Language, logs and saving settings

This chapter brings together three related topics: which language the program and its log speak, where the program writes its log when you need to report a problem, and how the settings are saved, restored and moved.

The interface language

LiveCaption's interface speaks Hungarian and English. The picker is at the top of the Appearance tab of the settings window, in the Interface section: The language of the interface.

Choice	What it means
the first item, the system language	follows the system's display language; numbers and dates are formatted by the machine's regional settings. If the LCP_LANGUAGE environment variable names a language, it follows that. For a language without a translation (a German system, for example), the interface is English. The brackets show what it resolves to on this machine
magyar	both the text and the formatting are Hungarian: 10,0 s
English	both the text and the formatting are English: 10.0 s

The first item is labelled "The system language (…)": the display language of Windows on Windows, of macOS on macOS. The languages are listed under their own names, so you can find yours even if you cannot read the current interface.

The change takes effect immediately after Save, without a restart: the toolbar, the tooltips, the panels, the menu, the dialogs, the settings window and the help all switch. What is already printed (an earlier error message, the caption content) stays in the old language until something new replaces it.

What does not follow the interface language, on purpose:

• the caption and translation text – that is in the language of the speech;
• the log – it has its own setting (below);
• the header of the recordings' CSV export – fixed for automated processing;
• part of the error text coming from the servers: the server words it in its own language, and the program quotes it.

The log language

The log is a separate setting, because when something goes wrong it is often read by someone else – operations staff, say, who may only read English. So you can ask for an English log while using a Hungarian interface. The picker is on the Appearance tab, right below the interface language: The language of the log.

Choice	What it means
As the interface (the default)	the log follows the interface language; the brackets show what it resolves to now
magyar	the log is Hungarian, even if the interface is English
English	the log is English, even if the interface is Hungarian

The change takes effect immediately after Save: the next log line is written in the new language, earlier lines do not change. The first lines of every log file say which language the log speaks, and where to change it.

Where the logs are

The program starts a new log file at every start, and deletes its own logs older than 30 days when it starts. The exact location is shown on the System tab of the settings window, in the Paths group: Log folder and Current log file. Select the row, and the Open folder button opens the folder.

System	Default log folder
Windows	%TEMP%\LiveCaptionPro\livecaption-log
macOS	~/.local/state/LiveCaptionPro/livecaption-log

If the LCP_HOME environment variable is set, the logs go under the folder it names. The script that starts the program writes into the same folder, with file names starting start-livecaption_: its log holds the decisions of the start (what it started, what it skipped and why).

For a problem report, send:

1. the log file from the time of the problem;
2. the environment copied with the Copy to clipboard button of the System tab – the translator key is masked in it;
3. a short note on what you did and what you saw.

Report it on the website's Contact page.

Saving the settings

A change made in the settings window does not take effect until you press the Save button in the bottom right corner of the window. While there is nothing to save, the button is greyed out. More help sits at the bottom left of the window:

Button	What it does
Undo (arrow pointing left)	undoes the last change not yet saved (Ctrl+Z on Windows)
Redo (arrow pointing right)	reapplies the change you undid (Ctrl+Y on Windows)
Default values	resets every setting to the shipped default – it asks first, and the step can be undone
Close	closes the window; if there are unsaved changes, it asks

Good to know:

• Default values keeps the translator key, the window positions and the warnings you have already answered. Nothing goes to disk here either until you press Save.
• When closing with unsaved changes, the program asks whether to save them: Save and close saves, Discard drops the changes.
• What you set on the caption window's toolbar (source, language, bands, volumes, profiles) takes effect immediately and is saved too, with no separate Save.
• If saving fails, the program says so ("The settings could not be saved."), and the details are in the log.

Where the settings are stored

Every setting lives in a single file: settings.json, in the livecaption subfolder of the data folder. The Settings file row of the System tab shows its exact location.

System	Default location of the settings file
Windows	%LOCALAPPDATA%\LiveCaptionPro\livecaption\settings.json
macOS	~/Library/Application Support/LiveCaptionPro/livecaption/settings.json

The file is readable text, with the settings listed by name. It can be edited by hand, but only while the program is closed; at start the program rejects a wrong value the same way the settings window's Save does, and tells you what is wrong.

Some settings can also be given by the command line that starts the program, or by a configuration file (the caption server's address, for example). These override the saved value: they can usually be changed on the interface, but Save does not write them to the file, and at the next start the command line applies again. The exception is the caption server's address: when the command line gives it, the address field on the Servers tab is read-only, and the server profile cannot be switched either. The settings window and the Overridden settings row of the System tab show which ones they are.

Backing up and moving to another machine

To back up the settings, copying settings.json is enough, with the program closed; to restore, copy it back to the same place, again with the program closed.

Moved to another machine or another user, every setting is kept except the keys. The servers' keys are stored encrypted in the file, and the encryption is bound to the machine and the user:

• on Windows the system's data protection service (DPAPI) encrypts, bound to the signed-in user;
• on macOS a key kept in the macOS Keychain encrypts.

After a move, therefore, enter the keys again on the Servers tab. Keys in a file moved from Windows to macOS (or back) cannot be read either.

If you move the whole data folder elsewhere with the LCP_HOME environment variable (to another drive, for example), the settings, the recordings and the downloaded voice models move together.

Where next

• The System tab in detail: Session, Advanced, System, About
• The servers' keys: First start and connecting to the servers
• If something does not work: Troubleshooting