Why do I keep seeing the "Loading subtitle editor..." message?

Sometimes the Amara subtitle editor looks like it is loading, but it is not. Instead of opening the subtitle editor, it only shows this message:

Loading subtitle editor... message.

Getting the Amara Editor working

This usually happens because a browser extension or other software on your computer is blocking the Amara Editor. We’ll go through a few steps that will hopefully unblock the editor.

Try another browser

The simplest approach is to try another web browser. We recommend Chrome or Firefox, but you can also try Safari (Mac), or Opera (both Windows and Mac). 

If you don’t have a second web browser installed, we recommend downloading and installing from one of the links above.

Disable browser extensions or add-ons

Follow these instructions to disable any extensions, which can sometimes block Amara:

1. Confirm that your browser extensions are disabled

2. Quit and restart your browser

3. Try the Amara Editor

Remove intrusive software (malware)

Sometimes a computer or browser can get bad programs that interfere with normal browsing – it’s especially common on Windows. Occasionally a brand new computer can even come with malware programs installed.

It can be tricky to remove these, but here is our advice: 

• AdwCleaner

• Junkware Removal Tool

• Malwarebytes Anti-Malware

• Run a full system scan with the application

• Restart your computer and try the Amara Editor

Use HTTPS instead of HTTP

Some Internet providers are known to inject ads into Web pages that are served unencrypted. This may prevent Amara subtitle editor from loading.

Please check the URL of the Web page with the editor and make sure it starts with https://www.amara.org/... Otherwise, replace "http://" with "https://" manually and reload the page.

Advanced options for troubleshooting

If nothing has worked there are a few advanced options that some users might be able to try. If you’re unsure about how to do these, you might want to ask for help from a friend with advanced computer skills.

If you still think it might be malware:

1. On windows, open Control Panel > Uninstall Programs

• Consider uninstalling anything suspicious, especially if labeled with “enhancing user experience” or “advanced search panel”

•  If in doubt, use a web search to learn more about the purpose of a program and if it has any known malicious effects

1. Open the browser’s Javascript Console during an Amara Editor session 

• Visually review for non-Amara.org originating files that load

• Use a web search to determine if the file could be malicious

Advanced workaround

As the last resort, if nothing else helps, you can install Linux Ubuntu alongside Windows while keeping Windows. This is called “Dual Boot” and will allow you to and boot your computer under either Windows or Linux as necessary. This is advanced and is only recommended for experienced computer users.

More information: Instructions for dual booting

NOTE: In the absence of malware, all the modern versions of Windows and the major Web browsers should be compatible with Amara and allow the subtitle editor to load and run.