IraVoice guides
Use your voice with fewer hidden assumptions.
Learn the built-in option first, understand where processing happens, then choose a dedicated tool only when it solves a real workflow constraint.
Practical guides
Start with the workflow you are trying to understand.
Mac dictation
How to dictate on a Mac—and know where your voice goes.
Turn on Dictation in System Settings → Keyboard, choose a shortcut, place the cursor in a text field, and trigger Dictation. Before sensitive use, read the processing note shown under the Dictation setting for your language and configuration.
Read the guide →02Mac Dictation shortcut
The Mac Dictation shortcut is the one shown on your Mac.
Open System Settings → Keyboard, scroll to Dictation, and read the Shortcut value. Use that combination to start or stop Dictation. If your keyboard has a Microphone key, press and release it to start; holding it can activate Siri instead.
Read the guide →03Mac Dictation troubleshooting
Mac Dictation not working? Diagnose the failure before replacing it.
Test Dictation in a new TextEdit document first. If it fails there, verify Keyboard → Dictation, the active shortcut, Voice Control, language, microphone source and input level, then check whether your configuration needs a network connection. If TextEdit works, isolate the target app or editing field.
Read the guide →04Mac Dictation commands
Mac Dictation commands you can actually use while writing.
While standard Dictation is listening, say the name of the punctuation mark or formatting action: “comma,” “question mark,” “new line,” “new paragraph,” “no space on,” or “all caps.” Availability can vary by language, and Voice Control uses a different command system.
Read the guide →05Dictation privacy
Local versus cloud dictation, without the privacy theater.
Local dictation processes speech on your device. Cloud dictation sends audio to a remote service. Hybrid products split stages between the two. The useful question is not the label—it is what data leaves, for which stage, for how long, and under which setting.
Read the guide →06Claude Code
Claude Code already has voice dictation. Here is when that is enough.
In Claude Code v2.1.69 or later, run /voice and hold Space to dictate. Tap mode is available in newer builds. Anthropic says audio is streamed to its servers for transcription and the feature requires a Claude.ai account.
Read the guide →07Codex
Codex has live Voice. IraVoice is a different kind of input.
Open the ChatGPT desktop app, choose Codex, select the Voice control, allow microphone access, and speak. For a local text-first workflow, use IraVoice to produce editable Markdown for focused delivery or an explicit, guarded Codex handoff.
Read the guide →08VS Code
VS Code has private native dictation. Start there.
Install the official VS Code Speech extension, press Option-Command-V to dictate in the editor, or press Command-I to start voice chat. Microsoft says recordings are processed locally and are not sent to an online service.
Read the guide →09Cursor
Cursor has voice input. Know what it does before adding another tool.
In current Cursor builds, press and hold Control-M to record, then use the waveform, timer, cancel, and confirm controls. Cursor describes batch speech-to-text but does not document the voice-specific processing path on that changelog page.
Read the guide →Editorial standard
Teach the native option before selling another app.
Every guide links to the first-party documentation behind its setup, privacy, and availability claims. Product details carry a visible review date.
IraVoice is recommended only where its actual boundaries—local Mac processing, reusable text, or Voice-to-Spec—solve a distinct problem.