Whisper Island can record audio in two modes. Switch from Settings → Recording.
Push-to-talk
Hold the shortcut to record, release to transcribe.
- Press and hold the mic shortcut
- Speak while holding
- Release the shortcut — recording stops and Whisper transcribes immediately
- The text is pasted into the active app via
Cmd+V
Push-to-talk is best for short utterances and when you want full control over the start and end of each clip. There’s no risk of leaving the mic on by mistake.
Push-to-talk uses a JXA helper that polls CGEventSourceFlagsState to detect when you release the modifier keys. The process exits as soon as the modifier mask is no longer fully held — no System Events fallback, no double-fire.
Toggle
Tap the shortcut to start, tap again to stop.
- Tap the mic shortcut to start recording
- Speak
- Tap the shortcut again to stop and transcribe
Toggle is best for longer dictations — emails, task briefs, doc paragraphs — when you don’t want to keep a key held down. The overlay clearly shows you’re still recording.
Which one should you pick?
| If you… | Use |
|---|
| Dictate short messages and want zero false starts | Push-to-talk |
| Write long emails, docs, or task briefs | Toggle |
| Want a hands-free flow once recording starts | Toggle |
| Frequently switch between two-second corrections and longer dictations | Push-to-talk |
What gets pasted
The text is written to the clipboard, then Cmd+V is simulated via osascript … System Events keystroke "v". After 200 ms, the previous clipboard content is restored — unless you’ve enabled Keep transcript in clipboard in settings (see Settings).
Pasting requires Accessibility access. If the text doesn’t appear in the active app, check System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility and make sure Whisper Island is enabled.
Hallucination filter
Whisper occasionally returns known hallucinations on silent or near-silent recordings (sous-titres réalisés par…, merci, you, etc.). Whisper Island filters these out automatically — if you didn’t speak, nothing gets pasted. 
