Since 2015, Google Docs has allowed voice typing on the web, and soon the input method will adopt “enhancements” that will also boost Google Slides’ automatic captions.
A floating microphone appears when you select Tools > Voice Typing while viewing a Google Doc and will take input until you click again. Additionally, you may format and modify with your voice.
Google says that the next update will “reduce transcription errors and decrease lost audio,” but it doesn’t give any examples in particular. Additionally, “most major browsers will now support extended availability of Google Docs voice typing.” This function is currently inoperable in Safari and is “only available in Chrome browsers.”
These improvements to transcription quality will also apply to Google Slides’ automatic captions, which let viewers read or subtitle your presentation.
We anticipate that this launch will result in more accessible and inclusive user interactions in Docs and Slides.
In the coming month, both the free and paid Workspace tiers will have full access to these capabilities, which are currently rolling out.
The support for non-printing characters, like tabs and spaces, that help visualize paragraph/hard breaks, line/soft breaks, section breaks, page breaks, and column breaks are also being rolled out by Google Docs. These symbols are used for document formatting.
Open View > Show non-printing characters in the upcoming weeks to enable it online.
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