Live transcription of a browser tab only works if the browser hands Pendict that tab's audio. It happens in one dialog, and one checkbox in it decides whether you get text or silence.

The steps

  1. Open the page that plays the audio and start it: a Zoom or Teams meeting joined in the browser, Google Meet, YouTube, a webinar, a lecture portal.
  2. Open Pendict in a second tab and choose your language.
  3. Click Try Free Demo, or Start Paid Session if you already bought one.
  4. In the browser's share dialog, choose the Chrome Tab option (Browser tab in Edge) and select the tab that is playing the audio.
  5. Tick Also share tab audio (Share tab audio in Edge). Without it, no audio reaches Pendict.
  6. Click Share. Text starts appearing a few seconds later.

If you get no text

  • "No audio track received". You shared a window or a screen, or left the audio box unticked. Stop, start again, pick the tab option and tick the audio checkbox.
  • The dialog has no audio checkbox. Tab sharing is the option that offers audio on every desktop system. On macOS, sharing a window or the whole screen does not include audio.
  • Wrong tab. Audio plays in one tab, you shared another. Share the tab that is actually playing sound.
  • Audio is playing but nothing appears for 15 seconds. Stop the session and start it again. Silence or very quiet audio can also produce no output for a while.
  • The language is wrong. The wrong setting hurts accuracy a lot. See which language setting to choose.

Which browsers work

Chrome, Edge, Arc and Brave on a desktop computer. Firefox, Safari and mobile browsers cannot share tab audio. If you are on a phone or tablet, use Dictate instead: it transcribes your microphone and works on those devices.

You can mute your speakers or headphones while transcribing; Pendict reads the tab's audio stream, not what comes out of your speakers. Still stuck? The Help & FAQ page covers the other common problems.