Troubleshooting

Docs: Configuration · Troubleshooting

Hotkey Not Working

Ensure no other app is using the same hotkey combination.
Some apps (Discord overlays, GeForce Experience, antivirus software) intercept hotkeys at a lower level and will silently win. Try a less common combination like Ctrl+Shift+Space or Alt+F9.
The Logs tab will show a "Hotkey registered" message on startup — if it's missing, the listener failed to start.
On Windows, hotkeys cannot be captured from windows running at a higher privilege level (e.g. Task Manager). If your target window is elevated, try running LogNotes as administrator.

Make sure a text input field is focused before releasing the hotkey — the app waits 0.5s for focus to return, but some apps take longer.
Some elevated windows (Task Manager, UAC prompts, certain terminals) block simulated keystrokes from non-elevated processes. Run LogNotes as administrator to paste into them.
The clipboard is automatically cleared 5 seconds after pasting for security — this is intentional. If you need to paste the same text again, use the Copy button in the Activity tab.
Check the Logs tab for paste_text success or error messages to confirm whether the paste was attempted.

Check Windows Settings → System → Sound → Input to confirm the correct microphone is selected as the default input device.
Check Windows Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone — LogNotes must have microphone access enabled.
Speak at a normal volume; very quiet input may not register.
The Logs tab will show "No audio recorded" if the recording captured complete silence, or an audio backend error if the microphone could not be opened.

The Whisper model loads on first use (~2-5 seconds). Status will show "Loading models…" during this time.
After the first load, all three Whisper sizes are warmed in the background so subsequent model switches are instant.
This is a one-time cost per session — subsequent transcriptions are fast.

Switch to a larger model: base → small. small offers the best quality/speed tradeoff on CPU.
Speak closer to the microphone and reduce background noise.
Speak at a natural pace — very fast or very slow speech can confuse the model.

Right-click the overlay to cycle through the four corners.
Left-click and drag to reposition manually.
The corner is persisted in config; the exact drag position is not — it resets to the configured corner on restart.
The overlay is positioned within the primary display's work area to avoid the taskbar, but secondary monitors with non-standard taskbar positions may still cause overlap. Switch corners to work around it.

The app is still processing — clicks are dropped while busy. The status bar will show "Busy — retry again when ready".
Selecting a model you have never used before triggers a one-time download from HuggingFace (up to several minutes on slow connections). Check the Logs tab for a "Retry starting…" entry to confirm it is running.
Subsequent retries with the same model load from the local cache in a few seconds.

Torch and the Whisper models are large. With all three sizes warmed, expect ~1–2 GB RAM usage — this is normal.
If memory is constrained, restart the app to clear warmed models, and only use one Whisper size.

Delete %APPDATA%\LogNotes\config.json and restart the app — it will be recreated with defaults.
If you edit the file manually, ensure it is valid JSON. Invalid JSON causes the app to fall back to all defaults on next launch (an error is logged).
See configuration.md for valid values per key.

The unsigned build triggers "Windows protected your PC" — this is expected.
Click More info → Run anyway to proceed.
This warning only appears once per build. Code signing (~$100/yr OV cert) would eliminate it if distributing publicly.

The window appears but never reaches "Ready" — the Electron front end can't reach the Python back end.

Run the bundled back end directly to see its error. It is built with a console, so it prints what fails:
```
"%LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\LogNotes\resources\sidecar\LogNotes.exe"
```
(Path varies with the install location; look under the install dir's resources\sidecar\.) A healthy run prints a PORT <n> line.
Common causes: a missing DLL / hidden import, or a sounddevice / PortAudio payload issue. The console output identifies the failing module.
First launch is slow (models load); give it time before assuming it is stuck.
Make sure no orphaned LogNotes.exe from a previous run is interfering (Task Manager).