Voice to Text for Basecamp
Basecamp keeps your projects organized with message boards, campfire chats, to-dos, and automatic check-ins. But typing thoughtful responses to all of it slows you down. Blurt lets you hold a button, speak naturally, and release. Your text appears instantly in any Basecamp field. Message board posts, campfire replies, to-do comments, check-in responses. No more choosing between thoroughness and speed.
The Typing Problem
Message board posts require too much typing
You need to update the team on project progress. A proper message board post requires context, decisions made, next steps, and action items. You could explain it all in a two-minute conversation. But typing it out? That takes twenty minutes. So you write a brief post that lacks the detail your team needs, or you skip posting entirely and rely on scattered campfire messages instead.
Campfire conversations move too fast for typing
Your team is hashing out a problem in Campfire. Ideas are flying. You have input that would help, but by the time you type your response, the conversation has moved three topics forward. Your carefully typed response now seems out of context. Real-time chat demands real-time responses, and typing can't keep up.
To-do comments stay empty or vague
You're adding a to-do to the project. The task is clear in your head. But explaining the requirements, the context, the edge cases? That means typing paragraphs. So you write 'Fix the login issue' and move on. A week later, you or your teammate stares at that to-do wondering what exactly needed fixing and why.
Check-in responses become one-word answers
Basecamp asks 'What did you work on today?' or 'What are you struggling with?' You have real answers. The context, the wins, the blockers, the things you need help with. But typing it all out at the end of a long day? You write 'Making progress' and close the browser. The check-in that should create visibility creates nothing.
Project documentation falls behind
Your project has a docs section that should contain decisions, meeting notes, and reference material. But every document means typing paragraphs. The overhead is so high that documentation happens sporadically or not at all. Six months later, no one remembers why certain decisions were made because no one wanted to type the explanation.
How It Works
Blurt works everywhere in Basecamp: message boards, campfire, to-dos, check-ins, docs, and comments. Anywhere you can type, you can talk.
Click into any Basecamp field
Put your cursor in a message board, campfire chat, to-do description, check-in response, or any text field.
Hold your hotkey and talk
Press your chosen key, speak naturally. Blurt adds punctuation and capitalization automatically.
Release and continue working
Your text appears at the cursor. Post your message, reply in campfire, or move to the next task.
Real Scenarios
Writing message board posts that keep the whole team informed
Your project hit a milestone and the team needs an update. Open the message board, hold the button, and talk through it like you would in a meeting: 'We shipped the new checkout flow this morning. Conversion rates are up twelve percent in the first four hours. The main risk was the payment gateway integration but that went smoothly. Next week we're focused on mobile optimization. Let me know in the comments if you have questions about the implementation.' A comprehensive update in forty-five seconds instead of twenty minutes of typing.
Keeping up with fast-moving campfire conversations
Your team is troubleshooting an issue in Campfire. Ideas are bouncing around quickly. Hold the button and speak your input: 'I saw this same issue last month when we updated the database indexes. Check if the query plan changed. I can share the fix we used if that's the problem.' Your response enters the conversation in real-time. You contribute while the topic is still relevant instead of after everyone has moved on.
Creating to-dos with actual context and requirements
You're breaking down a feature into to-dos. For each one, hold the button and explain: 'Update the notification settings page to include the new email preferences. Users should be able to toggle weekly digest, product updates, and marketing emails separately. Reference the settings design in the Figma file linked in the docs section. This needs to be done before the email campaign launches on Friday.' Each to-do becomes actionable instead of cryptic.
Check-in responses that actually help your team
It's end of day and Basecamp asks what you worked on. Hold the button and answer properly: 'Finished the API documentation for the new endpoints. Ran into a blocker with the authentication flow for third-party apps and need input from the security team. Tomorrow I'm focusing on the SDK examples. Would love feedback on the documentation format before I do all twenty endpoints.' Your manager and teammates get real visibility in fifteen seconds of talking.
Documenting decisions while they're still fresh
Your team just made a decision in a meeting. Open the Basecamp docs section, hold the button, and capture it: 'We decided to delay the mobile app launch by three weeks to allow for proper accessibility testing. This was based on feedback from the beta users about screen reader issues. The new launch date is April 15. Engineering will update the project schedule to reflect this change.' Decision documented before you forget the reasoning.
Responding to to-do comments with helpful context
A teammate commented on a to-do asking for clarification. Instead of typing a brief unhelpful response, hold the button and answer thoroughly: 'This needs the new validation logic because the old approach was causing timeout errors for users with slow connections. Check the error logs from last Tuesday to see the pattern. The fix should use the async validation helper we added to the utils folder.' One complete answer instead of five follow-up questions.
Adding pings and notifications with proper context
You need to ping a teammate about a specific issue. Hold the button and explain: 'Hey Sarah, circling back on the design review from Monday. The client approved the homepage mockups but wants to see two more options for the hero section. Can you have those ready for the Thursday meeting? No rush on the internal pages yet.' Your ping includes all the context instead of a vague 'need your input on something.'
How Blurt compares to other ways of entering text in Basecamp.
| Blurt | macOS Dictation | |
|---|---|---|
| Activation | Hold any hotkey, customizable | Double-tap Fn key only |
| Accuracy | AI-powered transcription with context | Basic speech recognition |
| Punctuation | Automatic punctuation and capitalization | Must speak punctuation commands |
| Long-form content | Optimized for paragraphs and message posts | Better for short phrases |
| Reliability | Consistent transcription quality | Variable accuracy, frequent errors |
| Pricing | $10/month or $99/year | Free with macOS |
Frequently Asked Questions
Start Typing Faster Today
Free to try — no credit card required
Download Blurt