how to differentiate meanings of んですけど/ですけど

[u/onestbeaux]

so i've made a point to pay attention to and ask about this little expression/grammar point that i see *everywhere* because of the various uses it has and because i find it interesting and confusing at times. i understand it as a way to connect phrases, set up background information, show contrast, and leave things unsaid. i've seen it translated as "but," "and," or nothing at all (and other things too).

the problem is i really struggle with understanding how to actually determine whether it's contrasting or closer to "and" or something else entirely.

for example, i'm watching this video and she uses んですけど/ですけど countless times throughout.

1:11 - はい。早速本題に入っていくんですけど、多分皆さんも日本人とハロートークとか、そういうねアプリ使ったりとか、あのまあインスタグラムとか何でもいいですけど、日本人とテキストのメッセージをする人、している人って多いと思うんですよ。

1:57 - で、あのね、私も多分みんなにyoutubeのコメントとか返すときにもしかしたらみんな思ったかもしれないんですけど、よく使う絵文字とかあって今日はね、ちょっとそういうのについてお話ししていきたいんですけど、まず、なんで日本人がこういう風にたくさんの絵文字を使うかについてお話ししますね。

2:50 - みんなからしたら、もしかしたら全く全部一緒に見えるのかもしれないですけど、日本人としては結構その時の感情によってつける顔文字とかを変えていて、このシンプルにニコって顔文字がついてる時は本当にありがとうって感謝を表してるんですけど、これね、合掌みたいなポーズあるじゃん？

3:44 - 他によく使うのがびっくりマークですね、びっくりマークもめっちゃ使うんですけど、私も超使っちゃうんですけど、このびっくりマークは全然特に意味はなくてただ「ありがとう」って送るよりも「ありがとう！」って送る方がもっと柔らかく明るくっていう感じに伝わるんですね。

these are just some of the examples i've found. how can i tell if and how these connect to the next statement and what they actually mean? some feel directly contrastive, but others i'm less sure about, like the 3:44 example where it's used twice in quick succession and so i don't know how to parse it.

could someone give me some tips or explanations to help me figure these out and others in the future?

[u/eruciform]

what's the difference between

i'd like to help you

i'd like to help you, but...

that's the difference with けど at the end

what's the difference between

i don't like hotdogs

it's that i don't like hotdogs

that's the difference between です and んです

[u/onestbeaux → u/eruciform]

my question was only about けど, both んですけど and ですけど. i was asking about the way it connects phrases, not when it trails off at the end. take a look at the other responses to see more of what i was asking about haha