hshane[AT]austin.rr.com>

This is a playback-only driver for IEEE 1394 audio interfaces which are based on the DICE chip family (DICE-II/Jr/Mini) from TC Applied Technologies. For the time being, this driver is being bound only to devices which do not expose recording channels. One of the big innovative features in the new Creative labs cards is the addition of an IEEE 1394 port (alias FireWire) managed by Audigy. Terratec DMX 6Fire 24/96: Drivers Page 4: Terratec. TerraTec Grabster DV 200 - VideoHelp Capture Card. C ATSC HDTV QAM DV / Firewire / IEEE 1394 / i.Link connection DV. To Software/driver CD Software manual. The drivers designated as “EWS MIC FW(x) Midi In/Out” or “EWS MIC FW(x) Midi In/Out 2” in this system can be selected in any situation in which their use would be appropriate. Page 27: The Mac Os X Drivers The Mac OS X drivers In OS X (currently OS 10.3.6), the EWS MIC 2/8 FW system is supported completely by Apple CoreAudio and CoreMIDI. This is a playback-only driver for IEEE 1394 audio interfaces which are based on the DICE chip family (DICE-II/Jr/Mini) from TC Applied Technologies. For the time being, this driver is being bound only to devices which do not expose recording channels.

Revision HistoryRevision 1.612005-02-21Revised by: jhsUpdate on revived Philips Webcam driver developmentRevision 1.62005-01-02Revised by: jhsErrata fixed, some rewrites for readability, new chipsets and updatesRevision 1.12004-01-12Revised by: jhsUpdate for 2.6 series kernel release and info on NW802-based webcamsRevision 1.02003-12-04Revised by: JPInitial Release / Reviewed by TLDPRevision 0.52003-11-07Revised by: jhsFinal revision after v4l mailing list feedbackRevision 0.12003-10-12Revised by: jhsInitial draft posted

This document was written to assist the reader in the stepsnecessary to configure and use a webcam within the Linux operating system.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction

1.1. Copyright Information

1.2. Disclaimer

1.3. New Versions

1.4. Credits

1.5. Feedback

1.6. Conventions Used in this Document

2. Enabling Support for Your (Webcam) Hardware in Linux

2.1. Drivers and Modules

2.2. Supporting the Connection Type

2.3. Specific Webcam Models

3. Accessing the Video Device

3.1. The Video Devices Node

3.2. Groups and Permissions

4. Framegrabbing Applications

4.1. Command Line Programs

4.2. GUI(Grapical User Interface)-Based Programs

5. Troubleshooting

5.1. Help, I have a USB webcam and don't know exactly what model it is and/or who the manufacturer is. What do I do?

5.2. Help, I can't find the camera device in/dev!

5.3. Help, I can see the camera device (both in person and as a device node in /dev), but Ican't access it!

5.4. Help, my camera has a driver that is source-only,i.e., has to be built by me! Where do I start?

5.5. I am using Debian GNU/Linux. Is there an easier way to go through all this kernel compiling stuff and building of source modules?

5.6. Help, my camera is supported by a driver thathas to be patched into my kernel! What do I do?

5.7. Help--as in, where can I get more of it?

5.8. Help, I want to contribute to Video4Linuxsupport in Linux! Who do I get in touch with?

A. Gnu Free Documentation License

This document was written to assist the reader in setting up andconfiguring a webcam, digital camera, or other video device in the Linuxoperating system.It outlines how to enable the necessary kernel and/or software support andvarious frame-grabber applications that can be used to access your device.It does not discuss the differences in graphic and video formats, thefeatures and/or capabilities of particular devices, or the encoding orconversion of video formats.

1.1. Copyright Information

This document is Copyright 2004-2005, by Howard Shane.

Permission is granted to copy, distribute, and/or modify thisdocument under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation withno Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts.A copy of the license can be found in Appendix A.

1.2. Disclaimer

No liability for the contents of this document can be accepted.Use the concepts, examples and other content entirely at your own risk.As this is a new edition, there may be technical or other inaccuraciesthat may result in the loss of irreplaceable data.In any case, proceed with caution, and realize that although errorsare highly unlikely, the author can accept no responsibility for them.

All copyrights are held by their respective owners, unlessspecifically noted otherwise.Use of a term in this document should not be regarded as affecting thevalidity of any trademark or service mark.

Naming of particular products or brands should not be seen asendorsements.

1.3. New Versions

This is the fourth release.

The latest version number of this document can be found here.

1.4. Credits

I would like to thank all of the individuals that have pioneeredvideo support for Linux, in particular the v4l and v4l2 teams, Gerd Knorr,and the Metzler Brothers among others.

Also, I would like to thank Marla, who has the grace to accept myimperfections and idiosyncrasies unconditionally, including my obsessionwith projects such as this.

1.5. Feedback

Please send anyadditions or comments pertaining to this document to the following emailaddress: <hshane[AT]austin.rr.com>.In particular, if you have information about new devices or interfacessupported or errata, please contact me so we can keep this documentup-to-date!

1.6. Conventions Used in this Document

The following conventions are used in this document and areoutlined here for those who may not yet have a complete understandingof how to access and control the underlying operating system in Linux,which is usually via the Bash shell.

First, filenames are referenced in a paragraph like so:/path/file

Commands in Linux are executed (or 'called') at the command prompt,otherwise known as the 'command line.'If you are in the non-graphical (text-based) environment, you will usuallybe presented with the Bash shell prompt which is a dollar sign:

...or the hash mark:

...if you have logged in as root or have otherwise acquired root, or'superuser' privileges.You can also access the Bash shell in the X windowsystem, otherwise known as X or X11, with an xterm or similarX-terminal-emulator.Commands to be performed at the Bash prompt, but referenced in a paragraphof this document, usually look like this: do this now

Commands and/or the resulting output of commands may also beoutlined with screen output in their own paragraph or heading:

When a command is written in front of the Bash prompt (e.g., $ date above), it is assumed the [Return] or [Enter] key has been pressed after the command, possibly followed by the output on a new line (e.g., as in the date in the above example).

2.1. Drivers and Modules

For your webcam to work you will need support for the connection and support for the actual camera hardware. Those who are already versed in kernels and modules and how to load them should skip to Section 2.2, which addresses support of the connection type. If you know your USB, IEEE 1394 or whatever bus you will be connecting your camera to is already configured and working, you should move on to the list of specific webcam hardware listed in Section 2.3.

Webcam drivers are usually available one of three ways: within the kernel, as a compilable stand alone module, or available as a pre-compiled (packaged) binary driver from your Linux distribution.

2.1.1. Module or In-Kernel?

As a rule, often the stock kernel, or working part of the operating system, of your initial installation may already have support for what you need. Your Linux distribution vendor has likely enabled the most common options already, including the bus, or connection type, and drivers for common camera models. The driver exists either as a loadable module or within the already running kernel.

An easy way to tell if the driver is enabled is to use the dmesg command piped into less (for easy paging) to look for an acknowledgement that it was loaded when your system started up:

...which may yield something like the following, depending on your hardware:

If you don't see it, the particular driver may exist as a loadable module. If you know what that module is named, try using find; in this example we are looking for the 'ibmcam' module:

Note that up until the 2.4 series modules had the suffix .o; for 2.6+ series kernels this was replaced with .ko.

You can get a list of all modules available by typing the following at the command line:

Where `uname -r`, surrounded by forward tick marks, is your kernel version number.The following output is an example of what you might find in a USBwebcam-ready kernel , where everything is loaded as a module (allbut the relevant lines have been edited for brevity):

Once you know which module your camera needs you can find out if it is already loaded by typing the following at the command line:

As shown by the prompt above, you will need to have root privilegesto do this.You should get output similar to the following:

Most stock kernels are compiled with kmod, which enabling automatic loading of necessary modules when the appropriate hardware is detected. It may not always do so, however, so if you don't have the particular module you're seeking loaded andyou think the module may be available, try loadingit manually with modprobe, as in the following using the ibmcam module as an example:

Drivers for specific webcam models, or links to project pages hosting code for drivers, are outlined in Section 2.3. The drivers are usually available one of three ways: within the kernel, as a compilable stand alone module, or available as a pre-compiled binary from your Linux distribution.

If the support for your driver is not found either enabled statically within the kernel or as a module, don't despair. Drivers for numerous models are in the Linux kernel source (available directly from kernel.org source code repository), or in code offered separately from the kernel that can be configured to work with your current setup as oulined in Section 2.1.2. If your webcam driver is available in the kernel source but not enabled as a module or otherwise in your default system, you can either recompile the kernel from the source code you have or obtain a new version of the kernel source, either pre-packaged by your Linux distributor or directly from the previous link (as a so-called 'vanilla' kernel).If you are unfamiliar with the prerequisites and procedure of compiling your own kernel, I direct you to the Kernel HOWTOfor more information.

2.1.2. Patching, Source-Only or Precompiled Binary?

You may find that your webcam is supported by only a kernel patch, by a source-only driver not requiring a kernel recompile, or you may even be lucky enough to have a distribution that makes a pre-compiled and packaged binary driver available for your computer's architecture. The procedure involved in the former is largely beyond the scope of this document and is probably best outlined in the documentation available on the web page of your particular model's driver found in Section 2.3. Some further more general documentation on these processes are, however, addressed in Section 5

2.2. Supporting the Connection Type2.2.1. USB Webcams

If you have a USB webcam, it is likely a Linux driver has been written for your device.There are two ways of supporting USB devices in Linux.One is the more traditional kernel support, and the other is throughlibusb.For at least one webcam category, the STV0680-based models, working libusb support is recommended, at least according to the Sourceforge page on the subject.

Unless you know your driver requires libusb support, you should probably stick with the more conventional in-kernel support for USB devices beginning in Section 2.2.1.2.

2.2.1.1. Libusb

Libusb is a library that allows access to the USB functions inLinux through userspace and without the need to enable kernel supportand insert modules. Most distributions, at this point, are offering libusb in their stablebranches (and some install it by default), so if you don't already havekernel support for USB devices, then you may only have to install thelibusb package in order to access your device.You must have USB device filesystem support enabled in your kernel,which most distributions do.To find out for sure, issue the following at the command line:

You should see (among others):

You may need to mount usbdevfs to enable it and see the devicefiles, which you can do at the command line with mount -tusbdevfs none /proc/bus/usb.Don't try to use libusb while your particular kernelwebcam support is enabled either statically or the module loaded; youcan only use one at at time.

You can obtain the libusb package in .rpm,.tgz or .deb format from yourLinux distribution.

2.2.1.2. Linux Kernel USB Support

Kernel support is required for USB webcam support if not usinglibusb (outlined above).

For 2.2 and 2.4 series kernels, your USB webcam may require the module usbvideoto function. This is not required in the 2.6+ series.

For generic USB bus support in Linux, you will need USB subsystemsupport in your kernel, whether usb-ohci, usb-ehci, or whatever flavorof USB driver your system prefers.USB subsystem support has been present in the Linux kernel since thelate 2.2 series.For a more in-depth discussion of USB support in general, I direct you tothe Linux-usb project site.If you want to find out which modules are loaded, at the command lineor in an xterm, type the following:

As shown by the prompt above, you will need to have root privilegesto do this.You should get output similar to the following:

If you don't have the particular module you're seeking loaded andyou think the module may be available, try loadingit directly (using the usb ibmcam module as an example):

...at which point you should see something like thefollowing:

By placing the entry ibmcam (for example) in/etc/modules (note that this varies by distribution),you can have the module load at boot-time automatically.You can then confirm the module was loaded by checking the syslog or inthe boot-time record with dmesg | less), where youshould see an entry such as the following:

2.2.2. IEEE 1394 (Firewire™,i.Link™)

IEEE 1394 webcams require an IEEE 1394 PCI card or an IEEE 1394bus port on your mainboard.The IEEE interface has been supported in Linux since the early 2.4-serieskernel.If you are lucky enough to own such a device, generic informationon support of the IEEE 1394 bus in Linux can be found at www.linux1394.org.If you have a kernel older than 2.4.2, you will need topatch your kernel with one of the patches found on this pagematched to your kernel version.In addition, you will require libraw1394.The previously referenced linux1394.org site has a great installationguide.

The IEEE1394Digital Camera List, by Damien Douxchamps, offers an outstandingsummary of the capabilities of IEEE 1394 cameras as well as the currentstatus of support for individual models.

2.2.3. Generic Parallel Port Support for Parport Webcams

For 2.2 and 2.4 kernel systems, parallel-port support must beenabled statically or as a module (stock kernels usually have thisenabled by default).You may want to read moregeneric info about parallel-port device support under the Linuxkernel before starting this process.To find out for sure if the module parport is loaded,you can check the dmesg file or use lsmod as outlined above.Using dmesg | less, you should see (among many otherlines) the following:

If you are compiling your own kernel, enable 'Parallel Portsupport'.You should enable 'IEEE 1284 transfer modes', and if you have x86 typearchitecture, you should also enable 'PC-style hardware'.

If modprobe returns an error when you attempt to load the module,note that you may need to determine and supply the hardware address wheninvoking modprobe.The most common address is 0x378 for an x86 system; 0x278 and 0x3BC areother possibilities for integrated or ISA parallel ports.Add-in PCI parallel ports may have unusual base addresses.You can also arrange multiple devices with either the parport_pc orparport_arc modules, though that topic is beyond the scope of thisdocument.

WARNING: Be sure you have the correct address beforeentering this information at the command line or else your machine maybecome unstable, crash or otherwise implode.

Your parallel port should be set to preferably 'EPP'mode, or alternatively ECP/EPP.'Bidirectional' (also known as 'BPP' or'PS/2') may work, albeit much more slowly.'Unidirectional' mode is unsuitable for scanning.The above setting can usually be accessed through your BIOS menu, atleast on x86 systems.

2.3. Specific Webcam Models

Note that this information is frequently changing.The Linux-USBDevice Overview site is a great place to look if you have aUSB webcam.Also, you will want to check for your model's homepage at http://www.exploits.org/v4l/.The information compiled below on specific webcam models is from thesame source, so you may find more up-to-date information through theprevious link.If you can't find an entry for your particular hardware, you can findlinks to resources on how to write your own driver!

It is important to note that if your camera isn't listed,the easiest way to find out if your camera is supported is to find outwhat chipset is used in its manufacture.

This information is usually present in the specifications published inyour webcam's manual or on the manufacturer's website.

If you can't find your camera model listedand aren't sure what chipset your camera is made with,you should consider searching and/or subscribing to thevideo4linux-list mailing list hosted by Redhat.

2.3.1. 3com HomeConnect PC Digital Webcam

This driver is supported with the kernel patch located atthe homeconnectusbproject web page.It may require a kernel recompile after patching depending on yourkernel version.

2.3.2. CPiA based Webcams

Please see the projecthome page for up-to-date information.This chipset has been used in the manufacture of both USB and parallelport webcams including the following:

Aiptek HyperVcam Fun USB (non-OV511 based)

Creative Video Blaster WebCam II USB and parallel-port

CVideo-Mail Express parallel-port

Digicom Galileo USB and Digicom Galileo Plus

Dynalink Digital Camera

Ezonics EZCam (not Pro or Plus)

I-View NetView NV200M

Microtek EyeStar USB

Pace Color Video Camera USB

SuperCam WonderEye

TCE Netcam 310 USB

Terracam USB (non-OV511 based or Terracam Pro)

Trust SpaceC@m Lite USB and SpaceC@m 100

Utopia USB Camera

ZoomCam USB and parallel-port

2.3.3. SE401, SE402 and EP800 based USB webcams

Thisproject is a work in progress.The drivers and other useful information areavailable at the project homepage located here.As of writing this, it is necessary to patch and recompile your kernelin order to obtain support for these models.The driver supports the following:

SE401 chipset via the 'se401' driver:

Aox SE401 camera

Philips PCVC665 USB VGA webcam 'Vesta Fun'

Kensington VideoCAM PC Camera (Models 67014-67017)

SE402 and EP 800 chipsets via the 'epcam' driver

Spypen Actor

Rimax Slim Multicam

Concord Eye-Q Easy

Creative PD1001

Chicony DC-100

Endpoints SE402 and EP800

2.3.4. OmniVision based Webcams

This category includes amultitude of webcam and video-capture devices manufactured by Omnivision,including the OV511(+), OV518(+), OV6620, OV6630, OV7610, and OV7620AE.The project homepage is here.Supported models include:

Aiptek HyperVcam Home and Mobile

Amitech AWK-300

I-view NetView NV300M

TEVion MD9308

Intel Me2Cam

Dlink DSB C100, C300

Hawking Tech. UC-110, UC-300 and UC-310

Puretek PT-6007

Alpha Vision Tech AlphaCam SE model AC-520

Creative Labs WebCam model PD1001 with OV518 chipset

Creative Labs WebCam 3, WebCam Go, Webcam Go Plus

Elecom UCAM-C1C20

Elta WEBCam 8211 PCC

Ezonics EZPhone Cam

Philips ToUCam XS (old version with OV518)

LG Electronics LPC-UM10

Lifeview various USB Life TV models

Genius VideoCam Express

AverMedia Intercam Elite

Maxxtro Cam22U

MediaForte MV300, PC Vision 300

Terratec TerraCam PRO and some TerraCam models

OmniVision (except those with OV519)

TRENDNet TV-PC301

Trust Sp@ceC@m USB

Lifetec LT9388

BestBuy EasyCam U

Maxell Maxcam

TCE NetCam 310u

Medion MD9388

Webeye 2000B

Suma eON

Prochips PCA-3100

Ezonics EZ USB Cam II (the OV511+ models)

Waytech I-Pac VIC-30

Zoom Telephonics ZoomCam III USB (model 1598)

2.3.5. Logitech (formerly Connectix) QuickcamSupport

The QuickCam VC USB and parallel port modelwebcams are supported by the driver offered here.A kernel patch and recompile are necessary for support of this model.

The Quickcam driver is represented by two different projects that offer two different flavorsof driver for certain Quickcam models, both of which are stand-alonedrivers that do not require a kernel patch or recompile.The qce-ga and qc-usbdrivers support the following models:

Logitech (earlier models of) Quickcam Express

Quickcam Web

Legocam

Dexxa Webcam

Labtec Webcam

The qc-usb driver is more experimental but reportedly works betteron some models such as the Quickcam Web. Also, I have recieved correspondence that newer versions of the Logitech Quickcam Express no longer work with the above drivers; instead this page offers an experimental driver that claims to support the newer model.

1394 Driver Xp

Note to Redhat users: The qce-ga driver doesn't compile properly using themodified kernel source provided in Redhat 9, but a fix is available here.

Some Logitech camera models are supported by the Philips driverin Section 2.3.8.

2.3.6. ICM532 Based Webcams

One driver for this chipset, homepage here, is now merged into the 2.6 kernel source; the other is (per the developer's own description) experimental and available here. Either or both claim to support the following models:

IC-Media Corp Pencam

Newer versions of the Logitech Quickcam Express

Newer versions of the Labtec Webcam

Biolux 654 microscope

Ezonics EZCam USB II (uvt8532)

Ezonics EZCam USB III

TerraCam USB

Stick Webcam

Mini WebCam

Tucan PenCam

Che-ez! Webbie

SNAKE EYE SI-8480/8481

PC CAM CP03

WEB Camera PBC0006

Clipcam

2.3.7. NW802 Based Webcams

This chipset, manufactured by DIVIO, is supported by the driverfound here.The models supported include the following:

BTC SurfCam CMOS300k

Mustek WCam 300

Logitech QuickCam Pro USB (the earlier 'dark focus ring' model)

2.3.8. Philips USB Webcams

Because of the expiration of the Non-Disclosure-Agreement between Philips Corporation and the former maintainer of the pwc driver, the previous kernel support for Philips PWC-chip-based webcams has been removed. Luckily a new, still experimental driver that does not require a proprietary module is under development. The old site, with a discussion of the change, can be seen at http://www.smcc.demon.nl/webcam/; the new driver is maintained at saillard.org with more information at the PWC Documentation Project.

Philips models supported by the above include the following.

PCA645VC

PCA646VC

PCVC675K Vesta, Vesta Pro and Vesta Scan

PCVC720K/40 ToUCam XS, ToUCam Fun, ToUCam Pro and ToUCam Scan

Askey VC010

Creative Labs Webcam 5, Pro Ex

Logitech 3000 and 4000 Pro, Notebook Pro, and Zoom

Samsung MPC-C10 and MPC-C30

Sotec Afina Eye

Visionite VCS UM100 and UC300

2.3.9. SPCA50X USB Camera Linux Driver

Information regarding this chipset can be found here, and is under heavy development and includes partial or complete support for the following models:

Kodak DVC-325 and EZ200

Creative PC-CAM 300, 600, 750

Genius VideoCAM Express V2

Micro Innovation IC 200/IC 150

Logitech ClickSmart 310, 420, 510, 820 and Cordless models

Logitech Pocket750

Benq DC 1016, 1300, 1500, 3410

Flexcam 100

Aiptek MegaCam, [1.3 Megapixel] Mini PenCam and PocketCam 1.3M Smart

Finet Technology Palmpix DC-85

Pure DigitalDakota

3Com Home Connect lite

Megapix V4

Mustek gSmart: Mini, Mini2, Mini3, LCD 2, LCD 3

Digital Dream Enigma 1.3, Epsilon 1.3

Maxwell Compact Pc PM3

Jenoptik models

Minton S-Cam F5

D-Link DSC-350

Trust FamilyC@m 300 Movie

Aiptek Pocket DV, PocketDVII, DV3100+, mini PenCam 2, PocketCam 3M, Pencam SD 2, Pocket DV3500

Hama Sightcam 100

Micro Innovations IC50C, IC400c

FlyCam USB100

Arowana USB Camera 300 K

Intel Easy PC Camera, CS120 (Easy PC Share), PC Camera Pro (CS431), Pocket PC Camera (CS630)

Grandtec V.cap

Sigma-Apo Petcam

2.3.10. STV0680 based Models

The USB version of webcams made with this chipset are supported bythe 2.4.18 and above kernel with the stv680.o module.Alternatively, you can obtain the source from the project homepage.This driver supports models including the Aiptek Pencam and the NisisQuickpix 2.

If you have a serial version, the main oneof which is the Scan e-Studio, you should go here.

2.3.11. Winbond w9966cf

This is a driver for the parallel-port interface that supportsthe Philips SAA7111 CCD-control chip as found on the Lifeview FlycamSUPRA webcam. It is included in the late 2.4 kernel series and laterunder the heading 'video4linux' support.The homepage for this project is here.

2.3.12. Xirlink C-it™ HDCS-1000based Webcams

This driver is for the USB webcams manufactured by Xirlink, IBM(PC Camera) and Veo Stingray model webcams.Support has been in the Linux kernel USB section since 2.2.12.The homepage is at http://www.linux-usb.org/ibmcam.

The followingsection applies to all connection types.

3.1. The Video Devices Node

The Linux kernel requires a virtual device node be created to access and control the device in question. It may have already been created for you at boot-up; ls -l /dev/video* (with an asterisk) or alternatively find /dev -name video* or even visual inspection of the /dev directory with your favorite file manager can give you an idea if the video devices exist. If so you can proceed to Section 3.2; if not you will need to create them manually.

An easy way to create them, if available with your Linux distribution, is use of the MAKEDEV script, which may be located in /dev or the usual places for storing executable commands (/bin,/sbin and so on). The manual page for MAKEDEV (man MAKEDEV) can guide you further, but be aware of the device-specific command options. If MAKEDEV doesn't work or doesn't exist, or you just prefer doing things the hard way, move on to the next paragraph.

A device can be created as a block (such as a drive), a fifo(file-in-file-out or pipe, as in xconsole) or a character device, whichrepresents other hardware.Each device has a major and a minor number 'coordinate'to tell the kernel what it is and where to access it.These numbers are not arbitrary. The major number 81 with minor number 0, 1, 2, and so on are by convention assigned to Video4linux devices, including TV tuner boards and webcams. In order to create the video device /dev/video0, use mknod at the command line:

where c represents a character device.

You can use the following script, which Ihave borrowed from the kernel source (located inlinux/Documentation/video4linux/bttv/MAKEDEV ofthe source tree):

Simply copy and paste the above into your favorite editing program,save it as MAKEDEV or whatever name you like, make it executable(i.e., chmod u+x MAKEDEV), and then execute it as root:

3.2. Groups and Permissions

It is a good idea to be sure that your user account can accessthe device once all modules are loaded and device nodes created.The most security-conscious way to do that is to add access for aparticular group.On my system, the members of the group 'video' are allowed to use thewebcam, scanner and other photographic devices.The way to accomplish this is to first change the ownership of thedevices in /dev like so (as root):

...where root.video are the owner and groupthe device will now belong to.Obviously, the specific command will vary by your system and the typeof device.It is important that you change the ownership of the device node itselfand not the symlink; symlinks' ownerships are affected only by changingthe parent devices or files they point to.

To see if your user account is a member of the group in question,as root issue the following command:grep -e video /etc/group.You should see something like the following:

...where '44' is the group number.Since no members follow the last colon in the 'video' group, we can addthem, let's say user 'jhs' with the command

After this, it's simply a matter of allowing read and write accessfor the user in question of the device like so:

...where g+rw means add readand write access for group.See the documentation for chmod (man chmod orinfo chmod) for further info.

4.1. Command Line Programs

As implied by the title these do not require the X Window System to operate your camera and capture images.

4.1.1. Streamer

Streamer is a versatile program that allows a capture from awebcam or video device using only the command line.It may be offered in your Linux distribution's Xawtv package, or may need to be fetched separately as in Debian. You can find it and more information at Gerd Knorr's Xawtv homepage.

To take a standard JPEG picture from the command line wherethe camera is accessed through /dev/video0:

...where -b is the number of colors (in bpp,whether 15, 16, 24 or 32) and -o is the outputfilename that will be dropped into the current directory (specify -o /path/outfile.jpg to placeit elsewhere). If you are going to capture multiple images be sure to append the output file name with zeros, as streamer can name the capture files in sequence, i.e., -o outfile000.jpeg becomes outfile001.jpeg, outfile002.jpeg, and so on.

To make an .avi file:

...where -q is for 'quiet' execution (no messageoutput), -f is 'format' (rgb24 is TrueColor avi),-r is the frames per second and -tis the time of recording (30 minutes).Streamer can capture raw and Quicktime™(non-Sorensen) formats and can capture audio as well.See streamer --help for more information.

4.1.2. camE

CamE is a command-line program that works in daemon mode tocapture frames from your v4l device for archive or upload (to a webserver,for example) via ftp or scp.You can overlay other graphics, timestamp the frames, or add other dynamictext all by altering the appropriate line in the configuration file.See the camE homepagefor more information.

4.1.3. Motion

Motion is a brilliant program that is able to monitor the videosignal from one or several webcams.It can record periodic snapshots, and when motion is detected, record anmpeg and/or perform another action such as sending an email or executinga command.It can track and graphically mark the motion it detects, feed files via anhttp server to your website, stream them to another application and more.The numberof command line options may be intimidating; there is however, a Wikiavailable online that outlines the various command andconfiguration file options nicely.The motion homepage can be found here.

4.1.4. Webcam

Webcam is an automated command line tool for operating a webcam that is also available from the Xawtv homepage. It is excellent for automated operation such as from a cron job, as it requires no command line options, only a previously edited configuration file (usually ~/.webcamrc). It is similar to camE above in that one can captures images and upload them to a Web-Server via ftp or ssh.

4.1.5. SANE

SANE, or Scanner Access Now Easy, supports access of v4l devices including webcams in later versions.If you are familiar with using a photographic scanner device in Linux,you may be interested in using SANE for image capture, especially sincea few devices double as both scanners and digital cameras.See the relevant sections of the Scanner-HOWTO here.

4.2. GUI(Grapical User Interface)-Based Programs4.2.1. Xawtv

Xawtv is an X-based program for accessing video devicesin Linux including TV tuning devices and webcams.The home page is at http://bytesex.org/xawtv.

When you first try out your webcam, and you think things areconfigured right, use the -hwscan option:

...so now you can see the available devices (your output maydiffer substantially).Try opening an xterm and running xawtv, grabbing from your webcam videodevice:

...and (hopefully) your camera will begin capturing to a windowon your desktop.You may see some error messages in your xterm if things don't work thatcan be helpful to diagnose configuration problems.If you aren't interested in all that, and things work for you, launchfrom your window manager's menu next time.You can read about more xawtv options with man xawtv.

4.2.2. Gqcam

Gqcamis a graphical GTK+-based application originally written to accessConnectix QuickCams but now supports nearly all Video4Linux compatiblewebcam devices.It has an intuitive interface that makes viewing, taking snapshots,and configuring webcam settings blissfully easy.It is highly recommended for those who only want to take a picture here and there without editing aconfiguration file or using the command line.

4.2.3. Camorama

Camorama is a graphical GTK+2.0-based application very similar to gqcam written for the Gnome2 desktop. The home page is here.

4.2.4. GnomeMeeting

GnomeMeeting is a VOIP/IP-Telephony application for the Gnome2 desktop that also supports videoconferencing with a webcam. The homepage can be found at gnomemeeting.org.

5.1. Help, I have a USB webcam and don't know exactly what model it is and/or who the manufacturer is. What do I do?

Use lsusb; it can give you an idea of what other USB devices are available on your system, too:

The numbers after 'ID' are the Vendor and Product numbers, respectively. They can then be looked up in the Linux USB ID catalog.

If lsusb is not available to you, and you have support for /proc filesystem support and USB-filesystem support, issue the following at the command line:

You should receive output including (but not necessarily limitedto) the following:

The line beginning 'T:' is the USB bus thedevice is attached to.The 'P:' indicates (obviously) the vendor and product ID,which are catalogued at the linuxUSB Project homepage.

5.2. Help, I can't find the camera device in/dev!

Assuming your connection typeis supported, and your camera is working, see Section 3.1.

5.3. Help, I can see the camera device (both in person and as a device node in /dev), but Ican't access it!

See Section 3.2.

5.4. Help, my camera has a driver that is source-only,i.e., has to be built by me! Where do I start?

First, checkif your Linux distribution offers a pre-compiled binary of the driver. You can then load it as you normally would for a module.If that is not the case, be sure you have kernel sources installed.You will also need at a minimum GNU make, gcc, binutils and perhapsother programs installed depending on your distribution. (Debian users should see the next section for instructions specific to that distribution.)

Download the driver source (in this example namedsrc.tar.gz) and uncompress/untar it:

Then, change to the directory of your kernel source:

Make the necessary source files:

Now, change to the directory where you unpacked the driver source andread the README and/or INSTALL files for instructions on how to makethe driver.Usually this involves some combination of 'make' 'make all' and/or'make install.'Assuming it compiles correctly, you can simply load the new module withmodprobe.If you have any problems, see Section 5.7.

5.5. I am using Debian GNU/Linux. Is there an easier way to go through all this kernel compiling stuff and building of source modules?

It is far simpler, in your author's humble opinion, to use the automated kernel-package utility.First, install it and the dependencies using apt-get. Next, install the kernel source that you want (e.g., apt-get install kernel-source-2.X.X). Untar the bzip2'd kernel source with tar -xvjf and then make a symbolic link called linux that points to the new source:

Then cd /usr/src/linux and clean: make-kpkg clean, followedby make menuconfig or make xconfig as you would if compilinga new kernel. Next, you can use make-kpkg kernel_image and then install your newkernel package that has been deposited in /usr/src with dpkg -i ../kernel-image-2.X.X. Next, you can get the pre-packaged source driver using apt. So, in the case of the Quickcam Express, the package is qc-usb-source:

...and untar the archive:

This will uncompress the source into the /usr/src/modules directory. The final step, while still in /usr/src/linux is to make the modules with kernel-package:

Install the new package, in /usr/src/, called qc-usb-modules-[arch].deb using dpkg -i. Finally, load the module:

Check the documentation in /usr/share/doc/kernel-package for any problems.

5.6. Help, my camera is supported by a driver thathas to be patched into my kernel! What do I do?

See thesection on patching of the Kernel-HOWTO at The Linux Documentation Project.

The short and unguaranteed version of patching, by your humbleauthor, goes as follows: Be sure you have the same prerequisites outlinedin Section 5.4 installed.First, on the command line or in an xterm change to the source directoryof the kernel version you are (or will be) running with the camera patch(in this example named patch.diff).

You should see a confirmation that the 'hunks' were successfullyapplied.At this point, you can make menuconfig or whateverprogram you use to recompile, enabling the appropriate support.If any of the hunks failed, or you run into any problems in addition tothe link referenced above you, should consult man patchand Section 5.7.

5.7. Help--as in, where can I get more of it?

See the video4linux mailing list headquarters at https://listman.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/video4linux-list.

5.8. Help, I want to contribute to Video4Linuxsupport in Linux! Who do I get in touch with?

See this page.

Version 1.2, November 2002

Copyright (C) 2000,2001,2002 Free Software Foundation, Inc. 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies of this license document but changing it is not allowed.

0. PREAMBLE

The purpose of this License is to make a manual, textbook, or other functional and useful document 'free' in the sense of freedom: to assure everyone the effective freedom to copy and redistribute it, with or without modifying it, either commercially or noncommercially. Secondarily, this License preserves for the author and publisher a way to get credit for their work, while not being considered responsible for modifications made by others.

This License is a kind of 'copyleft', which means that derivative works of the document must themselves be free in the same sense. It complements the GNU General Public License, which is a copyleft cense designed for free software.

We have designed this License in order to use it for manuals for free software, because free software needs free documentation: a free program should come with manuals providing the same freedoms that the software does. But this License is not limited to software manuals; it can be used for any textual work, regardless of subject matter or whether it is published as a printed book. We recommend this License principally for works in which its purpose is instruction or reference.

1. APPLICABILITY AND DEFINITIONS

This License applies to any manual or other work, in any medium, that contains a notice placed by the copyright holder saying it can be distributed under the terms of this License. Such a notice grants a world-wide, royalty-free license, unlimited in duration, to use that work under the conditions stated herein. The 'Document', below, refers to any such manual or work. Any member of the public is a licensee and is addressed as 'you'. You accept the license if you copy, modify, or distribute the work in a way, thus requiring permission under copyright law.

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The Document may include Warranty Disclaimers next to the notice which states that this License applies to the Document. These Warranty Disclaimers are considered to be included by reference in this License, but only as regards disclaiming warranties: any other implication that these Warranty Disclaimers may have is void and has no effect on the meaning of this License.

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You may copy and distribute the Document in any medium, either commercially or noncommercially, provided that this License, the copyright notices, and the license notice saying this License applies to the Document are reproduced in all copies, and that you add no other conditions whatsoever to those of this License. You may not use technical measures to obstruct or control the reading or further copying of the copies you make or distribute. However, you may accept compensation in exchange for copies. If you distribute a large enough number of copies you must also follow the conditions in section 3.

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If you publish or distribute Opaque copies of the Document numbering more than 100, you must either include a machine-readable Transparent copy along with each Opaque copy, or state in or with each Opaque copy a computer-network location from which the general network-using public has access to download using public-standard network protocols a complete Transparent copy of the Document, free of added material. If you use the latter option, you must take reasonably prudent steps, when you begin distribution of Opaque copies in quantity, to ensure that this Transparent copy will remain thus accessible at the stated location until at least one year after the last time you distribute an Opaque copy (directly or through your agents or retailers) of that edition to the public.

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You may copy and distribute a Modified Version of the Document under the conditions of sections 2 and 3 above, provided that you release the Modified Version under precisely this License, with the Modified Version filling the role of the Document, thus licensing distribution and modification of the Modified Version to whoever possesses a copy of it. In addition, you must do these things in the Modified Version:

A. Use in the Title Page (and on the covers, if any) a title distinct from that of the Document, and from those of previous versions (which should, if there were any, be listed in the History section of the Document). You may use the same title as a previous version if the original publisher of that version gives permission.

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You may extract a single document from such a collection and distribute it individually under this License, provided you insert a copy of this License into the extracted document and follow this License in all other respects regarding verbatim copying of that document.

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The Free Software Foundation may publish new, revised versions of the GNU Free Documentation License from time to time. Such new versions will be similar in spirit to the present version but may differ in detail to address new problems or concerns. See http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/.

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ADDENDUM: How to use this License for your documents

To use this License in a document you have written, include a copy of the License in the document and put the following copyright and license notices just after the title page:

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Copyright (c) YEAR YOUR NAME. Permission is granted to copy, distribute, and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the section entitled 'GNU Free Documentation License'.

If you have Invariant Sections, Front-Cover Texts and Back-Cover Texts, replace the 'with...Texts.' line with this: with the Invariant Sections being LIST THEIR TITLES, with the Front-Cover Texts being LIST, and with the Back-Cover Texts being LIST. If you have Invariant Sections without Cover Texts, or some other combination of the three, merge those two alternatives to suit the situation.

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If your document contains nontrivial examples of program code, we recommend releasing these examples in parallel under your choice of free software license, such as the GNU General Public License, to permit their use in free software.