Inside Captioning

by Gary D. Robson

"Inside Captioning" is for anyone interested in closed captioning, not just the broadcasters. it contains information about all aspects of captioning, The Technology -- EIA-608, EIA-708, captioning equipment, timecodes, how a color TV works, European Teletext, ATV/HDTV, digital captioning (MPEG, DVD, CD-ROM, D1/D2) and a guided tour of the VBI. The History -- how Line 21 captioning came about, milestones in captioning development in the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Australia, and the history of machine realtime and realtime captioning. The People -- including case studies of captioning news, sports, church services, city government, the U.S. Senate, the Internet, live theater, and multilingual realtime captioning. The Vocabulary -- a 20-page glossary of captioning terminology. The Laws -- The ADA, the Television Decoder Circuitry Act, the Telecommunications Reform Act, and other U.S. & Canadian laws. The Procedures -- Captioning standards and practices, and "How to" sections on getting shows captioned, hiring captioners, becoming a captioner, and starting a captioning company. And More! Bloopers, deaf culture, contact information, related technologies (e.g., CART), voice recognition, and an examination of international and multilingual captioning issues.

245 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Although I'm best known for my Who Pooped? books, which have sold over 700,000 copies, I have also written a number of technical nonfiction books, focusing on accessibility technology for deaf and hard-of-hearing people — specifically closed captioning and CART reporting.

My next book switches genres! It's a fantasy novel titled The Bounds of Magic , the first book in the planned Tryllevær Saga. The release date is April 7, 2026 from Proseyr Publishing.

My two most recently-released books are:

Who Pooped in Central Park? (the 20th book in the Who Pooped in the Park? series) follows four children as they wander through New York City's Central Park, learning about the animals from the poop they've left behind.

Gary's Guide to Successful Book Signings which takes new authors through the process of promoting their books at book signings, talks, conventions, and more. It covers everything from the basics (how do you sign a book?) to the advanced (what should be in your exhibitor kit at a book show?) replete with tips, tricks, sample signatures, photos of actual signings, and anecdotes.

I've also published over 300 articles in various magazines, newspapers, and Web sites, ranging from "The National Law Journal" to "Blacklisted! 411" (a hacker magazine), and from "Newswaves For Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing People" to "VLSI Design" (a chip design magazine).

I have taught computer science at three colleges, hold 3 U.S. patents, and currently own a tea business in Montana.