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Compare Event Groups

When a project has gone through multiple rounds of editing — whether by different team members, across different language tracks, or after a client has returned revisions — it is common to end up with two versions of the same event group that have diverged from each other. The Compare Event Groups tool provides a side-by-side diff view that makes it straightforward to see exactly what has changed and decide which version of each difference should be kept.

Opening the Comparison View​

To compare two event groups, open the event group options menu by clicking the menu icon next to the event group tab. Navigate to the Combine & Compare tab in the resulting dialog and click Compare Event Groups.

Selecting Groups to Compare​

The comparison view presents two event group selectors at the top: Group A on the left and Group B on the right. Use these dropdowns to select the two event groups you want to compare. Any event groups in the current project are available for selection, including groups representing different languages, different versions of the same track, or a merged copy produced by a previous combination operation.

Event group selectors and filters in comparison view

After you change either group, the tool aligns matching events. While that runs, the list shows Aligning events… and merge, navigation, and CSV export are unavailable.

Compare Options​

Compare Options (labelled Properties to compare) controls which event fields are included in the diff. Unchecked properties are ignored when deciding whether two events differ and when applying merges, so you can compare timing alone, text alone, or any combination of fields.

The same checkboxes also control what appears on the event cards in the Group A and Group B columns. Checking a property shows that field on each event so you can inspect its value without relying only on the centre column.

Select All and Select None toggle every property at once. Your choices are saved in the browser and restored the next time you open the comparison.

The available properties are Start Time, End Time, Text, Source Text, Style, Position, Alignment, Writing Mode, Rate, Tags, Speakers, Recipients, Voice, Notes, Reply, Approved, and Forced. Related fields are grouped: Position covers horizontal and vertical position together, and Voice covers the voice name, speaking style, stability, and similarity.

Notes and replies are an exception on the event cards. If an event has notes or a reply, that text always appears on the card (including a Done badge when marked complete), even when Notes or Reply is unchecked in Compare Options. Unchecking those options only stops them from being compared and merged.

Reading the Diff​

Once both groups are selected, each row shows Group A on the left, Differences & Actions in the centre, and Group B on the right. Events that match on every enabled property appear without a difference badge. Rows where enabled properties differ are shown with a modified badge. Events that exist only in Group B are added; events that exist only in Group A are deleted.

Use Previous Difference and Next Difference to jump between rows that have changes. Enable Show differences only to hide matching rows so you can work through the remaining differences.

The centre column lists each changed property with the values from both groups. Timing differences are shown as SMPTE timecodes. Tags, speakers, and recipients appear as colour badges. The event cards on either side display the properties you have checked, so you can read both versions of a modified event at the same time.

Merging Changes​

Merges copy only the properties that differ and that are enabled in Compare Options. Other fields on the target event — including its identity and any properties you are not comparing — are left unchanged.

For a modified row you can:

  • Apply a single property with → B or → A next to that property in the centre column.
  • Apply every enabled difference on that event with A → B or B → A.

Apply All A → B and Apply All B → A in the header apply those same rules across every aligned row in one pass.

There is no requirement to choose a single direction for the entire comparison. You can accept Group A's version for some properties or events and Group B's version for others, building the final result from the best of both versions.

For added and deleted rows, the centre column offers Copy to A or Copy to B, which inserts the missing event into the other group rather than merging individual fields.

Exporting a Comparison Report​

When you need to share the differences between two event groups with a client or production team, the comparison can be exported as a CSV file. The export includes event timecodes, text, notes, and replies from both groups for each changed row, making it easy to review in Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets without requiring access to Closed Caption Creator.

  • Metadata Merge — combine selected properties from multiple groups into a new Event Group
  • Event Approval and Notes — mark decisions on individual events during the review process
  • Manual QC — track editorial findings that arise during comparison reviews
  • Running a Review — run a full style-guide scan on a merged result to confirm it meets delivery requirements