> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.vowen.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Onboarding
> Walk through Vowen's first-run setup: permissions, a local speech model and a short tour of each feature.
The first time you open Vowen, a short intro plays over your desktop and a setup card opens in the middle of the screen. The card has 11 steps. Three of them must be completed before you can continue: your name, permissions and a speech model. The rest are hands-on demos you can click through.
If you quit partway through, Vowen reopens on the step you left. The intro animation plays only once.
## The intro
A full-screen animation of the Vowen mark plays over your desktop, then the setup card scales into place. Press any key to skip it.
## The card toolbar
Three buttons sit in the top-right corner of the card on every step:
* **Change language**: switches the interface language for setup and the rest of the app. See [Interface language](/features/interface-language).
* **Mute music**: silences the background music that plays during setup. It appears only while sound effects are on.
* **Switch to dark mode** / **Switch to light mode**: toggles the theme.
## The steps
**1. Welcome**
Click **Get started**. Continuing means you accept Vowen's Privacy Policy, which is linked under the button.
**2. Personalize your experience**
Enter your name. It is required and must be at least two characters. Vowen uses it to greet you across the app.
Email is optional and used only for major updates. You can also pick what you plan to use your voice for: Writing documents, Drafting emails, Sending messages, Coding with AI, Chatting with AI, Taking notes, Meeting summaries, Automating tasks or Something else.
**3. Private by design**
A summary of what runs on your device and what is optional. Click **Continue**. See [Privacy and data](/get-started/privacy) for the details.
**4. Grant permissions**
Click **Grant** beside each permission:
* **Microphone**, required for voice recording.
* **Accessibility** (macOS only), for global shortcuts and auto-paste.
**Continue** stays disabled until every listed permission shows as granted. On Windows only the microphone is listed.
On macOS, clicking **Grant** for Accessibility opens System Settings along with a small floating card that reads "Drag Vowen into the Accessibility list". Drag it into the list to grant the permission. You do not need to restart Vowen afterwards. See [Permissions](/get-started/permissions).
**5. Your local AI**
Pick a speech model and click **Download model**. It runs on your device, so dictation works offline.
| Model | Languages | Where it is offered |
| - | - | - |
| **Parakeet Ultra** | Multilingual, most accurate (25 languages) | Apple Silicon Macs on macOS 14 or later. Recommended there |
| **Parakeet V2** | English only | Every platform. Recommended on Windows |
| **Parakeet V3** | Multilingual (25 languages, auto-detected) | Every platform |
After the download, Vowen optimizes the model for your device. This can take up to 30 seconds. **Continue** appears once the title changes to **Model ready**.
You can switch to another local model or a cloud engine later in **Speech models**. See [Models](/transcription/models).
**6. Try your voice**
Click the text box, then press and hold your transcription shortcut and speak. The default is Fn on macOS and Ctrl + Shift on Windows.
To use a different key, click **Change shortcut**. If the keys on screen don't light up when you press them, click **Restart app** to restart the keyboard listener.
**7. Try a voice shortcut**
Hold the shortcut and say one of the phrases on screen, such as "Google weather today", "YouTube steak recipes" or "Open Downloads". See [Voice shortcuts](/features/voice-shortcuts).
**8. Try an expansion**
Type a trigger such as `:ooo`, `:sign` or `:addr` into the box and watch it expand. No microphone needed. See [Text expander](/features/text-expander).
**9. Try threads**
A thread is a saved value you speak instead of type. Hold the shortcut, read the sentence on the card and Vowen replaces the trigger words with the saved values. See [Threads](/features/threads).
**10. Try a command**
Hold the Command Mode shortcut (Option + Shift / Alt + Shift) and say one of the example commands. This step is a demo. Real commands need an AI provider, which you add later in **Language models**. See [Command Mode](/ai-features/command-mode).
**11. Capture notes**
An introduction to meeting notes. Click **Start using Vowen** to finish. See [Meeting notes](/meeting-notes/overview).
When you finish, the card expands into the main window.
## Free vs Pro
If you are on the Free plan, a dialog comparing Free and Pro opens once, right after setup. Pro is a one-time payment with no subscription, for up to 3 devices. The dialog offers three choices:
* **Stay on Free** closes it.
* **Compare plans** opens the pricing page in your browser.
* **Buy License** opens the purchase page.
If you already have a licence key, enter it under **Already have a licence?** and click **Activate**. See [Pricing](/pricing).
## After setup
A **Get started** checklist in the bottom-right corner of the main window tracks six first steps: dictating for the first time, connecting an AI provider, creating a voice shortcut, adding dictionary words, creating a text expansion and recording a meeting note. See [Home](/features/home).
This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.