Linux Drivers for Webcam

[Jojoyee]

Some webcam manufacturers provide no drivers for Linux but one lone French physician wrote the drivers for support up to 260 webcams.

It all started when he bought two webcams for his daughters for Christmas but there was no driver support for Linux according to this report about three years back.

Merry Christmas...

[Ritho]

FYI. If you are buying a new webcam, you can avoid driver problems for webcams in linux if you make certain the Webcam supports UVC (USB Video Class). Devices marked with this specification all use the built in Windows, and Linux driver for this class. No driver is needed. Just plug it in and it should work immediately.

[Jojoyee]

That's a good info Ritho.

[wdhpr]

Originally Posted by Ritho

FYI. If you are buying a new webcam, you can avoid driver problems for webcams in linux if you make certain the Webcam supports UVC (USB Video Class). Devices marked with this specification all use the built in Windows, and Linux driver for this class. No driver is needed. Just plug it in and it should work immediately.

I have a Gigaware minicam with built a in microphone it is also UVC compliant. Works great with windows using Skype. I also have Skype installed in Linux. The camera works great in Linux but I can't get the built in microphone to work. It seams the Realtek driver that was installed during the initial OS setup doesn't recognize the mic built into the minicam. Any ideas?

Wdhpr

[Ritho]

The mic plugs into the mic input jack on the back of your computer, no? In that case it seems like it should work like any other mic. Or is the mic somehow designed to work through the usb itself? In that case it is probably software dependent.

[wdhpr]

Originally Posted by Ritho

The mic plugs into the mic input jack on the back of your computer, no? In that case it seems like it should work like any other mic. Or is the mic somehow designed to work through the usb itself? In that case it is probably software dependent.

The minicam is connected to the computer via the USB cable. There is no separate connection for the mic. The video works good in Linux but no microphone. I'm going to have to teach my buddies to learn how to read lips they already can read some sign language.
It works great in windows the microphone works good and the video quality is not to bad for the minicam not being much bigger than a postage stamp.

I agree it has to be software issue.

Thanks for input
Wdhpr