Installation Guide

[SCOPE] Talon Platform

This section is relevant to all users of the talon platform, regardless of whether or not the Talon community user file set has also been installed.

1: Check System Requirements

Talon has various system requirements, covering the computer hardware, operating system and microphone hardware.

2: Download & Install Talon

Linux Users

• Download Talon for Linux
• Install

note

• Talon, like many tools for automation or accessibility, does not support Wayland
  • You will have to select an X11 session from your login manager.
  • This is supported by Gnome and Plasma and many others, but some environments like sway are explicitly Wayland-only.
• To install the speech engine, you must use Talon's tray icon:
  • If you use stock Gnome, you need to install AppIndicator and KStatusNotifierItem Support to see it
  • If you use i3 or a system tray that doesn't support the StatusNotifierItem protocol, install snixembed to add support.

Mac Users

• Download Talon for Mac
• Install

Windows Users

• Download Talon for Windows
• Install Talon by running talon-windows.exe

note

It is recommended that Talon is installed as described above. However, please note that the application is also available as a portable zip file

3: Install a speech recognition engine

Talon uses a local speech recognition engine that translates voice audio to text.

One recognition engine that comes with Talon is known as Conformer D. To install it:

• Run the Talon app
• Click the Talon tray icon and select Speech Recognition → Conformer D.

Screenshot

note

For other engine options, see the speech engine page

4: Download the Talon user file set

important

Talon does not come with voice commands out of the box. So at this point in the installation process, Talon can not do anything useful.

It requires a user file set and for beginners, we strongly recommend that you use the Talon Community user file set.

If you install a different user file set then portions of this wiki will not be relevant. These will be marked as such.

A user file set is simply a bunch of files that need to be downloaded and placed in the correct directory - the Talon user directory.

[SCOPE] Talon Community User File Set

This section is only relevant to users who have installed theTalon community user file set

This can be done one of two ways - either as a zip file or by using git. Considerations in choosing between the two methods, as well as instructions, are described here.

5: Test your Talon setup

If you have installed Talon community, try a few basic commands.

If you have installed a different user file set, consult its documentation on usage.

6: Next steps

• If needed, try ways to improve recognition accuracy
• Customize Talon: learn about how to configure Talon to your liking.
• If at any point you need help with your Talon setup, join the Talon Voice Slack and ask in the #help channel.
• For earlier access to new features, priority support, and access to additional speech engines, install the beta version.