Puppy Linux Discussion Forum

Can anyone here suggest a simple USB plug-and-play webcam + microphone that "just works" with Bionic Pup 8.0? Is there any particular camera you've had success with? Are there any particular specs to look for? Any to avoid?

Simplicity of setup is the key factor here. Video and sound quality with no lag is the second factor. It doesn't have to be especially cheap.

Smartphone and tablet devices are *not* an option.

I guess the next part to this is video conferencing software? What do you recommend? Again looking for simple, but privacy/security is a must.

Your advice is greatly appreciated! thank you!

@tigerflag :- Hallo.....and to the "kennels".

I can answer this one quite easily. If, as you state, it doesn't particularly have to be cheap - and you don't mind paying for something that's better quality - then the Logitech c920 HD 'Pro' will do everything you could want. It's plug'n'play, and it's supported by the kernel UVC (USB Video Class) driver module.

https://www.logitech.com/en-gb/products ... 01055.html

I run at least half-a-dozen Puppies, of varying vintages.....and this thing just "works", in every single one of 'em. Don't take too much notice of the RRP on the Logitech site; it's been around the GBP £100 mark for years, but you CAN pick them up substantially cheaper if you shop around a bit. I got mine for just under half that in the Black Friday sale around 4 years ago.

The build quality is sublime, with HD 1080p capability, autofocus & auto light correction as standard, along with stereo microphones & a Zeiss 5-element professional-quality sapphire glass lens. I'd recommend it to anybody. As far as I'm concerned, it's a winner. You definitely get what you pay for with this thing..!

--------------------------------------------

As for video-conferencing/video-messaging, the sky's the limit. Zoom; M$ Teams; Jitsi Meet (open-source.....extremely good); Google's 'Duo' and 'Meet' webapps. Yes, the Skype app will run, but it's 'iffy' under Linux ATM, and doesn't always behave itself. They all work in Bionicpup64. Most of the good stuff is on 64-bit these days....

Mike.

Thanks Mike! That looks like a very good camera. Can you adjust settings such as zoom or autofocus or white balance?

tigerflag wrote: ↑Mon Sep 20, 2021 4:22 am

Thanks Mike! That looks like a very good camera. Can you adjust settings such as zoom or autofocus or white balance?

With the right tools, yes.

Logitech's own setup/profiling tool doesn't work; it's designed for Windoze-only, and is one of those that just won't run under WINE. However, there's various Linux apps where you can 'tweak' everything you've mentioned - and then some! - and the settings will persist across applications.....at least for the duration of a session.

Guvcview and WebCamoid will both let you tweak to your heart's content. There may well be others, but those two work nicely for me.

Guvcview can be installed via the PPM. WebCamoid can be found here:-

https://webcamoid.github.io/

That will give you the newest version - 8.8.0 - which won't run under Bionic because the glibc is too old! So, what you actually want is version 8.7.1 (the previous release), which can be found here at Github:-

https://github.com/webcamoid/webcamoid/ ... /tag/8.7.1

.....and you want the x86_64. AppImage. D/l; unzip; make it executable. Then just click on it to run.

Mike.

Once again, thank you so much! I really appreciate it.

@tigerflag :-

tigerflag wrote: ↑Mon Sep 20, 2021 3:34 pm

Once again, thank you so much! I really appreciate it.

You're very welcome. That's what we're here for.....to help & advise. A "satisfied customer" is a happy Puppian!

Any further questions (in respect of different queries), start a new thread for it, please. One thread, one subject, helps to keep the forum tidy, and stops the rest of us from getting confused.....!!

Mike.

UVC (USB Video Class) driver module.
That is kind of Linux standard driver for webcams.

So, whatever webcam you get.
Make sure it says it supports UVC.

Having a support for third-party apps is very important.
The programs you want to use are third party programs.
Most webcams do, but they should provide that info as a feature of the webcam.

I agree with m'colleague, definitely. Those three little letters are the "key" to look for where webcams under Linux are concerned.

@bigpup :-

I'd been after a c920 for several years, but the persistently 3-figure plus price tag (for a webcam??) put me off for a long time. I knew it was UVC-compatible, because I'd researched it extensively, and read up everything I could get hold of.

Finally came that magic day in September 2017, when our local Curry's-PCWorld had it on offer for GBP £49.95 in the Black Friday sale; it was being superseded by the c922, and latterly the c930e 'Business' Edition. I knew I'd never find it that cheap again, so despite having some big bills that week, I grabbed one.

I'm glad I did, because even though it was no longer THE 'top-end' model in their range, it was still well worth the wait. All the features I'd ever wanted were there, and.....it just plugged-in, and simply "worked", OOTB. Can't ask for any more than that, can you?

(The current 'top-end' model, the Brio Ultra HD 'Pro', is presently selling for the humungous figure of GBP £220, or thereabouts. And that's for what at the end of the day is simply a USB plug'n'play webcam.....)

I've always liked Logitech gear, though. It might be pricey, when you get further up the model range, but with Logitech's more expensive stuff you DO tend to get your money's-worth. I will give 'em that.

Mike.

Black Friday is not too far off

mikewalsh wrote: ↑Mon Sep 20, 2021 9:47 am

https://github.com/webcamoid/webcamoid/ ... /tag/8.7.1

....and you want the x86_64. AppImage. D/l; unzip; make it executable. Then just click on it to run.

Mike.

Hi Mike. I hope I'm not being a bother.

Do I use Uextract to unzip this? What destination folder should I select? How do I make it executable?

Thanks!

PS: in the spirit of contributing to this board (because normally I don't have anything worthwhile to contribute), here's a list of UVC-compatible webcams. Maybe it will help others:

http://www.ideasonboard.org/uvc/

tigerflag wrote: ↑Wed Sep 22, 2021 6:02 pm

mikewalsh wrote: ↑Mon Sep 20, 2021 9:47 am

https://github.com/webcamoid/webcamoid/ ... /tag/8.7.1

....and you want the x86_64. AppImage. D/l; unzip; make it executable. Then just click on it to run.

Mike.

Hi Mike. I hope I'm not being a bother.

Do I use Uextract to unzip this? What destination folder should I select? How do I make it executable?

Thanks!

@tigerflag :-

Actually, I forgot; it's been a while since I downloaded this.

That file IS the AppImage itself. All you need to do is download it, then make it executable. Which is easy:-

Rt-clk on the AppImage->Properties. Tick all 3 of the 'Exec' checboxes down the bottom, then->Refresh->Close. A single click should be all it needs to start.

I would advise re-naming it to something easier to remember before you do this. This doesn't harm an AppImage in any way; the outer 'shell' transfers the executable "click" action to the 'AppRun' file within the next layer in. Something like

Webcamoid64

.....is quite sufficient. And it makes it easier to try the first time; I usually rt-clk->Window->Terminal here for the first run, because if anything is missing, or it doesn't want to run, it will at least tell you.

Type in

./exact-name-of-AppImage

.....then hit 'Enter'. That's simpler if you've got a short, easy name. It'll either run....or it won't. After all this time, I no doubt have tons of extra dependencies installed that you may not have on your system; this way, you soon find out. I WILL tell you this; if there's no webcam available to the system, it won't fire up, and will error-out.

Guvcview is the same; if it can't find a webcam, it won't start.

Mike.

Mike, I tried following your instructions but I didn't see any 3 checkboxes at the bottom to click to make it executable. Under Permissions I did make it read+write. Was that right? And is it normal for it to open an infinite number of copies within itself? Here's a screenshot:

Also, assuming I get this working right, should I keep it in the default Download directory under Root, or should I put it under /usr/... or something?

Thanks again for all your help. When I started with linux 20 years ago I'd hoped I would be better at it by now. Nothing about it has ever gone easy for me.

@tigerflag :-

You know the old saying, "A picture's worth a thousand words"?

[Click to enlarge]

--------------------------------------------

/Opt is as good a place to keep it as any. As for showing multiple images off to "Vanishing-point", yup; for that app, without a webcam attached, that's all you'll see. That's the screen-capture function. To show webcam output, Sources (second icon along), then in the left-side column, you'll see two choices; your webcam, when and if it's plugged-in, and 'Screen 0' (screen capture). Click on the webcam, if it's not already on it, then the cam output will show....and you play around with the available adjustments on the right-side of the window.

There isn't a user-guide as such. Click each of the icons in turn, and play around with things, see what they do. Most of it is self-explanatory, and nothing you change will permanently hurt anything. That's the way I figured it out.

This is a bit like the classic Ubuntu standby, Cheese!, except it has a hell of a lot more special effects and stuff to "play with"..... Cheese is available via the PPM. It's basically a fun thing, more for taking 'silly' pictures, and doesn't have a great range of adjustments. It IS another option, though.

Okay?

Mike.

All I can say is thank you, Mike, but that doesn't sufficiently convey my gratitude. I truly appreciate your generosity and patience, and that of everyone here.

Thank you!

@mikewalsh
To be honest I had no idea what webcam is good and supported by linux too.
So Mike's recommendation came right in time.
I bought a logitech c920 pro yesterday and have to say works OOTB in SLC64 and the quality is really good.
Thank you Mike.

norgo wrote: ↑Sun Sep 26, 2021 5:45 pm

@mikewalsh
To be honest I had no idea what webcam is good and supported by linux too.
So Mike's recommendation came right in time.
I bought a logitech c920 pro yesterday and have to say works OOTB in SLC64 and the quality is really good.
Thank you Mike.

^^^

Hope you get as much enjoyment from yours as I have from mine the last 4 years. It's definitely worth the money, so far as I'm concerned.

Mike.

Microsoft Lifecam VX-2000 here on bionicpup64

@ndujoe2 :-

ndujoe2 wrote: ↑Mon Sep 27, 2021 2:10 am

Microsoft Lifecam VX-2000 here on bionicpup64

Yeah; they're not bad for their price range, I admit. I think I've got an HD3000 knocking around somewhere in the back of a cupboard, but my gripe with those was the fact that autofocus is 'digital' as opposed to 'optical'.....in other words, software-enhanced rather than controlled by a proper, good-quality glass lens (which will always be superior in terms of image quality, given that the LifeCam's sensor size is a lot smaller than the c920.)

There's only so much you can do with a fixed number of pixels.

(*shrug...*)

Mike.