Subtitles

XBMC supports both stand-alone subtitle and embedded subtitles. Most major subtitle formats are supported. XBMC can also search and download subtitles directly from full screen playback.

Changing subtitle settings during playback
Various subtitle settings can be changed or they turned On/Off (default is on) via the OSD (On Screen Display) while watching a movie by selecting the Audio options (not the subtitle downloader option).

There is no global ON/OFF setting for subtitles, as this setting is stored on a per-video basis, but you can quickly set the setting on all videos by manually changing it using the OSD, then hitting "Set as default for all videos".

Main settings
Settings -> Videos -> Subtitles

Default language selection
Settings -> Appearance -> International

Adjusting subtitles position
The position of the subtitles can be adjusted vertically (but not horizontally) in the Video Calibration screen, you can also configure the way that they are displayed though the Subtitles Settings.

Note: This does not apply to DVD subtitles as the DVD itself defines their location.

External subtitle files
To use stand-alone subtitle files with video files, put them in the same folder as the video file or alternatively go to the Subtitles Settings and set a Custom Subtitle Directory. You can also choose to manually browse for the subtitle file via the OSD (On Screen Display) Audio and Subtitle Settings. You can configure the way that they are displayed through the Subtitles Settings, and you can adjust where they are displayed onscreen through the Video Calibration Screen.

The subtitle and video files must have the same name, for example: Video File: The Matrix.avi Subtitle: The Matrix.srt

Compressed subtitles
XBMC also supports compressed VobSub subtitles. Please note that the subtitles inside the RAR archive still need to have the same name as the video file. Video File: The Matrix.avi Subtitle: The Matrix.rar Where The Matrix.rar containins the VobSub-file The Matrix.sub and the The Matrix.idx VobSub index-file that has been compressed with RAR. If you want XBMC to automatically turn on packed subtitles, you have to turn on the Search for Subtitles in RARs option in Subtitles Settings.

Using multi language subtitles
XBMC supports the use of more than one external subtitle. This of course is most useful when you have more than one subtitle file, (eg. for more than language).

To use this functionality you need to rename the video file and subtitle files as follows:

Video File: The Matrix.avi Subtitle 1: The Matrix.English.srt Subtitle 2: The Matrix.French.srt Subtitle 3: The Matrix.German.srt

The dot after the filename but before the extension specifies the language (you can use anything here, mix numbers and and letters or just use one or the other).

You can even mix subtitle formats, eg:

Video File: Movie Name (2006).avi Subtitle 1: Movie Name (2006).Chinese.idx Subtitle 1: Movie Name (2006).Chinese.sub Subtitle 2: Movie Name (2006).Japanese.idx Subtitle 2: Movie Name (2006).Japanese.sub Subtitle 3: Movie Name (2006).English.srt Subtitle 4: Movie Name (2006).French.smi Subtitle 5: Movie Name (2006).German.ssa

Adding fonts
Additional fonts can be stored in the XBMC folder (one level below userdata) at