Murmurtale Murmurtale
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Getting started

Grant Microphone and Accessibility

Murmurtale asks for two permissions and no more: Microphone, so it can hear you, and Accessibility, so it can type where you point.

The two permissions

On first launch, Murmurtale's welcome window asks for both permissions up front. Each has a status checkmark and a button that opens the exact System Settings pane.

Murmurtale asking for required Mac permissions.
The welcome window requests both permissions before you dictate.
PermissionWhy Murmurtale needs it
MicrophoneTo hear you while you hold the key. Requested up front, not just the first time you speak.
AccessibilityTo type the finished text into other apps and to detect the hold-to-talk key. On macOS 14 and 15 this covers key detection too.

You do not need Input MonitoringA common worry is that dictation needs the Input Monitoring permission. Murmurtale does not. A listen-only keyboard tap works under Accessibility alone on macOS 14 and 15, so Accessibility plus Microphone is the complete list.

Granting them

  1. In the welcome window, click Grant next to Microphone and approve the prompt.
  2. Click Grant next to Accessibility. This opens System Settings at Privacy & Security → Accessibility. Turn Murmurtale on. If it is not listed, click the plus button and add it from your Applications folder.
  3. The welcome window notices each grant within a second or two. Continue un-greys once both are set, and it names anything still missing.
Murmurtale enabled in Mac Accessibility settings.
Accessibility, granted. Murmurtale can now type at your cursor and read the hold key.

If a permission gets lost

If either permission is later turned off, Murmurtale tells you plainly. The pill and menu say exactly which one is missing — for example "Microphone access needed" or "Keyboard access lost — click to fix" — and clicking opens the right pane with instructions.

One-time re-grant after a signing changeIf you move from a development build to a signed release build, macOS invalidates the old grants once. Toggle Murmurtale off and back on in both the Accessibility and Microphone panes a single time; after that they stay put across updates.

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