Very nice described but unfortunately my mac has its own life and I cant make it work. 😕 No microphone icon appears when trying to dictate and when I Enable Voice Control, no icon in "controlbar" appears and "the ticking on" disables shortly after totally on its own, as if I never ticked it on? 😳If you have any ideas why this happens to me I will be happy to know the solution. 🙃
I am only like 2 years into using a Mac. I love it. Your tutorials have been so helpful getting me up to speed. All the little bells and whistles you should us really help. Keep up the good work, a lot of us appreciate it.
I'm amazed how well it works. The keyboard on my MacBook is pretty awful compared to a normal keyboard and I'm not mad about the trackpad but the text conversion from speech is amazing. This is all me speaking into the computer. Wow I do love technology I feel like I'm in Star Trek.
Voice control is great for helping me write a music theory book and not be forced to sit.I actually play guitar and talk though a bluetooth headset.Which is otherworldly great for me. Thanks !!
Gary you have just given me a reason to upgrade my Mac Mini. I was struggling to justify before now but now I have a very good reason to upgrade from Intel to M2 processor. I am not sure if my wallet thanks you or not.
Great video, thanks for making this. Whether I am using dictation or voice control, I have the same problem. Whenever I ask them to add a new line or a new paragraph, or selelct some words it doesn't work. Sometimes they add a blank space which looks like a tab, and sometimes they just print out the words I've said. When I've used dragon naturally speaking on a Windows machine I could train the software to recognise my voice. Can this be done on the Mac dictation software? Is there another fix?
OK this is extremely helpful thank you so much! I just have one question, my voice control doesn't show an icon at the top of my screen like yours does. Do you know how to make it turn on in the top?
Try it with what you have (internal mic on a MacBook or iMac I assume?). Only get an external mic if you feel you need something better. I can't recommend one for this as there are hundreds of options and I don't do field testing or product reviews so I don't know them all to judge. And your situation is important too: how you have things set up, your space, etc. Lots to consider.
I am using Ventura. It is very irritating when I can no longer dictate using Voice Control because of an “download error”. I have tried a number of things to solve this, but do you have a suggestion that will correct this issue every time it occurs, which is far too often, in my opinion. Upgrading to Sonoma is not an option.
@@macmost In iPadOS, it doesn't need to, it simply reduces the volume. I hope macOS will do the same someday soon; because the current state may reduce the likelihood of making use of Dictation. Thanks Gary.
everything else worked perfectly fine minus the voice control when I try to turn on that option I get a pop-up message stating "An unexpected error occurred while downloading the voice control language English (United States) please try again later" could you help me with that I'm not sure how to fix that problem
did this but it still didn't work. I have an Air2. nothing i have done so far has gotten the dictation to work. the dictation button will even show the mic icon over my cursor, and highlights the cursor and everything, but when I talk, nothing happens. edit: the 2nd one (using voice control) worked, thank you
Gary can you please help me when Apple cannot? I have been using normal dictation for 3 years, but when upgrading to Sonoma its a mess. If I for example dictate something I need to push space afterwards otherwise all the sententes I just dictate came also copied in everywhere I push the mouse, double it everywhere. I am going to buy a new computer but is dictating like 70 hours a week, and I need it to work as smooth as before.
Thank you Gary. This is very useful. Is there any way one can add/import specialized vocabulary to dictate text on a particular theme such as medicine, mechanics or whatever? I mean adding a text file of several hundred or thousand technical words with minimal voice training. The DragonNaturallySpeaking software could do that but may be Apple has a hidden gem somewhere ;-)
Not strictly related, but I was wondering if you could confirm that the left-pointing old-fashioned quotation mark under Option/backslash is unpaired with a right-pointing one? That this basic grammatical sign us unavailable for Monterey 12.4? I know it's featured on my 2013 MacBook Pro.
@@macmost No, with the absence of a right-pointing old-fashioned quotation mark to go with the one that comes up when you type Option-backslash. Apparently this is no longer available. Can you refer me to your quotation mark video?
Can I use dictation in the same app but I need to change context window. It is possible to have mic active also in that case? I mean I'm dictating in one context window, next I switch using "tab" and will I have mic active in second context window. Anyone knows?
This is a great video, but I'm having a problem. Dictation is working, but whenever I touch a key on the keyboard, it turns off. I've looked for the setting everywhere and I don't know how to fix this. I want to do exactly what you're doing in your video go back-and-forth between editing and dictating at the same time. Thanks so much for the help.
help I updated the macpro 6.1 opencorelegacypatcher1.4.2 now the Dictation does not work,do you know any solution from the terminal I have already tried something else but it doesn't work the microphone remains open but does not convert to text
@@ambrogiovillani316 macOS doesn't use "drivers" like that. Dictation is a part of macOS, not a set of "drivers." You installed a version of macOS onto a Mac that doesn't have the hardware to support it. It could simply be that Dictation for that version of macOS relies on something in the processor or other chips that your Mac simply doesn't have.
Another excellent video thanks. Sonoma/iOS17 dictation & voice control are a big step forward for Apple. However I have been beta testing since June and frankly, I’m disappointed. Neither option gives the accuracy of Dragon Professional. The speed of text appearing in dictation is very, very impressive, but the contextual ability/AI is just not there yet. As a result, I get a lot of errors. Also on my M1 Pro & M2, my Philips SpeechMike microphones are randomly disconnecting once or twice a day, requiring a reboot. Corrections in voice control just don’t work (as was the case with Ventura). It’s a pity that Apple have been promising us better dictation for years, but it’s still buggy and does not yet live up to the promises. I still live in hope!
There was no auto-punctuation option on my Mac. I added and deleted a second language and then it came back. Hmm I see the punctuation while I'm talking, but then it disappears when it's done. I'm in Sonoma.
How do we dictate on Mac to write the numbers in words instead of it's writing the numbers like 1235 to write "One thousand two hunbred thirty-five" when we dictate.
Doesn't work for me. I updated for new Dictation features alone and hoped that dictation will now work like you and all other youtubers show, i.e., not turning off when I start to type. It does, however, always stop when I start typing!
Since upgrading to Sonoma, I find dictation to be very unreliable. This is at its worst in Mail. Sometimes it does strange things like duplicating text that I have already entered. There are other oddities, but I wonder if anyone else has any experience of this? I also find interpretation of my speech, much worse in mail.
Have you adjusted your microphone settings, maybe? Are you in a noisy environment? When you record your voice (like in Voice Memos) does it come out OK?
Nothing has changed, I am in a quiet environment. Dictation does work better in some other apps such as Google translate. I am using my iMac in a quiet room
@@macmost I hate Sonoma dictation as well. When I am typing after dictation, it does not continue typing. It acts like everything that I just dictated is highlighted, so any keystrokes just overwrite what I just dictated. The only way to avoid this, is to click the mouse somewhere else on the screen before I begin to type, so that it doesn't replace the text that I just dictated. I also despite having to physically end dictation when I am entering text. I used to hit my Fn key twice, dictate until I wanted to start typing again, and any keystroke would end dictation. Now I have to actually hit the Fn key twice again to end it. I am likely going to downgrade my operating system if I cannot figure out how to get back to where I was, because this "improvement" has ruined a feature that I depend on.
@ I’ll try that but I don’t think it’s in my computer because when I see what he’s doing pictures right up as an option when I scroll down there is no dictation as a choice. I’ll try a search and see if that makes it appear
I am a bit worried about Siri sending and storing all dictated information on the Apple servers. And on top of that (according to the documentation) also info about the music and podcasts I love, details about Contacts etc.
With Dictation in Sonoma on M1/M2 it doesn't. Information about your music, podcasts, etc are stored in your iCloud account, sure. iCloud couldn't work otherwise, right? Not sure what your concern is there. The information isn't shared with anyone, it is just part of your account.
Hi Gary, previously it was possible to dictate reminder like this (e.g. grocery list): "apples new line bread new line coffee new line ..." and it added each item on a new line as a new reminder. However this is not possible anymore. I bet you know a workaround or two :) thank you btw, this video so good I'm heading to patreon
Using which method of dictation? For the keyboard method, I would just use Command+N to start a new item, and then dictate the text. Then Command+N again, keep dictating.
Interesting video with great information. The issue for me is that Siri and Dictation simply don't understand me. They say Wisconsinites are heavily accented. Maybe that's the issue. Of course, to me, my accent sounds like everyone else's :)
Why does Dictation work well on Mac OS but HORRIBLY on the iPhone's iOS (I'd say iPad too but I haven't really tried it. Dictation is so terrible on the iPhone SE 2020 that there is really no point in even having it. I've heard the same for other iPhone models as well.
This is about dictation. If you are playing a video, that's not dictation. Use the subtitles of the video to see the words if you need it, and if the video has that available. If this is your own video and you need the words, that's called "transcription" not "dictation" and it is provided by different services.
@@macmost I would like to convert video files, MP3s, and other audio recordings (such as podcasts) into written text within a Word document for easy access. What are the best ways to achieve this?
@@viktoriax7228 One way would be to use the new transcription feature in Notes in Sequoia. Bring the an mp3 file into a note and give it a minute to transcribe it. Then you can copy and paste the text. For other file types, convert to m4a files first in QuickTime Player. Or, you can use a third-party system for more options, like otter.ai
My typing and dictation at the same time do not work on Sonoma. When I start typing after dictating a sentence, it just overwrites what I just dictated. I'm about to downgrade to an older OS. This is garbage.
Mac. Dictation sucks. Most of the time my microphone will not even launch. I have to go into settings and select external microphone, microphone port almost every time. Apple really needs to fix this. It is such a pain. Also, it just does not recognize words I'm speaking half the time I have to go back and retype almost the whole thing over anyway, so what's the point of dictation. This is one of those areas and there are a few where Apple absolutely sucks it.
Very nice described but unfortunately my mac has its own life and I cant make it work. 😕 No microphone icon appears when trying to dictate and when I Enable Voice Control, no icon in "controlbar" appears and "the ticking on" disables shortly after totally on its own, as if I never ticked it on? 😳If you have any ideas why this happens to me I will be happy to know the solution. 🙃
Same
Try rebooting your machine. I had the same problem, but I am dictating to type to you now :-)
I am only like 2 years into using a Mac. I love it. Your tutorials have been so helpful getting me up to speed. All the little bells and whistles you should us really help. Keep up the good work, a lot of us appreciate it.
Right to the point. Just the way I like it. It's not rocket science, but it helps to get correct data from a trusted source.
Excellent tutorial. This is the most useful and comprehensive review of the various features of dictation I’ve seen to date. Many thanks!
I have recently become disabled temporarily because of my carpal tunnel syndrome. Thank you so much for making this video. It’s made my life bearable.
Same situation - superb
Just getting to know how to use dictation. Nice to have a lot of my questions answered in a single, well presented video. Thanks!👍👍
I'm amazed how well it works. The keyboard on my MacBook is pretty awful compared to a normal keyboard and I'm not mad about the trackpad but the text conversion from speech is amazing. This is all me speaking into the computer. Wow I do love technology I feel like I'm in Star Trek.
Voice control is great for helping me write a music theory book and not be forced to sit.I actually play guitar and talk though a bluetooth headset.Which is otherworldly great for me.
Thanks !!
wow! iccasionat have difficult type ckearlt this video will make big difference Thank you!!
That’s funny.
Sonoma speech recognition accuracy, huge improvement over Ventura
very useful tutorial. I use dictation on my iPad a lot. I will start using it on my Mac. Thanks, Gary.
Perfect explanation. Thank you so much!
Gary you have just given me a reason to upgrade my Mac Mini. I was struggling to justify before now but now I have a very good reason to upgrade from Intel to M2 processor. I am not sure if my wallet thanks you or not.
Great video, thanks for making this.
Whether I am using dictation or voice control, I have the same problem. Whenever I ask them to add a new line or a new paragraph, or selelct some words it doesn't work.
Sometimes they add a blank space which looks like a tab, and sometimes they just print out the words I've said.
When I've used dragon naturally speaking on a Windows machine I could train the software to recognise my voice. Can this be done on the Mac dictation software? Is there another fix?
The only suggestion I have is to practice. Create a sample document and try the different commands and work with it to figure it out.
OK this is extremely helpful thank you so much! I just have one question, my voice control doesn't show an icon at the top of my screen like yours does. Do you know how to make it turn on in the top?
Are you using macOS Sonoma? Is perhaps your Menu Bar full of other control on the right?
Great tutorial! Do you recommend getting a microphone to use this feature? If so which one?
Try it with what you have (internal mic on a MacBook or iMac I assume?). Only get an external mic if you feel you need something better. I can't recommend one for this as there are hundreds of options and I don't do field testing or product reviews so I don't know them all to judge. And your situation is important too: how you have things set up, your space, etc. Lots to consider.
I am using Ventura. It is very irritating when I can no longer dictate using Voice Control because of an “download error”. I have tried a number of things to solve this, but do you have a suggestion that will correct this issue every time it occurs, which is far too often, in my opinion. Upgrading to Sonoma is not an option.
oh u make life so much easier
thank you so much
Anyone have any recommendations for a microphone? I have a USB 9-in-1 Tablemike that's quite a few years old now and deciding not to continue working!
I have a 2018 Mac mini does this work for my model?
Probably, yes. Try it and see. BTW, it is the version of macOS you have installed that is more important the year your Mac was released.
Any way to stop Dictation from pausing background audio when in use? I find it interfering with my workflow.
I think it needs to do that so it can hear you speak clearly.
@@macmost In iPadOS, it doesn't need to, it simply reduces the volume. I hope macOS will do the same someday soon; because the current state may reduce the likelihood of making use of Dictation. Thanks Gary.
everything else worked perfectly fine minus the voice control when I try to turn on that option I get a pop-up message stating "An unexpected error occurred while downloading the voice control language English (United States) please try again later"
could you help me with that I'm not sure how to fix that problem
Restart and try again. If that doesn't work, contact Apple Support.
Thanks very much, Gary, for his extremely informative video! Must give Dictation on my MacBook Pro a go.
Awesome, even works on Word.
did this but it still didn't work. I have an Air2. nothing i have done so far has gotten the dictation to work.
the dictation button will even show the mic icon over my cursor, and highlights the cursor and everything, but when I talk, nothing happens.
edit: the 2nd one (using voice control) worked, thank you
Gary can you please help me when Apple cannot? I have been using normal dictation for 3 years, but when upgrading to Sonoma its a mess. If I for example dictate something I need to push space afterwards otherwise all the sententes I just dictate came also copied in everywhere I push the mouse, double it everywhere. I am going to buy a new computer but is dictating like 70 hours a week, and I need it to work as smooth as before.
Not sure what would cause that. Maybe take it to an expert or the Genius Bar for a firsthand look.
this is cool but to F5 button i use to be able to text to type with it and now it will not let me???
Excellent as always.
Thank you Gary. This is very useful. Is there any way one can add/import specialized vocabulary to dictate text on a particular theme such as medicine, mechanics or whatever? I mean adding a text file of several hundred or thousand technical words with minimal voice training. The DragonNaturallySpeaking software could do that but may be Apple has a hidden gem somewhere ;-)
I show the Vocabulary button in the video. Next to it is another button. Click that and you can import.
Thank you Gary.@@macmost
This was very informative, thank you!
Not strictly related, but I was wondering if you could confirm that the left-pointing old-fashioned quotation mark under Option/backslash is unpaired with a right-pointing one? That this basic grammatical sign us unavailable for Monterey 12.4? I know it's featured on my 2013 MacBook Pro.
Sorry, I'm not sure what you are asking here. I have a video about quotation marks, but are you asking about something to do with dictation?
@@macmost No, with the absence of a right-pointing old-fashioned quotation mark to go with the one that comes up when you type Option-backslash. Apparently this is no longer available. Can you refer me to your quotation mark video?
@@christofeles63 So this isn't about dictation? I'm confused. Here's the video I did on quotation marks: ruclips.net/video/fmKdv5SytQw/видео.html
Thank you I always learn a lot.
Is there a way to save the dictated note as an mp4 file for download or create a URL that you can link to ?
So use the Mic to dictate and get text, and then use a text-to-audio function to then convert it back to audio? Why not just record audio?
Can I use dictation in the same app but I need to change context window. It is possible to have mic active also in that case? I mean I'm dictating in one context window, next I switch using "tab" and will I have mic active in second context window. Anyone knows?
Using voice control dictation will do that.
The dictation feature turns off when I type.
Anyone got a fix? I'm using M1 Pro Mac OS Sonoma
This is a great video, but I'm having a problem. Dictation is working, but whenever I touch a key on the keyboard, it turns off. I've looked for the setting everywhere and I don't know how to fix this. I want to do exactly what you're doing in your video go back-and-forth between editing and dictating at the same time. Thanks so much for the help.
Which version of macOS are you using and which type of dictation are you trying?
@@macmost Ventura 13.4.1 Keyboard Dictation, there is no other kind on this OS to my knowledge.
@@ForsterArt In the video I show the two types: basic keyboard dictation and Voice Control dictation.
help I updated the macpro 6.1 opencorelegacypatcher1.4.2 now the Dictation does not work,do you know any solution from the terminal I have already tried something else but it doesn't work the microphone remains open but does not convert to text
If your Mac isn't supported for that version of macOS you can't expect everything to work. You are probably missing hardware needed for that feature.
if something must be missing it's the driver not the hardware there is something that bypasses Open Core@@macmost
@@ambrogiovillani316 macOS doesn't use "drivers" like that. Dictation is a part of macOS, not a set of "drivers." You installed a version of macOS onto a Mac that doesn't have the hardware to support it. It could simply be that Dictation for that version of macOS relies on something in the processor or other chips that your Mac simply doesn't have.
I’ve never considered using dictation before but after watching this I’m inclined to try it.
Another excellent video thanks. Sonoma/iOS17 dictation & voice control are a big step forward for Apple. However I have been beta testing since June and frankly, I’m disappointed. Neither option gives the accuracy of Dragon Professional. The speed of text appearing in dictation is very, very impressive, but the contextual ability/AI is just not there yet. As a result, I get a lot of errors. Also on my M1 Pro & M2, my Philips SpeechMike microphones are randomly disconnecting once or twice a day, requiring a reboot. Corrections in voice control just don’t work (as was the case with Ventura). It’s a pity that Apple have been promising us better dictation for years, but it’s still buggy and does not yet live up to the promises. I still live in hope!
Great info, thanks again👌
A very useful and informative video tutorial today! Thank you, Gary!👏🏻❤️
There was no auto-punctuation option on my Mac. I added and deleted a second language and then it came back. Hmm I see the punctuation while I'm talking, but then it disappears when it's done. I'm in Sonoma.
On my Macbook pro, when using dictation, parts of my speech are deleted. I find this Mac app to be faulty.
How's everybody else using this feels and very powerful
thanks thanks you I can finally be hands free
MacBook dictation occasionally prefixes previously dictated text to new input , why does it do that
Not sure. I haven't seen that.
I just wish Siri works so well every question I ask her she says can I put it on your iPhone? No, I'd like you to tell me dear shake my head LOL.
How do we dictate on Mac to write the numbers in words instead of it's writing the numbers like 1235 to write "One thousand two hunbred thirty-five" when we dictate.
I don't think you can. There's no way I can think of to do it, at least not for numbers greater than 10.
Life saver
Thanks for another good video. So easy, why did I wait this long to start using basic dictation? haha
Doesn't work for me.
I updated for new Dictation features alone and hoped that dictation will now work like you and all other youtubers show, i.e., not turning off when I start to type. It does, however, always stop when I start typing!
Since upgrading to Sonoma, I find dictation to be very unreliable. This is at its worst in Mail. Sometimes it does strange things like duplicating text that I have already entered. There are other oddities, but I wonder if anyone else has any experience of this? I also find interpretation of my speech, much worse in mail.
Have you adjusted your microphone settings, maybe? Are you in a noisy environment? When you record your voice (like in Voice Memos) does it come out OK?
Nothing has changed, I am in a quiet environment. Dictation does work better in some other apps such as Google translate. I am using my iMac in a quiet room
@@terrybrett467 OK, so if you have run out of ideas of things to try, then calling Apple Support is next I suppose.
@@macmost I hate Sonoma dictation as well. When I am typing after dictation, it does not continue typing. It acts like everything that I just dictated is highlighted, so any keystrokes just overwrite what I just dictated. The only way to avoid this, is to click the mouse somewhere else on the screen before I begin to type, so that it doesn't replace the text that I just dictated.
I also despite having to physically end dictation when I am entering text. I used to hit my Fn key twice, dictate until I wanted to start typing again, and any keystroke would end dictation. Now I have to actually hit the Fn key twice again to end it.
I am likely going to downgrade my operating system if I cannot figure out how to get back to where I was, because this "improvement" has ruined a feature that I depend on.
@@TryMyMartini That doesn't sound right. I think you may have some setting or something else going on. I'd call Apple Support.
I can't find dictation in keyboard settings on Catalina. Why not??
Use the search field.
@ I’ll try that but I don’t think it’s in my computer because when I see what he’s doing pictures right up as an option when I scroll down there is no dictation as a choice. I’ll try a search and see if that makes it appear
I am a bit worried about Siri sending and storing all dictated information on the Apple servers. And on top of that (according to the documentation) also info about the music and podcasts I love, details about Contacts etc.
With Dictation in Sonoma on M1/M2 it doesn't. Information about your music, podcasts, etc are stored in your iCloud account, sure. iCloud couldn't work otherwise, right? Not sure what your concern is there. The information isn't shared with anyone, it is just part of your account.
Thank you
Now this comment is made using dictation in Mac. Thank you.
doesnt work for me on sonoma with M1 processor???
I show a lot of things in this tutorial, what, exactly, isn't working for you? Which version of macOS are you on?
Hi Gary, previously it was possible to dictate reminder like this (e.g. grocery list): "apples new line bread new line coffee new line ..." and it added each item on a new line as a new reminder. However this is not possible anymore. I bet you know a workaround or two :) thank you
btw, this video so good I'm heading to patreon
Using which method of dictation? For the keyboard method, I would just use Command+N to start a new item, and then dictate the text. Then Command+N again, keep dictating.
@@macmost It was the normal dictation. And it worked on iphones too. Actually to do this on iphone is now impossible :(
@@peteruzek How about using Siri then? Ask Siri to add a reminder to... and then do that multiple times as needed.
👍 thank you
Absolutely given you a like thank you
That was awesome.
Interesting video with great information. The issue for me is that Siri and Dictation simply don't understand me. They say Wisconsinites are heavily accented. Maybe that's the issue. Of course, to me, my accent sounds like everyone else's :)
Why does Dictation work well on Mac OS but HORRIBLY on the iPhone's iOS (I'd say iPad too but I haven't really tried it. Dictation is so terrible on the iPhone SE 2020 that there is really no point in even having it. I've heard the same for other iPhone models as well.
Maybe microphone position?
Thank you for this. Wonderful video, Carrie. I find these extremely helpful. I dictated this comment. Lol. Thanks.
It functions when I speak, but when I use a video, it cant write what the video is talking about
This is about dictation. If you are playing a video, that's not dictation. Use the subtitles of the video to see the words if you need it, and if the video has that available. If this is your own video and you need the words, that's called "transcription" not "dictation" and it is provided by different services.
@@macmost I would like to convert video files, MP3s, and other audio recordings (such as podcasts) into written text within a Word document for easy access. What are the best ways to achieve this?
@@viktoriax7228 One way would be to use the new transcription feature in Notes in Sequoia. Bring the an mp3 file into a note and give it a minute to transcribe it. Then you can copy and paste the text. For other file types, convert to m4a files first in QuickTime Player. Or, you can use a third-party system for more options, like otter.ai
more made in malaysia Sir ??????
nope neither method works for me on my m1 airbook.....and i rebooted twice
Call Apple Support and work with them to figure it out.
My typing and dictation at the same time do not work on Sonoma. When I start typing after dictating a sentence, it just overwrites what I just dictated. I'm about to downgrade to an older OS. This is garbage.
It shouldn't do that. Not sure why it is doing it for you. Which of the two types of dictation are you using?
The info is great but your cursor is bugging me off
Mac. Dictation sucks. Most of the time my microphone will not even launch. I have to go into settings and select external microphone, microphone port almost every time. Apple really needs to fix this. It is such a pain. Also, it just does not recognize words I'm speaking half the time I have to go back and retype almost the whole thing over anyway, so what's the point of dictation. This is one of those areas and there are a few where Apple absolutely sucks it.