Troubleshooting: when dictation types nothing
If Mac dictation is not working and YapToText types nothing, check two permissions first. Microphone lets the app hear you. Accessibility lets it type into other apps, because macOS only lets apps with that permission do so. Without Accessibility, every dictation is still transcribed and copied to your clipboard, so press Command-V and your words are there.
Here are the problems I check, in order.
Check the two permissions first
YapToText asks for microphone access once, on the very first launch. If you declined it, nothing can be heard until it is granted. macOS keeps both permissions in System Settings under Privacy and Security, with the app listed under Microphone and under Accessibility.
Accessibility is the one that catches people. It is what lets the app paste at your cursor and read the text around it. Until it is granted, dictations are copied to the clipboard instead, and reading selected text for Regenerate is unavailable.
The panel says Didn't catch that
That message means the recognizer heard silence. Get closer to the microphone, and check the input source in Settings: the app records from whichever microphone you chose, and the menu bar popover has an input picker too.
The microphone meter in Settings follows the chosen input. Say a sentence and watch it. If it barely moves, the app is not getting your voice, and the microphone health check under the meter says how clearly you are being heard and what to change.
You speak quietly, or the Mac's input volume is low
I speak quietly, so this one is personal. Auto-amplify quiet speech is on by default. It measures your voice against the room instead of a fixed level and eases off when you are loud. Background noise is removed before transcription. If that is still not enough, the Input boost slider adds gain by hand; raise it while watching the meter.
The setting that helps most is not in the app. If the Mac's own input volume is low, quiet speech reaches the app at almost the room's own level, and no boost afterwards can separate the two. YapToText checks that slider, warns you when it is low, and offers to raise it for you. You can also raise it yourself in System Settings under Sound.
The text went to the clipboard instead of the cursor
Two causes. The first is the Accessibility permission above. The second is that the dictation started while YapToText itself was the front window, and the app never types into itself. Click into the app you want first, or just paste: the text is already on your clipboard. History keeps the delivered text and the delivery outcome for every dictation.
An app rejects the paste
Paste is the default because it is fast. A few apps mishandle a simulated paste, and some of those accept typed keystrokes instead. YapToText has three insert methods: Paste (fast, recommended), Type character-by-character, and Copy to clipboard only. The default lives in Settings under Advanced, and the Per-app method list there pins a different method for a single app. The pin wins for that app and every other app keeps the default. If an app rejects both paste and typing, pin Copy to clipboard only and paste by hand with Command-V.
Your Mac beeps while text is inserted
That is Intelligent insert at work. A sandboxed app is not allowed to read another app's text directly, so YapToText briefly selects a few words on each side of your cursor with synthetic keystrokes, copies them, and puts your clipboard straight back. Some apps refuse a keystroke they do not expect, such as a copy with nothing selected, and macOS plays the alert sound for each one. That is the app declining the key, not an error. If an app never answers, YapToText stops asking it and inserts plainly.
Two ways to quiet it. In System Settings under Sound, drag the Alert volume all the way down; only alert beeps are silenced, and music, video, and dictation sounds are unaffected. Or switch Intelligent insert off in the Quick controls on the Home page, and your text lands unchanged. Version 1.4 reads around the cursor with fewer keystrokes in web and Electron apps, so there are fewer beeps to begin with.
Model downloads and the slow first dictation
Nothing needs downloading. Whisper Large v3 Turbo and the bundled cleanup model ship inside the app, so it works offline from the first launch. Downloads only happen when you pick a different model from the Dictation Model Library or the Cleanup Model Library on the AI Models page, and each entry shows its size before you start. Files come over HTTPS from Hugging Face and are stored in the app's own container; that is the only network traffic the app can make. If a download will not finish, the file is coming straight from that host. The app has no server of its own.
A slow first dictation is normal. Model loading happens once per launch: the speech model warms up at startup, and the cleanup model loads on its first use. The panel tells you while it happens, and every dictation after that is quick.
Still stuck
Open an issue at github.com/ryleighnewman/YapToText/issues and tell me which app you were dictating into, what the panel said, and what History shows for that dictation. If you need dictation to keep working in the meantime, Copy to clipboard only always works, with or without Accessibility. The privacy page explains what each permission is used for.
Questions
Why does dictation on my Mac type nothing?
YapToText needs the Accessibility permission to type into other apps; macOS only lets apps with that permission do so. Without it, the dictation is still transcribed and copied to your clipboard, so paste with Command-V.
Why does YapToText say Didn't catch that?
The recognizer heard silence. Get closer to the microphone, check the input source in Settings, and watch the microphone meter while you speak. Auto-amplify and the Input boost slider help if you speak quietly.
Why does my Mac beep while YapToText inserts text?
Intelligent insert reads the words around your cursor with synthetic keystrokes, and some apps refuse a keystroke they do not expect, so macOS plays the alert sound. Lower the Alert volume in Sound settings or switch Intelligent insert off.
Does YapToText need to download anything before it works?
No. The speech model and the cleanup model ship inside the app, so it works offline from the first launch. A download only happens when you choose a different model on the AI Models page.
Why did my dictation go to the clipboard instead of where my cursor was?
Either Accessibility is not granted, or the dictation started while YapToText itself was the front window. The app never types into itself. Click into the target app first, or paste; the text is already on your clipboard.