Summary
Automatically pause system audio playback (music, podcasts, videos)
when recording starts, and resume it when transcription is complete.
Current Behavior
When I start dictating with the hotkey, any audio playing in the
background (Spotify, Apple Music, browser videos, etc.) continues
to play. This creates two problems:
- I have to manually pause music before dictating
- Background audio can interfere with transcription accuracy
Desired Behavior
When the recording hotkey is pressed:
- System audio playback is automatically paused
- Recording starts as usual
- After transcription is complete, audio playback resumes automatically
Implementation Notes
macOS provides the MediaRemote framework (or MPRemoteCommandCenter)
to control system-wide media playback — the same mechanism used by
keyboard media keys. This should make the implementation relatively
straightforward.
Use Case
This would allow hands-free dictation without any manual interruption
to the current workflow. Very useful when coding or writing with
background music — just hold the hotkey, speak, release, and
everything continues seamlessly.
Optional Enhancement
Add a toggle in Settings to enable/disable this behavior,
so users who prefer to keep audio playing can opt out.
Summary
Automatically pause system audio playback (music, podcasts, videos)
when recording starts, and resume it when transcription is complete.
Current Behavior
When I start dictating with the hotkey, any audio playing in the
background (Spotify, Apple Music, browser videos, etc.) continues
to play. This creates two problems:
Desired Behavior
When the recording hotkey is pressed:
Implementation Notes
macOS provides the
MediaRemoteframework (orMPRemoteCommandCenter)to control system-wide media playback — the same mechanism used by
keyboard media keys. This should make the implementation relatively
straightforward.
Use Case
This would allow hands-free dictation without any manual interruption
to the current workflow. Very useful when coding or writing with
background music — just hold the hotkey, speak, release, and
everything continues seamlessly.
Optional Enhancement
Add a toggle in Settings to enable/disable this behavior,
so users who prefer to keep audio playing can opt out.