Dictate in any app · Code

Voice typing in Sourcetree

Sourcetree is the git client of choice in a lot of Atlassian shops, and it inherits the same blank message box. Hold a key and talk: Typally transcribes and types it into Sourcetree without you touching the keyboard.

Written by the team behind Typally. Sourcetree's own features are described as accurately as we can — check them yourself before switching anything.
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In short

  • Sourcetree's own dictation: None. Commit fields are plain text.
  • What Typally does instead: types into the focused window, so it works in Sourcetree and everywhere else you write.
  • Best used for: commit messages

Does Sourcetree have built-in dictation?

None. Commit fields are plain text.

Why dictate in Sourcetree at all?

Teams using Sourcetree usually have Jira alongside, which means the context lives in a ticket and the commit says 'PROJ-123'. That is fine until someone reads the history without access to the tracker.

In practice people use it for: Commit messages, branch descriptions, and the explanation that should accompany a merge.

How to dictate in Sourcetree

Typally runs in the background and types into whatever window has focus, so there is nothing to install inside Sourcetree:

1

Set Typally up once

One install, one sign-in. Nothing else to configure.

2

Focus the Sourcetree field you want the words in

Whatever has the cursor receives the text, so click the right place in Sourcetree before starting.

3

Hold the hotkey and talk

Say the whole thought, then let go. No time limit.

4

Read it before you move on

Sourcetree's commit box is small and easy to lose focus from. Confirm the cursor is in it before speaking.

What Typally adds in Sourcetree

Typally types into Sourcetree's commit fields directly, so a self-contained message costs seconds rather than minutes. The same hotkey then works in Jira and Bitbucket, which is usually where the rest of the same explanation has to be written anyway.

What this looks like in practice

A team that had been committing bare ticket numbers starts speaking a sentence of context into each one. When they migrate issue trackers the following year, the git history remains readable.

One habit that makes it work better

Write the commit message so it stands alone without the ticket. A ticket reference is a pointer, not an explanation, and pointers rot.

What to watch out for in Sourcetree

Sourcetree's commit box is small and easy to lose focus from. Confirm the cursor is in it before speaking.

Frequently asked questions

Does Sourcetree support voice input?

No. It has no dictation feature.

Is a ticket number enough in a commit message?

Not on its own. Trackers change and access lapses; the message should make sense by itself.

Can I dictate into the commit body?

Yes — it is an ordinary text field.

Try it in Sourcetree

The free plan gives you 100 minutes a month without a card — enough to find out whether talking beats typing for you.

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Also dictate in: GitKraken · Bitbucket · Jira · see all apps