Feedback: speech-to-text-universal-streaming-common-session-errors-and-closures

Documentation Feedback

Original URL: https://www.assemblyai.com/docs/speech-to-text/universal-streaming/common-session-errors-and-closures
Category: speech-to-text
Generated: 05/08/2025, 4:23:32 pm

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Claude Sonnet 4 Feedback

Generated: 05/08/2025, 4:23:31 pm

Technical Documentation Analysis & Recommendations

Overall Assessment

The documentation covers an important topic but suffers from structural issues, missing implementation guidance, and unclear explanations that could frustrate users during error handling scenarios.

Critical Issues & Recommendations

1. Structure & Organization

Issues:

• Redundant heading structure (identical main and subheading)
• Poor information hierarchy
• Missing quick reference section

Recommendations:

# Common Session Errors and Closures

## Overview
Brief explanation of WebSocket closures vs errors...

## Quick Reference
[Add error code summary table]

## Understanding Closures vs Errors
[Current explanation, but clearer]

## Error Codes and Descriptions
[Current table with improvements]

## Implementation Guide
[New section - see below]

## Troubleshooting
[New section - see below]

2. Missing Critical Information

Add Implementation Examples:

## Implementation Guide

### Basic Error Handling Pattern
```python
def on_close(ws, close_status_code, close_msg):
    if close_status_code == 3005:
        if "Session Expired" in close_msg:
            # Restart session logic
            restart_session()
        elif "Input duration violation" in close_msg:
            # Adjust audio chunk size
            adjust_chunk_size()
    elif close_status_code == 1008:
        # Handle authentication issues
        handle_auth_error(close_msg)

def on_error(ws, error):
    logger.error(f"WebSocket error: {error}")
    # Error cleanup logic here

Add Missing Error Details:

• Network timeout scenarios
• Retry strategies and backoff patterns
• Rate limiting specifics
• Audio format validation errors

3. Table Improvements

Current table lacks:

• Severity levels
• Recommended actions
• Retry guidelines

Enhanced table structure:

Code	Reason	Severity	Recommended Action	Retry Safe?
3005	Session Expired	Normal	Start new session	Yes
3005	Input duration violation	Error	Fix audio chunks, retry	Yes
1008	Too many concurrent sessions	Warning	Wait and retry	Yes (with backoff)

4. Unclear Explanations

Fix these ambiguities:

<!-- Instead of: "Audio sent faster than real-time" -->
Audio Transmission Rate Exceeded: You're sending audio data faster than it can be processed.
For example, sending 2 seconds of audio in 1 second of real time.

**Solution:** Implement proper timing to send audio chunks at or slightly below real-time speed.

<!-- Instead of: "Message is not valid (i.e. '[]')" -->
Invalid Message: The message structure is incorrect or empty.

**Common causes:**
- Empty arrays: `[]`
- Missing required fields in JSON messages
- Malformed message objects

**Solution:** Validate message structure before sending.

5. Add Troubleshooting Section

## Troubleshooting Guide

### Session Keeps Closing with Code 3005
1. **Check audio chunk timing**: Ensure chunks are 50-1000ms
2. **Verify message format**: Validate JSON structure
3. **Monitor session duration**: Sessions have 3-hour limit

### Authentication Errors (Code 1008)
1. **Verify API key**: Check [API Keys page](link)
2. **Check account status**: Ensure sufficient balance
3. **Monitor concurrency**: Review [Rate Limits](link)

### Frequent Disconnections
- Check network stability
- Implement reconnection logic with exponential backoff
- Monitor audio quality and format compliance

6. Add Code Examples for Different Languages

## Language-Specific Examples

### JavaScript
```javascript
websocket.onclose = function(event) {
  console.log(`Connection closed: ${event.code} - ${event.reason}`);
  if (event.code === 3005 && event.reason.includes("Session Expired")) {
    reconnectSession();
  }
};

Python

[Add Python example]

cURL/CLI Debugging

[Add debugging commands]

### 7. **Improve User Experience**

**Add these UX improvements:**
- **Visual indicators**: Use icons or colors for error severity
- **Cross-references**: Link to related documentation sections
- **Search optimization**: Add common search terms users might use
- **Progressive disclosure**: Hide advanced details behind expandable sections

### 8. **Missing Proactive Guidance**

**Add prevention strategies:**
```markdown
## Best Practices to Prevent Errors

### Audio Handling
- Validate audio format before streaming
- Implement proper chunk sizing (100-500ms recommended)
- Add audio quality checks

### Connection Management
- Implement heartbeat/ping mechanisms
- Use connection pooling for high-volume applications
- Monitor and log connection metrics

### Error Recovery
- Implement exponential backoff for retries
- Cache audio data for replay after reconnection
- Set up monitoring and alerting for error patterns

9. Enhance Note Section

The current note is helpful but could be more actionable:

<Note title="Implementation Example: Handling Session Expiration">
```python
def handle_session_closure(status_code, reason):
    if status_code == 3005 and "Session Expired" in reason:
        logger.info("Session expired, creating new session...")

        # Save current state
        current_audio_position = save_current_state()

        # Create new session
        new_session = create_new_streaming_session()

        # Resume from where we left off
        resume_streaming_from(current_audio_position)

        return new_session

    # Handle other closure reasons...

Note that on_error is NOT called for planned closures like session expiration.

## Summary of Actionable Items

1. **Immediate fixes**: Restructure headings, enhance table with actionable columns
2. **Short-term additions**: Add code examples, troubleshooting section, prevention strategies
3. **Long-term improvements**: Multi-language examples, interactive debugging tools, comprehensive error recovery patterns

These changes will transform the documentation from a simple reference into a practical guide that helps users both understand and effectively handle streaming session issues.

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