DVD video program to the hard disk.
2. Obtain a subtitle script with timings.
3. Using the subtitle script, encode a new copy of the video with the subtitles included.
4. Burn the subtitled video to DVD.

We will give very basic methods for doing all of the above.

2.1 How well does it work?

I am one of the most dedicated Linux users in the world (I have to be, or I wouldn't be writing this guide). Nevertheless, even I have to admit that Linux will always trail other platforms such as Windows and especially Macintosh for multimedia work. Making Linux do fansubbing is like watching a dog walk on its hind legs: one does not marvel that it can be done well, one marvels that it can be done at all.

You will not get fancy cutting edge special effects or large selections of fonts and character sets in Linux. What you do get is rock solid basic text subtitling that looks unbelievably good on a TV screen.