Trying to use USB webcam

ISHAIM · Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 6:32 pm Post subject: Trying to use USB webcam

Hi,

I'm trying to get my Intel Easy PC Camera USB webcam to work. I've compiled into the kernel what I believe are the appropriate options):

Symbol: USB_GSPCA_SPCA508 [=y]
Prompt: SPCA508 USB Camera Driver
Defined at drivers/media/video/gspca/Kconfig:177
Depends on: MEDIA_SUPPORT && VIDEO_CAPTURE_DRIVERS && V4L_USB_DRIVERS
Location:
-> Device Drivers
-> Multimedia support (MEDIA_SUPPORT [=y])
-> Video capture adapters (VIDEO_CAPTURE_DRIVERS [=y])
-> V4L USB devices (V4L_USB_DRIVERS [=y])
-> GSPCA based webcams (USB_GSPCA [=y])

When I try and use the webcam with cheese, there is no video input, only the color coded bars. If I go to preferences, there is a grayed out Device (USB Camera (8086:0110) (/dev/video0). Running sudo cheese has no effect on letting me modify this either.

I have installed the following v4l related packages:

blytte · n00b Joined: 02 Mar 2006 Posts: 28

The GSPCA driver has many subdrivers and I wonder if you have enabled the right one. Try enabling them all and compiling them as modules. The drivers should then be able to figure it out by themselves.

Even if the documentation says your driver should be the 508, I have my suspicions. I had a similar camera by Intel once and if I recall they had made several versions over time with different chips that were all called the same and performed about the same.

If it is the right driver, have you checked dmesg for any error messages?

Also, you might want to make sure the userspace software is working correctly. I don't know if the driver is making the color bars or the cheese is.

cach0rr0 · Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 12:27 am Post subject:

that's def the right driver far as I can tell

(last line)
# grep -r DEVICE.*0x0110 /usr/src/linux/drivers/media/video/

ISHAIM · Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 2:44 am Post subject:

Thanks for the help thus far.

dmesg doesn't really show any errors, on the contrary it appears things are alright:

cach0rr0 · Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 4:52 am Post subject:

try running cheese from the console and seeing if it spits out anything useful

i dont have any real brilliant ideas, but heh, worth trying.

As you already have /dev/video0 the driver side of things is fine.
_________________
Lost configuring your system?
dump lspci -n here | see Pappy's guide | Link Stash

ISHAIM · Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 5:51 am Post subject:

There is no console output whatsoever from running cheese from the console. Not even from running cheese as superuser.

SDNick484 · Apprentice Joined: 05 Dec 2005 Posts: 231

Was this issue ever solved? Coincidentally, I too just found my old Easy PC Camera that I got for free somewhere. I seem to recall using it in Linux years ago, but I can't get it working now.

EDIT: I've gotten skype to work via the 508 module and using " bash -c 'LD_PRELOAD=/usr/lib32/libv4l/v4l1compat.so skype' " which I got from https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Webcam. However the other apps I've tried don't seem to respond even when invoking the compat library.

EDIT2: I was able to get vlc to work via "LD_PRELOAD=/usr/lib32/libv4l/v4l1compat.so vlc". It's built with both the libv4l2 & v4l2 use flags.

ISHAIM · Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 4:16 am Post subject:

Thanks a lot

, I was able to get the webcam working in vlc with 'LD_PRELOAD=/usr/lib32/libv4l/v4l1compat.so vlc', however the video stream has a bluish tint and is really laggy. At least I know it's working.

I am using the regular v4l USE flag, should I not? Is it deprecated?

Still nothing in cheese either.