What is Google2SRT?
Google2SRT is a tool that can download "not embedded" subtitles (Closed Captions - CC) from YouTube and former Google Video and convert them to a standard format (SubRip - SRT) supported by most video players.

Even today, YouTube subtitles cannot be downloaded in a simple way or used in any video player because are encoded in Google's own format.

Google2SRT lets you save them into SRT format, which can then be converted to other also well-known formats like SSA (SubStation Alpha) or SUB (MicroDVD) by using other software available on the Internet.


Why would I want to download subtitles from YouTube or Google Video?
You may know about a video whose subtitles are really hard to find or if you have found them, they are not available on your own language, but there is an available version of the subtitles you are looking for on YouTube. Or it is even possible you like a video that is only available through YouTube and its subtitles are "not embedded"

At first, you may think these are really very unusual situations, but certainly they are not. There are free distribution videos, like some documentaries and conferences, or official distributed videos that a TV channel publishes on its own YouTube space, which can only be found through YouTube and their subtitles are not embedded. Not embedding subtitles is an advantage for the provider. Provider only needs to upload a single video and can offer to select one of many subtitles (or none of them). Some examples are Zeitgeist documentary, Randy Pausch last lecture: "Achieving Your Childhood Dreams" conference, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood anime, some Top Gear broadcast from the BBC or Google2SRT video demonstration itself.




Under what conditions can I use this software?
Google2SRT is free software (in two senses), licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL). In brief: you can download, copy, modify, give and sell this software like you want and to who you want, as long as you distribute original source code and, if you modify or reuse Google2SRT source code, also the new source code and under the same conditions.

Why this name? What does it mean?
Hmmm... Unfornately for me (and my imagination) all software must have a name by which it will be referred. There are developers who "live" with their software and name it with names so metaphorical like Windows, Photoshop, Mac(intosh) or eMule. There are other types of developers that do not go so far and simply call software with a less comercial but clearer name (for ourselves, the authors, of course). Then, Google2SRT means "Google to SRT", "from Google's format to SRT format". YouTube is Google's property too and it has inherited subtitles format.