In creating Talkatoo, we strove to make it as easy to use as possible – you’re busy enough, and the last thing we want is to give you a transcription solution that takes a lot of time or understanding to properly set up.
There is, however, a lot of variance when it comes to computer and microphone combinations. We have put together a list of the microphones we’ve found performed the best with Talkatoo, although we reasonably expect most microphones to work well. No matter what you’re using, here are a few things you should know.
Turn Up the Volume
“I hear you loud and clear” is more than an idiom – it’s also necessary to get the best out of Talkatoo. Head over to the Windows Control Panel, open the Sound menu, and click on the Recording tab. You will be able to see the microphone that you’re currently using and, to the right of it, how well it the sound is being input into your computer.
While any type of input should be sufficient, we recommend that you aim to have the sound level be in the middle range on that visualizer for best performance. To increase the volume, click the microphone you’re using and go to Properties. In the Levels tab, make sure that the volume is at 100.
When you use Talkatoo, you’ll notice a circle with a waveform in it. When you speak, it should react to your voice. The louder your microphone, the larger the waveform and the better Talkatoo is able to process your input.
If the line is skinny and there’s only a bit of oscillation, the quality of Talkatoo’s transcription will be negatively affected, as it may struggle to understand what you’re saying.
Speak Naturally
Some people may not be sure how Talkatoo processes their input, so they may speak overly slowly or in staccato sentences. Where. Every. Word. Is. Carefully. Enunciated.
As they have been built to understand natural language, the artificial intelligence and machine learning elements of Talkatoo will react to where they believe sentences are starting and stopping. Not speaking naturally, such as you would with another person, will result in incorrect sentence structures and artificially inflated use of punctuation.
This will also occur if you wait for the text to appear on the screen before you continue speaking. One thing we like to tell people is not even to look at the computer screen; put a picture of your favourite animal or movie star on the wall and pretend that you’re talking to them. Only when you finish speaking should you look back at the screen in order to make your edits.
Use “My Words”
Occasionally, you might find that transcribing something using Talkatoo might give you a different result than you might expect; for example, “Shawn” might become “Sean”. If you don’t want to reflect on the fascinating nature of language, clicking on the three vertical dots on the right of the Talkatoo window will bring up the menu, from which you can reach the “My Words” window.
This is where you can add any specific word or phrase that you’d like the application to use, which can be very useful in the context of names or places, industry terminology, or other specific terms. You can add a term by clicking above the green bar, typing what you’d like, and pressing enter.
By pulling from your vocabulary, the accuracy of Talkatoo is vastly increased, so it will be unlikely to trip over the phrase, “Rian Fraser resides in Rancho Cucumonga with his dog Sophie.”
These are just a few tips to help you get the most out of using Talkatoo. If you have any additional questions regarding the software and how to best use it for your needs, please reach out to our support staff, who are happy to assist you with any inquiry.