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Questions and answers

How to use TrainVue, and what to do when something doesn't work

Getting started

Before you start

What do I need to use the prompter?

You'll need Chrome or Edge on a computer, where the prompter opens in a small window that stays on top of your other windows, and a microphone, so it can follow your voice as you speak. A browser that can't keep the window on top opens it as a plain pop-up instead, one without speech recognition scrolls it at a steady pace rather than following your voice, and it doesn't work on phones. You can use it without an account for the scripts you type into your sets, while reading a question from your screen, hearing the questions on a call and having answers written from your story need you to be signed in, with Chrome or Edge 139 or later for hearing questions.

Opening the prompter

How do I open the prompter?

In Sets, press Prompter on the set you want to use, and the first time you'll see a short note about how it works, with Open prompter to bring it up. It opens on that set's questions, so you can pick the one you're about to answer, or simply start saying it. The booth doesn't have a prompter button of its own, so open the prompter from Sets first and then start Run interview or Practice, and the strip will load each question as the booth shows it.

Show me how
  1. Go to Sets and press Prompter on the set whose scripts you want to read.
  2. The first time, a short note explains the prompter, so read it and press Open prompter.
  3. The strip opens on the set's questions, and in Chrome or Edge, the first time, it also shows you which way to drag it, to the top middle of your screen, right under your webcam.
  4. Pick the question you're about to answer or press its number, or simply start saying it, and the strip follows along.
  5. To practice in the booth with the strip open, start Run interview or Practice on the same set, and the strip brings up each question as the booth shows it.

The tutorial

Is there a tutorial?

Yes, there's a three-minute tutorial with sample stories, where you watch the prompter write an answer, read it out loud while the strip follows your voice, and see Read and Hear switch your script, all without typing anything of your own. It opens by itself when you open the app signed in and land on Sets, until you finish it or skip it with that account in this browser, and you can take the tutorial again any time.

Show me how
  1. Use the link in the answer above, which asks you to sign in first if you're signed out, or press Take the tutorial on the card at the top of Sets when you're signed in. Once you've finished the tutorial, that card becomes a line that says “Take the three-minute tutorial again.”
  2. When the tutorial opens, whether by itself or from one of those, press Start tutorial.
  3. Pick one of the sample stories, and the prompter writes an answer to the question from it.
  4. Press Read with my microphone, allow the microphone if your browser asks, and read the answer out loud while the words you've said turn gray.
  5. If the microphone is blocked, or your browser can't follow a voice, since that needs Chrome or Edge on a computer, press Listen to a sample reading instead, and a recorded voice reads the answer while its words turn gray.
  6. Drag a box around the question on the sample page, or press Show me, and press Read, then press Hear on the practice call with Jordan.
  7. At the end, press Add my story, or Open My story when yours is already saved, to start on answers of your own.

The prompter

Voice follow

How does the prompter follow my voice?

As soon as the strip opens, it listens through your microphone, and once you start speaking, it keeps the line you're saying at the top, right under your webcam, while the words you've already said turn gray, so your eyes can rest on the red dot instead of searching the page. Your browser turns your speech into text through its own speech service, which is Google's in Chrome and Microsoft's in Edge, and the prompter itself records nothing.

Show me how
  1. Start speaking, and the word at the bottom of the strip goes from listening to following while it hears you.
  2. Each line moves up only once you've said its last word, and the strip copes with words it mishears, so if it loses you while you keep talking, it creeps forward a few words on its own while it looks for your place.
  3. If it falls behind or runs ahead, scroll with your mouse wheel or click the word you're on, and it picks up from there.
  4. Press Space to pause, and Home to start the answer over.
  5. It listens in the set's language, which you can change in the set editor to English (US), English (UK) or Korean.
The line you're saying stays at the top, around the red dot, and the words you've said turn gray.

Switching answers

How do I switch to a different answer?

Click the question's name at the bottom left of the strip, or press Esc, and you'll see every question in the set, so you can pick the one you need or press its number. If you haven't started the current answer yet, you can also simply start saying a different script from the same set, and the strip will switch to it.

Show me how
  1. Click the question's name at the bottom left of the strip, or press Esc, and the strip grows to show every question in the set.
  2. Pick a question, or press its number from 1 to 9, and the left and right arrow keys take you to the previous or next one.
  3. To use a question from another set, pick that set under Other sets at the bottom of the list, then pick the question, and the strip moves over to that set.
  4. Before you've started an answer, you can also start saying a different script from the same set, and the strip switches to it and tells you which question it moved to.
  5. While the booth runs, the strip brings up each question as the booth shows it, and a question you pick yourself stays until the booth moves on to another one.

Placing the window

Can I put the prompter right under my webcam?

Yes, and in Chrome or Edge the strip shows you, the first time it opens, which way to drag its window, to the top middle of your screen, right under the webcam, and from then on it opens there. If you'd rather have it somewhere else, put it there and press Keep it here, and you can bring the guide back at any time with Place, under ⋯, while other browsers simply move the window to that spot themselves.

Show me how
  1. In Chrome or Edge, the first time the strip opens, it asks you to drag the window right under your webcam, with an arrow that shows you which way to go.
  2. Drag it toward the top middle of your screen, and once it's there, the strip says it's right under the webcam and closes the guide by itself.
  3. If you have more than one screen, drag it onto the one with your webcam first, then to its top middle.
  4. If you'd like it somewhere else, put it there and press Keep it here, or press Later to leave it for another time.
  5. To bring the guide back, open ⋯ and press Place.

Text size

How do I change the text size, width or number of lines?

Open ⋯ at the bottom right of the strip and use the minus and plus buttons next to Size, Width and Lines, and the strip remembers what you chose the next time you open it in this browser. With the strip selected, you can also press + or - to change the size, and ] or [ to make the lines wider or narrower.

Auto-scroll

Can the prompter scroll on its own instead of following my voice?

Yes, choose Auto under ⋯ and press Space, and the text will scroll at a steady pace, which you can slow down or speed up with the minus and plus buttons next to Pace. If it can't follow your voice, the strip switches to Auto by itself and tells you why, and once that's fixed, Voice, under ⋯, takes you back.

Show me how
  1. Open ⋯ and choose Auto, and the bottom of the strip says auto · Space starts.
  2. Press Space to start scrolling, and again to pause.
  3. Use the minus and plus buttons next to Pace to go slower or faster, anywhere from 80 to 220 words a minute, starting at 140, which is a reading speed rather than your speaking pace.
  4. Your mouse wheel and the up and down arrow keys still move the text a line at a time, and they start the scroll if it isn't running yet, while Voice, under ⋯, goes back to following your voice.

The red dot

What is the red dot for?

It's a spot to rest your eyes on, right under your webcam, so your eyes stay close to the camera while you read the line around it. You can move it up or down about a millimeter at a time with the arrows under ⋯, or turn it off with Dot.

The outline

What are the short lines under the words?

They're an outline of the answer you're reading, three to five short lines naming its parts with the one you're on lit, so you can glance down and know where you are in the answer instead of just reading along. It comes with AI answers, for an answer the prompter wrote as well as a script you typed or an answer you prepared under My story, and the first time this browser shows an answer its text goes to our AI provider to make the outline, which then stays in your browser until you sign out. If you'd rather not have it, turn off Outline under ⋯, and nothing is sent for it.

Show me how
  1. Turn on AI answers, under My story or from the prompter, and open the prompter on an answer of forty words or more, in at least three sentences, since a shorter one has nothing to outline.
  2. A moment after the answer shows, or as soon as one the prompter wrote is finished, the outline appears under the words, with an amber dot on the part you're reading.
  3. For a technical question, a case, an estimate or a brain teaser, the lines are the answer's key points, with their terms in bold, and when there are more of them than fit, they move up so the one you're on stays in view.
  4. As you speak, scroll with the wheel or click a word, the lit line moves with you, and when a line names an example the answer made up for you, it shows in amber there too.
  5. If the window is too short for all of it, the outline gives way before the words do, and your first click or key press in the strip makes the window tall enough again.
  6. To turn it off or back on, open ⋯ and press Outline.

Keys

Which keys can I use in the prompter?

Click the strip first so it has focus, and then the number keys pick a question, Space pauses, Home starts the answer over, Enter brings up the answer to the question Hear is listening to, and C opens the controls. Press ? in the strip, or choose Keys under ⋯, and the strip lists them all for you. There are no spoken commands, since your microphone only follows your script, and Hear, when you turn it on, only listens for the questions on your call.

Show me how
KeyWhat it does
1–9Picks that question from the list
← →Goes to the previous or next question
↑ ↓Moves the text a line, and in Auto it also starts the scroll
SpacePauses or carries on, and in Auto it starts the scroll
HomeStarts the answer over
RSigned in, it reads your zone, or opens the snip panel if you haven't set one, and signed out it starts the answer over
WWrites an answer for a question without a script, when AI answers are on
EnterWhile Hear is on, it ends the question being asked and brings up the answer at once, the same as Answer now at the bottom of the strip
+ -Makes the text bigger or smaller
] [Makes the lines wider or narrower
COpens the controls under ⋯
EscCloses a menu or panel, or opens and closes the list of questions
?Shows these keys in the strip itself, and pressing it again hides them
Ctrl + VReads a snip you paste when you're signed in, and on a Mac it's Cmd + V

On Windows, your mouse wheel moves the text even when the strip doesn't have focus.

Reading the question

Read from screen

How do I have the prompter read a question from my screen?

Press Read at the bottom of the strip, then snip just the question with your computer's screenshot keys and paste it into the strip, and the prompter brings up an answer to it. If the questions keep appearing in the same spot, you can draw a read zone over a tab or window you share instead, and then each press of Read reads that spot. Each read is one AI use, and you need to be signed in with AI answers turned on, while a question about you gets an example made up for you until you've saved something in My story.

Show me how
  1. Press Read at the bottom of the strip, or press R, and a panel opens that tells you how to snip on your computer.
  2. Snip just the question, with Win + Shift + S on Windows or Cmd + Ctrl + Shift + 4 on a Mac, then click the strip and press Ctrl + V, or Cmd + V on a Mac, or press Paste.
  3. The prompter reads the question, and if it's in English and already in one of your sets or in My story, it brings up your script or the answer you prepared, with a short note saying where it came from and Undo to go back, and otherwise it writes one, which on the free plan is a second AI use.
  4. To read the same spot again and again, choose Read zone instead, press Share a tab or window and pick it in your browser's dialog, then drag a box around where the questions appear in the window that opens and press Set the zone.
  5. From then on, Read and R read your zone at once, and Zone at the bottom of the strip lets you see it, draw a new one or stop sharing.
  6. If it finds several questions at once, the strip lists them so you can pick one and brings up an answer to it, while Keep all puts them all in one of your sets or in a new one.
Read sits at the bottom of the strip, next to Hear, and ⋯ at the end opens the rest of the controls.

Read from screen

What does Auto-read do?Pro

With Auto-read on, the prompter keeps an eye on your read zone and reads it by itself once it changes and then holds still for a moment, so a new question comes up without you pressing Read. You'll find it in the zone panel, which Zone at the bottom of the strip opens, and since each read is one AI use, it comes with Pro.

Show me how
  1. Set a read zone first, as in the question above.
  2. Press Zone at the bottom of the strip, and in the panel that opens, press Auto-read: off so that it reads Auto-read: on.
  3. From then on, whenever the zone changes and settles, the prompter reads it, and each read is one AI use, as is the answer it writes for a question that's new to you, all within the daily limit of 100.
  4. Auto-read turns itself off when the sharing ends.

Privacy

What does the prompter see of my screen?

Only what you give it, so a snip shows it just the picture you paste, and with a read zone it reads only what's inside the box you drew on the one tab or window you share, never your whole screen. That part goes to our AI provider to find the question, which doesn't train on it and deletes it within 30 days, and TrainVue doesn't keep the picture. Your browser shows that it's being shared until you press Stop in the zone panel, stop sharing in your browser or close the prompter, and if Hear has you share your whole screen to hear a call, the prompter stops the picture at once and listens only to the sound.

Hearing the question

Hear questions

Can the prompter hear the question on a call?

It can, as long as you're signed in and using Chrome or Edge 139 or later on a computer, though for now it only picks out questions asked in English. Press Hear at the bottom of the strip and share your call, and when it catches a question the other person asks, the strip brings it up with a short note saying what it heard, and Undo in case it got it wrong. If you already have an answer to that question in a set or in My story, your answer comes up, and if the question is new to you, Pro writes its answer right away while on the free plan you press Write my answer, and all the while your microphone keeps the script moving as you speak.

Show me how
  1. Open the prompter from one of your sets while you're signed in, and press Hear at the bottom of the strip, next to Read.
  2. Hear isn't there while Run interview or Practice is bringing up the questions, and starting either one turns it off, so press Prompter on a set afterward to bring it back.
  3. The first time, a short notice explains what Hear does with the sound of your call, so read it and press Continue.
  4. In your browser's dialog, pick the tab your call is in and turn on its audio, or, for a call in its own app, pick your entire screen and turn on its system audio, which on a Mac needs macOS 14.2 and Chrome 141 or later.
  5. The button now reads Hear · on, and a short message tells you whether the call is heard on your computer or through your browser's speech service, and when it offers Set up on this computer, one click downloads what your browser needs so the words stay on your computer from then on.
  6. As soon as the other person has finished asking, press Answer now, which sits next to Hear · on and lights up while they speak, or press Enter, and the answer comes up right away instead of after the pause Hear normally waits for. If Hear let the last thing they said go by, that's what it takes as the question, even if it wasn't quite one, and it writes the answer the way Write my answer does, which on the free plan is one AI use.
  7. Keys only reach the strip while it has focus, so click the strip first if you'd rather press Enter, while the button works either way.
  8. Hear keeps what was said in the minute before a question, so when a case or a puzzle is read out with its facts first and the question last, the answer written for that new question has those facts, and the question asked before it goes along as well, so a follow-up on the same case is answered as one.
  9. Hear lets everyday call talk go by, like “How are you doing today?”, “Can you hear me?” and “Can you elaborate on that?”, though other small talk, or a follow-up that asks something new, like “What was the result?”, can come up as a question, and Undo takes you back.
  10. A question that's new to you needs at least four words, so a short one like “Why this firm?” only comes up when it's already in your sets or My story, and when a question trails off, Hear waits a moment longer for the rest.
  11. If a new question comes through garbled, or depends on what was said before it, its answer is written for what it most likely asks, with a small note saying which question that was.
  12. Press Hear · on when you're done, which stops sharing the call too, and the next time you open the prompter, Hear starts off again.
Hear sits at the bottom of the strip, next to Read, and reads Hear · on while it listens to your call.

Privacy

Does Hear record the call?

No, TrainVue never records the call: the new questions it hears stay in the prompter until you close it, unless you keep them in a set, and what was said just before a question stays only briefly, so the question keeps its context and Answer now can use it. Your browser turns the other person's words into text, on your computer once it's set up for that, which the prompter offers when your browser can do it, and otherwise by sending the sound to its speech service, as it does with your own voice, while a question goes to our AI provider, with what was said before it, only when an answer is written for it. Let the people on the call know you're using it.

Your answers

Where answers come from

Where does the answer in the strip come from?

If you've written a script for the question, the strip shows it exactly as you wrote it. If you haven't, it shows the answer you prepared in My story when the question matches one, whether you typed it or it came from a file you've turned on, labeled Your answer, and otherwise you can press Write my answer to have one written from your story, labeled AI draft, and when nothing is saved in My story yet it still writes one, which for a question about you is an example made up for you, with a note under it saying so. When it hears a question on your call or reads one from your screen, it looks in your sets and My story first, and if you already have an answer, that's what comes up, with a short note saying where it came from, such as the set or the file's name, though for now this matching only works for questions in English.

My story

How do I get answers written in my own words?

Fill in My story, which you'll find under Account, with your resume, what you're aiming for, the stories you want to tell and any answers you've already prepared, or add the prep files you already have, and the prompter writes your answers from those facts and your own scripts, putting in a short example, marked as one, wherever an answer needs a fact you haven't given. You'll turn on AI answers first, since your story, each question, a few of your own scripts, any part of your screen you choose to read and any file you add go to our AI provider, which doesn't train on them and deletes them within 30 days. Your first 10 AI answers are free.

Show me how
  1. Go to Account and press My story, or use the link above your sets.
  2. The first time, read what AI answers send and keep, and press Turn on.
  3. Paste your resume or upload it as a PDF or Word file, check the text it reads, and add what you're aiming for, such as the role and the city.
  4. Add the stories you want to tell, like a project, a disagreement or a result you're proud of, and the questions you expect with the answers you've prepared, then press Save.
  5. Or press Add files under Your files to bring in the documents you've already prepared, like your behavioral answers or your notes on a firm, check what it found and press Add, then switch files on or off so only the firm you're practicing for is used.
  6. In the prompter, press Write my answer on a question without a script, or press W, and an answer is written from what you saved.
  7. If you haven't saved anything yet, the prompter still writes an answer, and for a question about you it's made up as an example, with a note under it saying so, while once your story is saved those answers come from it.
  8. A prepared answer comes up just as you wrote it, with no AI use, whenever its question matches the one in the strip, which for now works for questions in English.

AI drafts

How do I keep an AI draft as my script?

Press the AI draft button at the bottom of the strip and choose Keep, and the draft becomes that question's script, so it's there the next time too. For a question heard on your call or read from your screen, Keep asks which set to put it in instead, one of yours or a new one called From my calls or From my screen. Any words in amber with a dotted underline are examples standing in for a fact your story doesn't give, so you can keep talking and swap in your own later, and once it's kept, the set editor shows examples to replace beside that script.

Show me how
  1. Press the AI draft button at the bottom of the strip, which also shows how long the answer takes to say at your pace, like AI draft · ~1:05.
  2. Choose Keep to make it the question's script, or choose Edit first to change some words, then press Done, or Ctrl + Enter (Cmd + Enter on a Mac).
  3. Write it again writes another version, which is one more AI use, and a draft you don't keep is gone once you close the strip.

Answer length

How long will an answer be?

A written answer is sized to your own speaking pace and the question's answer time, so it usually takes about 60 to 90 seconds to say, and less when the time is short. Your pace comes from your recent practice answers, and until you've recorded some it's 150 words a minute, while the answers you prepared yourself keep their own length. A technical question, a case, an estimate or a brain teaser gets a shorter answer, since it's answered on its own terms rather than from your story, with its key points in the outline under it, when it has one.

Practice and recordings

Run interview and Practice

What's the difference between Run interview and Practice?

Run interview takes you through the set in order, with its timers and only the retakes the set allows, the way the real thing would. Practice lets you pick the questions yourself, retake them as often as you like or take a random one, and its answers are saved just like a run's. Both need a free account, and what you made before signing in comes with you the first time you sign in on this computer.

Recordings

Where are my recordings kept?

Your recordings are kept in this browser on this computer, and when you're signed in, your sets and scores are kept in your account as well. If you turn on the cloud backup under Account, your recordings are also kept online, up to 5 GB, so they're safe if the browser is cleared and you can watch them on your other devices. Without it, download the ones you want to keep, since a browser can clear its files when the disk runs low.

Plans

Plans

What's free, and what comes with Pro?

The booth, the prompter with your own scripts and the feedback on how you spoke are free with no limit, the cloud backup is free up to 5 GB, and you also get 10 AI uses, for written answers or screen reads, and 3 answers scored for what you said. Pro, at $19 a month plus tax or VAT, writes as many answers from your story as you need, adds Auto-read and scores every answer, though it isn't sold in the EU, the EEA or the UK yet. Everyone has the same daily limits of 100 AI uses, 60 scored answers and 10 resume reads.

Pro

How do I cancel Pro?

Go to Account and press Manage or cancel, which opens Stripe's billing page, where you can cancel your plan. Pro stays on until the end of the period you've paid for, and until then you can keep it by pressing Undo cancel under Account, which opens Stripe's billing page again. How refunds work is set out in the Terms.

When something goes wrong

Storage

This browser could not open TrainVue's storage on this computer

This means your browser wouldn't open the space on your computer where TrainVue keeps your recordings, so the visit is running from memory, and anything you record now will be gone when you close the tab. Quit the browser completely and open it again, and if that doesn't help, free up some disk space, or clear this site's data in your browser's site settings, which deletes the recordings in this browser that aren't backed up and, if you haven't signed in, your sets and scripts as well. If it says the browser isn't letting the site store data, which happens in some private windows, open TrainVue in a normal Chrome or Edge window.

Show me how
  1. Quit your browser completely, which on a Mac means pressing Cmd + Q rather than closing its windows, then open it again and go back to TrainVue.
  2. If the message comes back, free up some space on your computer's disk and try again.
  3. If it still comes back, clear this site's data in your browser's site settings, keeping in mind that this deletes the recordings in this browser that aren't backed up and, if you haven't signed in, your sets and scripts too, and then sign in again if you have an account.

Microphone

The prompter says "Microphone blocked"

Your browser isn't letting the prompter use your microphone, so the strip scrolls at a steady pace instead, which Space starts. In the TrainVue tab, click the icon to the left of the address, allow the microphone, and then open the prompter again.

Show me how
  1. Go to the tab where TrainVue is open, not the prompter's own window, and click the icon to the left of the address.
  2. Allow the microphone for this site.
  3. Close the prompter and open it again from Sets, and it starts following your voice.
  4. If the strip says it found no microphone, plug one in and pick it in the microphone menu under ⋯, then press Voice, under ⋯, so it starts following your voice again.
  5. If it says this browser has no speech recognition, switch to Chrome or Edge.

The prompter window

The prompter window was blocked

In a browser that can't keep the prompter on top, it opens as a pop-up window, and your browser blocked it. Allow pop-ups for this site in your browser and press Prompter again, or switch to Chrome or Edge, where it opens as a small window that stays on top.

The prompter window

The prompter doesn't stay on top of my other windows

Chrome and Edge, from version 116, keep the prompter's window on top of everything else, while a browser that can't do that opens it as an ordinary pop-up window instead. In that case, keep it above the window you're practicing in yourself, or switch to Chrome or Edge.

Signing in

I can't find the sign-in code

Check your spam or junk folder first, and if it isn't there either, send a new code from the sign-in page, where you can also use another email. Only the code in the newest email works, and if you ask for codes too often, you'll be asked to wait a minute before trying again. Continue with Google works too.

Can't find what you're looking for? Write to support@trainvue.app.