xavierk
bf8a6b7b56
Every lowercase identity constant is now derived from a single _SLUG, so a rename is one edit. The values are unchanged (checked against origin/main for all 33 constants and the user agent). legacy_import: drop the unused subdirectory field from the payload tuples, merge the four near-identical directory helpers, and use the identity constants directly instead of aliases. Docstrings: the retained package is vocalinux, not voculinux; the one-time import is described as a legacy Vocalinux install.
Voculinux turns speech into typed text in whatever app has focus. It is a free, AGPL-3.0-licensed desktop app for X11 and Wayland. After you download a model, local engines (whisper.cpp by default, plus OpenAI Whisper, Faster Whisper, VOSK, and Parakeet) run speech-to-text on your machine. An optional remote HTTP API is off unless you configure it.
No Voca account is required. Models download once. After that, speech-to-text stays on your machine.
Current release: v0.18.5. Patch: a stop that races a recording start can no longer leave the mic recording forever, keyboards stay alive through suspend and the GNOME lock screen, Ctrl+mouse-wheel zoom works again, Dictation Pad and Settings stop travelling workspaces together, paste-injection copies are marked sensitive for clipboard history on wl-clipboard 2.2+, and install.sh gains an upgrade mode that keeps your existing configuration. Details: docs/UPDATE.md.
Features
- On-device after model download: Local engines; speech-to-text stays on your machine
- X11 and Wayland: Text injection via xdotool, IBus, wtype, ydotool, or clipboard fallback
- Several engines: whisper.cpp (default), OpenAI Whisper, Faster Whisper, VOSK, Parakeet, plus optional remote HTTP API or local VocaGateway from Settings (not on-device)
- GPU acceleration: Vulkan for AMD, Intel, and NVIDIA with whisper.cpp
- Toggle or push-to-talk: New installs default to hold Right Alt; existing configs keep their shortcut
- System tray + settings: Searchable sidebar, Speech Model simple setup with Advanced as an island, status icons, audio feedback
- Start on login: XDG autostart (desktop session, not a systemd service)
- Packaging: install script,
.deb/.rpm, AppImage, AUR, PyPI, Snap (--edge), Flatpak (release bundles and local build; not on Flathub), Nix flake
Screenshots
Voculinux in action. Full gallery on the website screenshots page.
Product
 Real-time voice-to-text transcription |
 System tray with listening indicator |
 About & Updates in Settings |
 Log viewer for debugging |
Settings
 Speech Engine |
 Recognition |
 Audio |
 Performance |
 General |
 Advanced |
 Floating overlay while listening (green) |
 Floating overlay while processing (amber) |
Install
Recommended (interactive installer)
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/VocaHQ/vocalinux/main/install.sh -o /tmp/vl.sh
bash /tmp/vl.sh
Prefer to review the script first: open /tmp/vl.sh before running it, or clone the repo and run ./install.sh locally.
The installer detects hardware, recommends an engine, downloads a default model (~74MB for whisper.cpp tiny), installs neural VAD when ONNX Runtime is available, and sets up desktop integration. Typical install time with whisper.cpp is about 1-2 minutes.
| Engine | When to use |
|---|---|
| whisper.cpp (default) | Best default; Vulkan GPU on AMD, Intel, and NVIDIA |
| Whisper (OpenAI) | PyTorch path; NVIDIA/CUDA |
| Faster Whisper | CPU-friendly Whisper via CTranslate2 / INT8 |
| VOSK | Low RAM / minimal footprint |
| Parakeet | CPU; NVIDIA NeMo ASR via sherpa-onnx; 25 European languages |
| Remote API | Offload to a server you configure |
Non-interactive options:
bash /tmp/vl.sh --auto # whisper.cpp defaults
bash /tmp/vl.sh --auto --engine=whisper # OpenAI Whisper
bash /tmp/vl.sh --auto --engine=faster_whisper # Faster Whisper (CPU)
bash /tmp/vl.sh --auto --engine=vosk # VOSK only
bash /tmp/vl.sh --auto --engine=parakeet # Parakeet (CPU)
For a specific release tag, see GitHub Releases or ./install.sh --tag=v0.18.5.
Arch Linux (AUR)
yay -S voculinux
See docs/AUR.md.
AppImage
Download the x86_64 or aarch64 AppImage from Releases, mark it executable, and run it. Built against glibc 2.35 (Debian 12+, Ubuntu 22.04+, Fedora 36+, Arch, Tumbleweed). Host text-injection tools (xdotool on X11; wtype / ydotool / clipboard tools on Wayland) are still required. Current AppImages rebuild whisper.cpp with Vulkan and use the host GPU driver. Prefer the installer when you want system deps, a CUDA build, and models set up automatically.
Distro packages (.deb / .rpm)
Download the .deb (Debian 12+, Ubuntu 24.04+) or .rpm (Fedora) matching your CPU from Releases and install with sudo apt install ./voculinux_*.deb or sudo dnf install ./voculinux-*.rpm. Thin packages: Python and GTK come from the distro. No auto-update; CPU whisper.cpp. Details in docs/INSTALL.md.
Flatpak (any distro)
Install and auto-update via the self-hosted VocaHQ remote (flatpak update picks up each release):
flatpak install https://vocahq.github.io/voculinux-flatpak/com.voculinux.Voculinux.flatpakref
The .flatpakref adds the vocahq remote and resolves the GNOME runtime through Flathub. Manually instead:
flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://dl.flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo
flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists vocahq https://vocahq.github.io/voculinux-flatpak/vocahq.flatpakrepo
flatpak install vocahq com.voculinux.Voculinux
Or sideload a GitHub Release bundle (Voculinux-<version>-x86_64.flatpak or -aarch64.flatpak) after the Flathub GNOME runtime is present — bundles do not auto-update:
flatpak install --user ./Voculinux-<version>-x86_64.flatpak
Local build:
flatpak install flathub org.gnome.Platform//50 org.gnome.Sdk//50
flatpak-builder --user --install --force-clean build-dir \
packaging/flatpak/com.voculinux.Voculinux.yml
flatpak run com.voculinux.Voculinux
Ships whisper.cpp with Vulkan. It is not on Flathub (submission flathub#9368 closed 2026-07-23 on policy grounds). Details: packaging/flatpak/README.md.
Snap (Ubuntu Snap Store)
Listing: snapcraft.io/voculinux. stable is promoted from candidate after QA. Tagged releases also attach voculinux_<version>_amd64.snap on GitHub.
sudo snap install voculinux --edge
sudo snap connect voculinux:audio-record # if mic is not auto-connected
sudo snap connect voculinux:raw-input # global keyboard shortcuts (evdev)
sudo snap connect voculinux:hardware-observe # list keyboards (/proc/bus/input/devices)
Native Wayland typing uses the RemoteDesktop portal: the compositor asks once on first dictation, nothing to connect. The recipe ships no uinput plug and no ydotool; the Store denied the super-privileged grant, which held the 0.17.0+ revisions and left v0.16.2 (rev 7) on edge. On KDE Plasma, KWin's portal can mistype letter case (KDE bug 489021); set Virtual Keyboard to "IBus Wayland" so dictation types correctly.
GitHub .snap files through v0.18.2 declare uinput, so KDE users who want ydotool can sideload that build and connect the plug manually:
sudo snap install --dangerous ./voculinux_0.18.2_amd64.snap
sudo snap connect voculinux:uinput # only in the v0.18.x sideload; the recipe no longer ships it
Nix / NixOS (flake)
nix run github:VocaHQ/vocalinux # try it
nix profile install github:VocaHQ/vocalinux
The flake also ships nixosModules.voculinux and homeManagerModules.voculinux for declarative installs (programs.voculinux.enable = true). The bundled pywhispercpp builds with Vulkan GPU inference. Details: packaging/nix/README.md.
Void Linux (signed xbps repo)
Void Linux glibc x86_64 only. Each tagged release attaches a signed
personal xbps repository: binary packages (*.x86_64.xbps), signatures,
repository metadata (x86_64-repodata), and the client key
(FINGERPRINT plus the fingerprint-named .plist).
This is a third-party repository — it is published by this project,
not by upstream Void Linux, and its packages are built from the
templates in packaging/void/srcpkgs/. Details: packaging/void/README.md.
# as root on the Void system (the files come from the release assets):
cp <fingerprint>.plist /var/db/xbps/keys/
TAG=v0.18.5 # match the release you install from
echo "repository=https://github.com/VocaHQ/vocalinux/releases/download/${TAG}/" > /etc/xbps.d/voculinux.conf
Prefer the release notes for the exact repository URL. On first sync,
answer Y at the fingerprint prompt only after checking it matches the
FINGERPRINT file attached to the same release:
sudo xbps-install -Sy voculinux
From source
git clone https://github.com/VocaHQ/vocalinux.git
cd voculinux
./install.sh
# or pick the engine up front
./install.sh --engine=whisper_cpp
./install.sh --engine=vosk
./install.sh --engine=parakeet --auto
After installation
voculinux # if ~/.local/bin is on PATH
# or
~/.local/share/voculinux/venv/bin/voculinux
You can also launch Voculinux from your application menu.
Nightly builds
Daily builds from main appear on Releases. Use the latest stable or beta release for production; nightlies are untested.
Requirements
| OS | Linux (Ubuntu 24.04+, Debian 12+, Fedora 42+, Arch, openSUSE Tumbleweed) |
| Python | 3.11 or newer |
| Display | X11 or Wayland |
| Hardware | Microphone; GPU optional (Vulkan) |
The distro must ship Python 3.11+ because Voculinux uses distro PyGObject (python3-gi). Ubuntu 22.04 (Python 3.10) and Debian 11 (3.9) are below that floor. Distribution notes: docs/DISTRO_COMPATIBILITY.md.
Usage
Dictation
- Push-to-talk (default on new installs): hold Right Alt (Option on Mac-layout keyboards) and speak
- Speak into the microphone
- Release to stop, or switch to Toggle mode in Settings (double-tap a key to start/stop)
Existing configs keep their saved shortcut.
Voice commands
English phrases always work. With a non-English recognition language, matching punctuation / line-break phrases in that language are also recognized (Italian virgola / punto, French virgule / point, etc.).
| Command | Action |
|---|---|
| "new line" | Line break |
| "period" / "full stop" / "dot" | . |
| "comma" | , |
| "question mark" | ? |
| "exclamation mark" | ! |
| "delete that" | Delete last sentence |
| "capitalize" | Capitalize next word |
CLI
voculinux --help
voculinux --version
voculinux --debug
voculinux --engine whisper_cpp # default
voculinux --engine whisper
voculinux --engine faster_whisper
voculinux --engine vosk
voculinux --engine parakeet
voculinux --engine remote_api
voculinux --model medium
voculinux --model medium.en-q5_0 # exact whisper.cpp variant
voculinux --model large-v3-turbo
voculinux --wayland
voculinux --start-minimized
Autostart
Start on Login creates an XDG autostart desktop entry (~/.config/autostart/). It does not install a systemd unit. Enable from the first-run dialog, tray menu, or Settings.
Configuration
Stored at ~/.config/voculinux/config.json. Prefer the Settings dialog for day-to-day changes. Settings → Speech Model starts with a simple setup; expand Advanced for engine, size, and specialization. Set post_processing.script_path to an executable to transform each transcription result (stdin → stdout) before it is injected; leave empty to disable.
Neural VAD (Silero) is used when onnxruntime is available; install via pip install "voculinux[vad]" for manual/PyPI installs. The installer attempts this automatically.
Documentation
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
| Installation | Installer, AppImage, AUR, Flatpak, Snap, Nix flake, running |
| Manual / PyPI install | Package lists and pip workflows |
| Troubleshooting | Common failures |
| User guide | Dictation, engines, models, tips |
| Update guide | Upgrade steps and release notes |
| Changelog | Release history pointers |
| Support | Where to get help |
| Distribution compatibility | Distro matrix and session notes |
| Remote HTTP API | Offload transcription to a server |
| Local VocaGateway (optional) | Start a local gateway from Settings; not on-device |
| Contributing | Dev setup, style, PR process |
| Security | Supported versions and vulnerability reporting |
| Docs index | Full documentation map |
Privacy and security
- Local engines process audio on-device after you download a model; no Voca account required
- Optional remote API is off by default and only used when you configure a server
- Model downloads are checked against pinned checksums
Report vulnerabilities privately per SECURITY.md.
Development
git clone https://github.com/VocaHQ/vocalinux.git
cd voculinux
./install.sh --dev
source venv/bin/activate
pytest
python -m vocalinux.main --debug
See CONTRIBUTING.md for the two-venv layout, just recipes, and PR guidelines.
Roadmap
Shipped: graphical settings, multi-language support, whisper.cpp default, Vulkan GPU, Wayland/IBus, Flatpak packaging, AppImage, .deb / .rpm packages, in-app update checker, Parakeet and Faster Whisper engines, Snap recipe.
Planned:
- Application-specific voice commands
- User-customizable voice command map
- Flathub publication (not currently listed; see #167)
Voca ecosystem
Voculinux is part of VocaHQ. On-device speech-to-text first, one app per platform. Optional VocaGateway is self-hosted and not on-device.
| Platform | Project | Website | GitHub |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Voculinux | voculinux.com | VocaHQ/vocalinux |
| macOS | VocaMac | vocamac.com | VocaHQ/vocamac |
| Windows | VocaWin | vocawin.com | VocaHQ/vocawin |
| Phone | VocaPhone | vocaphone.vocahq.com | VocaHQ/vocaphone |
| Gateway | VocaGateway | vocagateway.vocahq.com | VocaHQ/vocagateway |
Talk to us: Discord · X @vocahq · hello@vocahq.com
Contributing
Bug reports, docs, and code are welcome. Start with CONTRIBUTING.md and good first issues.
Contributors
Thanks to everyone who has contributed code, docs, or fixes:
Repository mirrors
GitHub is the primary forge for issues, PRs, CI, and releases.
| Role | URL |
|---|---|
| Primary | https://github.com/VocaHQ/vocalinux |
| Read-only mirror (Codeberg) | https://codeberg.org/jatinkrmalik/voculinux |
Open issues and pull requests on GitHub only.
License
This project is licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 (AGPL-3.0), aligning with the other VocaHQ distribution projects.
You may use, study, modify, and redistribute the software under AGPL-3.0. If you run a modified version as a network service, AGPL also requires that you make the corresponding source available.
Star Chart
Optional Orukeet model
With the Parakeet engine installed, Settings → Speech Model → Parakeet also
offers orukeet-v0.1.0. It uses the existing local sherpa-onnx recognizer for
25 European languages; the recommended Parakeet model and default whisper.cpp
engine stay unchanged.
The download comes from a pinned revision of oruk/orukeet on Hugging Face. Voculinux checks every file against its bundled SHA-256 pins and checks the publisher's release manifest against those same pins. The manifest download participates in Hugging Face's normal model-download accounting. Cached recognition works offline and does not send audio or usage events. The model occupies about 641 MiB; its CC BY-SA 4.0 weights license and NVIDIA attribution are included.
Optional Underdog Bark 3.0 models
Settings → Speech Model → Parakeet also offers two builds of
Underdog Bark 3.0, an
English fine-tune of Parakeet TDT 0.6B v3 (CC BY 4.0): bark-3.0 (int8, 653 MiB)
and bark-3.0-int4 (4-bit, 379 MiB, about half the memory, slower). Both come
from a pinned revision of
velddev/Underdog-Bark-3.0-sherpa-onnx,
an unofficial sherpa-onnx conversion not made or endorsed by Conway Research.
They run on the existing sherpa-onnx recognizer, every file is checked against
its bundled SHA-256 pin, and the downloads include the license and attribution
notice.
Choose one for English dictation of conversational speech, bark-3.0-int4 when
memory is tight; for read or multilingual speech keep v3-european.