Voice and dictation - talk to your Mac and let it do the typing
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Voice and dictation - talk to your Mac and let it do the typing.
Your Mac has a microphone, and it is far more useful than most people realise. Dictation turns your speech into text in almost any app, Siri handles quick jobs without touching the keyboard, and Voice Control lets you drive the whole Mac by voice. None of it needs extra software, and all of it is already built in. Here is how to get started in a few minutes.
1. Dictate anywhere you can type.
Dictation works in Mail, Pages, Notes, Messages, your browser and almost any text box. Turn it on once in System Settings, then it is a single shortcut away.
→ Open System Settings > Keyboard, find Dictation and switch it on.
→ Press the fn key twice (or the microphone key on newer keyboards) to start, and press it once to stop.
→ Say punctuation out loud: "comma", "full stop", "new line" and "new paragraph" all work.
→ Keep talking while it types - you can click and correct a word without stopping.
2. Ask Siri for the quick jobs.
Siri on the Mac is best for short, practical requests that would otherwise take several clicks. You can speak to it, or type if you are somewhere quiet.
→ Turn Siri on in System Settings > Siri, then choose how to call it, such as holding Cmd+Space.
→ Try "Set a timer for 20 minutes", "Open Safari" or "What's on my calendar tomorrow?".
→ Ask it to find files: "Show me PDFs I opened last week".
→ Switch on Type to Siri in the same settings pane for silent requests.
3. Take charge with Voice Control.
Voice Control is built for hands-free use, but it is handy for anyone with a sore wrist or a full cup of tea. It lets you click, scroll and type using only your voice.
→ Enable it in System Settings > Accessibility > Voice Control.
→ Say "Show numbers" and every clickable item gets a number - then say the number to click it.
→ Say "Click Save", "Scroll down" or "Open Mail" to act on what is on screen.
→ Say "Go to sleep" to pause listening and "Wake up" to carry on.
4. Make it your own.
Once the basics feel natural, a few tweaks make dictation faster and more accurate for the way you work. It is worth ten minutes to set these up.
→ Add your own commands in Voice Control > Commands, such as a phrase that types your email signature.
→ Use Keyboard > Text Replacements so short codes expand into full addresses or phrases.
→ Choose your microphone in Dictation settings if you use a headset or external mic.
→ Add your name and any unusual words to the Voice Control vocabulary so they are spelled correctly.
• Speak naturally at a steady pace - you do not need to talk like a robot.
• A quiet room and a decent microphone make a big difference to accuracy.
• Always give dictated text a quick read before you send it.
• Dictation and Voice Control can work on your Mac itself for many languages, so your words stay private.
• If you are reading this through your employer's TechBenefits scheme and want a hand setting any of this up, our team is always happy to help.
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Farpoint Developments Ltd. · farpoint.co.uk · 01225 460 678
