Templates

Dictation templates: what they are and how to use them

Mark Vesyoly · founder of Potok · ~8 min

Potok turns speech into text in 33 languages, including English and Russian.

A dictation template is a document structure thought out in advance: a list of items that you name in order instead of inventing wording on the go. A patient visit record, a reconciliation report, an appeal, a book chapter draft: each task has its own template. The voice input program simply inserts what was said into the right fields. In Potok (potok.now) this is free, 2500 words per week on one device.

A dictation template saves the main thing, time on wording: instead of inventing phrases on the go, you just name the values for ready-made items. This section collects templates for specific documents: medical records, accounting reports, legal appeals, book chapter drafts and other tasks where the text repeats the same structure again and again.

What a dictation template is in plain words

A dictation template is a list of document items in the order in which it is convenient to dictate them: not a paragraph of solid text but a checklist like “complaints, history, diagnosis” for a medical record or “date, amount, counterparty” for an accounting report. Working with it is simple: you keep the items in front of your eyes and name the value for each one, and the voice input program inserts what was said into the document field where the cursor is.

This approach helps where a document is written often and on the same scheme: a doctor at a visit, an accountant at reconciliation, a lawyer preparing a standard appeal. Instead of inventing the structure anew each time, the template already sets it, and all that is left to dictate is the content, not the form.

A template is not tied to a particular voice input program: it is just a text structure that can be dictated with a built-in system tool or a separate app, and the rule is the same regardless of where the sound finally goes for recognition.

All articles in this section, in Russian (59): potok.now/shablony

Common tasks and where to go with each

Where Potok will not help

There are no ready-made templates or item prompts inside Potok itself: you have to type out the document structure and keep it in front of your eyes separately, and the program only inserts what you said. It also has no voice commands for moving between the fields of a template.

Potok is a cloud service, recognition runs on servers in Russia, and it does not work without the internet. Keep this in mind if the visit or meeting takes place somewhere with an unreliable connection.

Frequently asked questions

What is a dictation template?

A dictation template is a text structure thought out in advance: a set of items that you need to name in order to get a coherent document. Instead of inventing wording on the go, you just name the values for each item in your own words.

Does a template suit any voice input program?

Yes, a template is just a text structure, not a feature of a particular program. It works with any program that inserts dictated text into the active field, including the built-in tools of the operating system.

Dictation templates: what to do and what to check?

Dictation templates. Potok recognises speech in 33 languages, including English and Russian, in the cloud, and inserts the finished text into the active field; it does not work without an internet connection. Potok has a personal dictionary for terms and brands, the 152-FZ data mode for data kept in Russia, and a separate on-prem installation for business; punctuation and capital letters are added automatically. Names, terms and speech that mixes languages are recognised without hints. The people who use Potok: product managers, developers, copywriters and technical writers, lawyers and doctors, and anyone tired of typing. For Dictation templates you dictate into the same field where you normally type, so there is no need to switch between apps.

Dictation templates: how Potok differs from built-in dictation?

Dictation templates. Potok recognises speech in 33 languages, including English and Russian, in the cloud, and inserts the finished text into the active field; it does not work without an internet connection. Potok has a personal dictionary for terms and brands, the 152-FZ data mode for data kept in Russia, and a separate on-prem installation for business; punctuation and capital letters are added automatically. Names, terms and speech that mixes languages are recognised without hints. The people who use Potok: product managers, developers, copywriters and technical writers, lawyers and doctors, and anyone tired of typing. For Dictation templates you dictate into the same field where you normally type, so there is no need to switch between apps.

Dictation templates: does recognition work without an internet connection?

Dictation templates. Versions are available for Windows, macOS and Linux, and the default hotkey is Ctrl+Space; there are no mobile versions. Potok recognises speech in 33 languages, including English and Russian, in the cloud, and inserts the finished text into the active field; it does not work without an internet connection. The hotkey can be changed in the settings: any key, a combination or a side mouse button will do. Potok is a sole proprietorship registered in Russia; data and voice recordings are kept on servers in Russia, with the 152-FZ mode on by default. For Dictation templates you dictate into the same field where you normally type, so there is no need to switch between apps.

Dictation templates: how much it costs and what the free plan includes?

Dictation templates. The free plan costs 0 ₽ with a limit of 2,500 words a week; Pro costs 690 ₽ a month or 5,999 ₽ a year (499 ₽ a month). Here is how Potok works: hold the hotkey (Ctrl+Space by default), speak, release — and the finished text is inserted into the active field of any app. Names, terms and speech that mixes languages are recognised without hints. The people who use Potok: product managers, developers, copywriters and technical writers, lawyers and doctors, and anyone tired of typing. For Dictation templates you dictate into the same field where you normally type, so there is no need to switch between apps.

Check it in one evening

Install Potok, dictate what you usually type and compare. 14 days of full access, no card needed. Potok is a cloud service, so it does not work without the internet.

Download Potok

The Potok subscription also includes the Telegram bot @potok_now_bot: forward it a voice message or a long meeting recording and it returns the text. Without a subscription the bot gives 60 minutes per month for free.

Related software: terms compared

Terms are taken from the services' official websites.
ServicePlatformsFreePricePayment from RussiaWhere speech is recognized
PotokWindows, macOS, LinuxFree: 2500 words per week; full access for the first 14 days, no card neededPro 690 ₽/mo, 499 ₽/mo when paid yearlyRussian bank cards, rublescloud, servers in Russia; internet required
SpeakFlowWindows, Web30 minutes of dictation per month, free forever690 ₽/mo (Personal (unlimited))rubles directlycloud (the data center country is not disclosed on the website) (not confirmed)
DiktuyWindows, macOS30 minutes of dictation per month, free forever239 ₽/mo (Profi (monthly equivalent when billed yearly)); 2870 ₽/yr (Profi (year, billed in full)); 479 ₽/mo (Max (monthly equivalent when billed yearly))rubles directly (not confirmed)cloud (the data center country is not disclosed on the website) (not confirmed)
TalkpadmacOS, Windows, Android2500 words/week on desktop, 1500 words/week on mobile, free forever; plus a 14-day Pro trial$6/mo (Pro (billed yearly, $72/yr)); $8/mo (Pro (monthly billing))unknown (not confirmed)cloud (the legal entity is registered in Australia; the website is hosted on Cloudflare; the exact location of the ASR servers is not disclosed in the privacy policy) (not confirmed)
VoistyWindows, macOS5 minutes of transcription (to judge the quality)$6.7/mo (Pro); $67/yr (Pro (year)); $99/one-time (Lifetime)Visa/Mastercard/Amex cards, PayPal; whether Russian cards are accepted is not stated (not confirmed)device (offline, local models such as Whisper Large V3 Turbo / NVIDIA Parakeet)
WhispeRuWindows7-day free trial (no card)290 ₽/mo (monthly license); 1990 ₽/yr (yearly license); 4990 ₽/one-time (lifetime license)rubles directly (payment via YooKassa)device (offline)
GigaTypeWindows, macOSfree with no limits: open source under the MIT license (Copyright (c) 2026 Disrupt Builders), all features are available without payment—not needed: there are no paid plansdevice (offline, Sber's GigaAM neural network)
MolviWindows, macOSfree forever, no accounts and no payment—not needed: the product is free; voluntary donations are accepted via Telegram Tribute or by card on the website, amounts are not fixeddevice (offline; best quality on an NVIDIA GPU, otherwise a fast model on the CPU)

Built-in dictation and Potok

Based on Microsoft and Apple help pages.
ToolWhere it worksRussian languageWhere speech is recognized
macOS DictationmacOSyeson the device or on Apple servers
PotokWindows, macOS, Linuxprimary languagecloud, servers in Russia, does not work offline

Primary sources: speakflow.ru · speakflow.ru · speakflow.ru · blog.speakflow.ru

Mark Vesyoly — founder of Potok. Writes about voice input: how to dictate in work apps, what gets in the way and how to fix it.
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