Shortcuts & hotkey

The streaming hotkey is the single piece of muscle memory you need. The default works for most people; this page tells you what to swap if it doesn't, and how to fix the macOS permission gotchas that cause most "it doesn't work" reports.

The default

• Hotkey: ⌥ Right Option — one key, no chord.
• Behavior: Push-to-talk — hold to record, release to stop and paste.
• Sound: Subtle beep on start and stop, on.

Why a single modifier key instead of a chord? Because you'll press it a hundred times a day. Holding ⌃⌥Space while you talk is awkward; flicking Right Option with your right thumb is one motion. The trade-off is that you give up Right Option's usual macOS role (character entry like ⌥ + n → ñ) — for most people that's a fair trade. If it isn't, see "Swap to another key" below.

Push-to-talk vs. toggle

• Push-to-talk (default): hold the hotkey while speaking, release to stop and paste. Best for short bursts and natural speech rhythm.
• Toggle: tap once to start, tap again to stop. Best if you'd rather not hold a key — long dictation, hands-free contexts, or when you're typing with one hand.

A brief tap auto-switches to hands-free mode so you don't have to flip a setting just to dictate a longer thought. Tap again to stop.

Swap to another key

If Right Option is taken — accented-character workflow, Karabiner remap, a keyboard that only has a left Option — pick another single-modifier key under Settings → Shortcuts → Streaming hotkey:

• Right Option (⌥) — the default.
• Left Option (⌥) — same feel on the other side.
• Right / Left Control (⌃) — useful if Option is spoken for.
• Right Command (⌘) / Right Shift (⇧) — for non-US layouts where Option does heavy lifting.
• Fn — works, but macOS sometimes intercepts it for system features (emoji picker, dictation toggle). Test before relying on it.
• Custom — bind any combo via the recorder (e.g. ⌃⌥D).

Secondary hotkey

Settings → Shortcuts has a second slot. It runs the same dictation flow as the primary. Use it when:

• Two laptops with different keyboard layouts (you keep Right Option on one, Fn on the other).
• One hand is busy — bind the secondary to something you can hit with the other.
• Hands-free contexts — bind it to a wider chord you can't fire accidentally.

Set the secondary to None to disable it.

Common conflicts

Most single-modifier defaults rarely clash with macOS itself, but these come up:

• Right Option as a dead key. macOS uses Option for character entry (e.g. ⌥ + n → ñ). With Quilin holding it for dictation, that key chord stops producing the accented character. Either swap to a different modifier, or rely on the macOS character viewer for occasional accents.
• Karabiner / hammerspoon / vim-mode plugins can intercept modifiers before the OS sees them. If Quilin's hotkey doesn't fire and nothing else is bound to it, check there first.
• Fn key. macOS reserves Fn for system features (emoji picker via 🌐, dictation toggle). If you pick Fn, expect occasional double-fires from the OS.
• External keyboards without Right Option. Some compact and tenkeyless boards only have a single Option key. Switch the default to Left Option.

To rebind: Settings → Shortcuts → Streaming hotkey → pick a key from the dropdown (or choose Custom and press the combo you want).

Permission gotchas

These are the failure modes that look like "Quilin isn't working" but are actually macOS permissions:

"I press the hotkey but no text appears"

Quilin recorded fine but couldn't paste at the cursor — usually missing Accessibility access.

Fix: System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility → ensure Quilin is in the list and toggled on. If it's not in the list, hit the + and add it from /Applications.

"Mic permission was denied and now Quilin won't ask again"

macOS only prompts once for mic access. If you denied it, the prompt is gone for good.

Fix: System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone → toggle Quilin on. Restart Quilin after.

"The hotkey works but recording immediately fails"

Likely Input Monitoring isn't granted — Quilin uses it to detect the modifier-key release on push-to-talk.

Fix: System Settings → Privacy & Security → Input Monitoring → toggle Quilin on.

"First-launch right-click prompt"

During beta, Quilin is signed but not notarized for Gatekeeper. The first launch needs a right-click → Open → Open. After that, double-click works normally. We'll be notarized for the public release.

Still stuck?

Email support and include your macOS version, Quilin version (Quilin menu → About), and what step in the above checklist you got stuck on. We get back fast.