Media Access Generator (MAGpie)

Version 2.5.1 (Windows)

MAGpie (Media Access Generator) is the original free caption- and audio-description authoring tool for making multimedia accessible to persons with sensory disabilities.

NEWS UPDATE: MAGpie 2.5.1 (Windows) is now available.

MAGpie 2.5.1 contains the following updates:

• An export selection for the TTXT format, which can be used to add closed captions to movies playable on BlackBerry® smartphones.
• An export selection to automatically combine (or mux) TTXT caption files with MP4 or 3GP source files. These closed-captioned videos can be played, and the captions decoded, on BlackBerry smartphones.

As before, you can use MAGpie to create caption files for YouTube videos.

MAGpie is a Java2 application which runs on Windows 9x/NT/2000/XP/Vista/Windows 7. Please note that MAGpie 2.5.1 removes support for the GRiNS player. If you are currently using GRiNS to caption RealMedia source files, do not replace your current version of MAGpie with version 2.5.1. (MAGpie 2.5.1 will still export SMIL files for the RealPlayer, however.) Windows Media clips cannot be used as source files except with MAGpie 1.0.

Download MAGpie
Documentation
License

NOTE FOR OS X USERS

MAGpie is a Java-based application which requires QuickTime Java in order to run properly. Unfortunately, Apple has deprecated the QuickTime Java interface and no longer provides support for it; therefore, MAGpie will no longer run on the Mac. We regret that at this time NCAM does not have the funding to create a new version of MAGpie which is compatible with the Mac OS. You can, however, use a virtual machine such as VMware Fusion, Parallels or Boot Camp to run Windows and MAGpie on your Mac.

MAGpie version 2.0.2 should still run on non-Intel or pre-Leopard Macs (not later than OS 10.4.x). You'll also need to install QuickTime version 6.x.


MAGpie users may also be interested in reading NCAM's Accessible Digital Media: Design Guidelines for Electronic Publications, Multimedia and the Web. These guidelines, providing step-by-step solutions for making a variety of electronic media accessible to users with sensory disabilities, are available free of charge.

Previous versions

MAGpie 2.0.5

MAGpie 2.0.5 for Windows 9x/NT/2000/XP/Vista/7 is still available. If you need to caption RealMedia source files, this is the version to use. MAGpie 2.0.5 uses the same documentation as MAGpie 2.5.1.

Download MAGpie 2.0.5.
Download Oratrix GRiNS Player for MAGpie (for captioning RealMedia source files)

MAGpie 2.0.2 (OS X)

For Mac OS 10.4.x or earlier. Download MAGpie 2.0.2. You will also need to download and install QuickTime version 6.x.

MAGpie 1.0

MAGpie 1.0, a Windows 9x/NT/2000/XP application, is still available.

Download MAGpie 1.0
More information
Installation instructions
Documentation
Accessibility Information
License

Funding for MAGpie development

Funding for MAGpie 2.5.1 was provided jointly by NCAM and Research in Motion.

Funding for MAGpie 1.0 comes from the Trace Research and Development Center at the University of Wisconsin, as part of its Information Technology Access Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center which itself is funded by the U.S. Department of Education's National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research.

Funding for MAGpie 2.01 comes from the U.S. Department of Education's National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research and the Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation.


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