Troubleshooting issues

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This page is incomplete. If you know about this subject, please contribute to the wiki by adding more information.

If you're having a problem with Plover, you can:

• Check this page for common issues and solutions.
• Join the Open Steno Discord server and search the plover-tech-support channel for others who may have had your issue.
• If you continue to be unable to solve your problem, create your own post in plover-tech-support.

Also, be sure to check the Plover bug tracker for known reported issues.

Google searches, AI queries, or general internet communities such as Reddit or Facebook may have limited information on Plover and be unable to give you a complete or accurate answer to your problems.

Basic Troubleshooting Steps

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This section is incomplete. If you know about this subject, please contribute to the wiki by adding more information.

1. Restart Plover, be careful, it is still running in tray.
2. Reinstall Plover(?), be careful, config may persist.
3. Run in debug mode(?)

Running in Debug Mode

Follow instructions in Invoke Plover from the command line. You need to invoke the command

plover --log-level debug

In particular, the exact commands are

• plover_console.exe --log-level debug for Windows
• /Applications/Plover.app/Contents/MacOS/Plover --log-level debug for macOS
• ./plover.AppImage --log-level debug for Linux (AppImage)

General Issues

Plover does not recognize my USB keyboard or steno machine

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Initially, Plover is set up to use your computer keyboard as a steno machine. If you have a steno machine, you’ll need to configure Plover to look for your machine. See the Supported Hardware page for configuration instructions specific to your machine.

If Plover doesn’t recognize your keyboard or steno machine:

1. Confirm your keyboard or steno machine is plugged into your computer. Try different USB ports.
2. Check that your writer's protocol is correctly selected in the Machine dropdown.
   • Certain machines require installation of a plugin and driver to work. See setting up your writer with Plover.
3. Under the Machine dropdown, check if it states the machine is connected or disconnected.
   • If it states the machine is disconnected, press the Reconnect button (this is to the right of “connected” or “disconnected” message).
4. Check Configuration -> Machine -> Options to see if the correct port is selected.
5. If Plover still doesn’t recognize your machine, try closing and relaunching Plover.

The dictionary is outputting wrong

If two active dictionaries contain different definitions for the same outline, Plover will use the entry from the dictionary that has the highest priority.

By default, the highest priority dictionary is at the top (and is labeled with a star ⭐). If a definition is found, it is output, but if not, it continues checking the next dictionary. If all active dictionaries are checked but no definition is found, the raw steno is output.

Double check that your dictionaries are in the correct order, and the ones that you want active are checked off.

There is no output

Double check the following:

• Your machine is connected
• Plover’s output is set to “Enabled”
• You can see strokes in the paper tape

If there is still no output, something may be interfering with Plover’s ability to send keystrokes.

You can try:

• Running Plover as an Administrator
• Check if you have other apps that may interfere, such as Citrix.

When using TX Bolt, any chord with SW- in it doesn’t come out right

In the serial settings, uncheck “Xon/Xoff” under “Flow control”. This will solve the issue where using S and W in a chord causes Plover to ignore those keys.

Plugins Manager

Plugins manager won't load

Some users have reported the loading bar for the plugins manager never completing. Upgrading Plover to the latest version has seemed to solve this.

Disappearing plugins manager

When installing some plugins, the plugins manager may stop appearing.

1. In the toolbar, select File → Open Config Folder
2. Delete the Plugins folder
3. Uninstall and reinstall Plover

Windows

The output is incomplete or jumbled in Notepad

This is a known behavior associated with Notepad. Try increasing the key press delay.

Unrecognized keystrokes and other strange behavior

Disable AutoKey if you’re getting strange behavior with Plover.

macOS

No output despite keys showing up in the paper tape

1. Enable Plover's output.
2. Open the paper tape and press some keys.
   • If nothing shows up, you will first need to set up your machine.
   • If you see letters showing in the paper tape, follow the rest of these instructions.
3. Open System Settings > Privacy & Security > Accessibility.
   • If Plover is already listed, remove it with the - button; do not just uncheck it!
4. Add the Plover app with the + button.

Incompatibility with Karabiner Elements

Plover will not work if you are using Karabiner Elements, or generally speaking any program that allow customizing the keyboard might interfere with Plover. There is no workaround other than to disable or uninstall these programs while using Plover.

Unrecognized keystrokes

macOS has a feature where holding down a key brings up an accent menu. This can sometimes drop keys when typing quickly, such as TO/FPLT producing t. instead of to. To disable this, follow the instructions in this article: “How to Disable the Character Accent Menu in OS X Mountain Lion”.

Linux

Permission denied with Gemini PR or TX Bolt

See the guide on how to allow access to serial ports.

Missing or jumbled output

This is a known behavior associated with IBus. Try increasing the key press delay.

Linux dynamic keyboard layout switching is not working

Plover does not handle dynamic keyboard layout switching: see bug #298.