Use Speech Recognition to Control Windows With Your Voice

 

Turn on Windows Speech Recognition

You can turn on Windows Speech Recognition in the Control Panel. The interface for each version of Windows is a little different, but the steps for activating Speech Recognition are basically the same:

1. 1. Open the Windows Control Panel and enter Speech Recognition in the search box.

   

2. 2. Select Start Speech Recognition in the search results.

   

3. 3. A new window appears briefly explaining what Speech Recognition is. Select Next at the bottom of the window.

   

4. 4. Select the button next to the type of microphone you use for speech recognition and then select Next.

   

   Note: Windows is fairly good at identifying the type of microphone you have, but you should still make sure the selection is correct.

5. 5. Read the tips about the proper placement of the microphone and select Next.

   

6. 5. Read a few lines of text to make sure your microphone is working properly and that the volume level is right. Once you're done speaking, select Next.

   

   While you speak, you should see the volume indicator remain in the green zone. If it gets higher than that, you need to adjust your microphone volume in the Control Panel.

7. 6. Select Next again when you see the confirmation that the microphone is set up.

   

8. 7, Select Enable document review to allow Windows to look at the documents and email caches on your PC and then select Next. This can help the operating system understand the common words and phrases you typically use.

   

   Read over Microsoft's Privacy Statements before deciding whether you want to enable this feature. Alternatively, you can select Disable document review.

9. 8. Choose between Manual and Voice Activation mode and then select Next.

   • 9. Manual mode means you must use the keyboard shortcut Win + Ctrl before giving voice commands
   • 10. Voice activation mode is activated by saying "Start Listening."
   • 11. Both methods use the command "Stop Listening" to turn off Speech Recognition.

   

10. 12. Select View Reference Sheet to view and print off the Windows Speech Recognition reference card. Then select Next.

    

    Important: You must be connected to the internet to download the reference card.

11. 13. Mark sure Run Speech Recognition at startup is checked and select Next one last time.

    

12. 14. Select Start Tutorial to learn more about the Speech Recognition tool or select Skip Tutorial.

    

    Note: If you decide to skip the tutorial, you can always navigate to Control Panel > Speech Recognition > Take Speech Tutorial to view it.