Can't install a driver for my webcam --RICOH

Booting, installing, newbie
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rcrsn51
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Joined: Tue 05 Sep 2006, 13:50
Location: Stratford, Ontario

#16 Post by rcrsn51 »

Have you actually installed this PET - ie. by clicking on it?

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benny7440
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Joined: Mon 20 Apr 2009, 04:23

#17 Post by benny7440 »

Yes, it was installed. :?:

PS. Preparing to make a temporary frugal install, but some kind of corruption occurred in a few folders from one of my CFCards as well as in the hdd. Going to concentrate in the weekend on backing up a few thousand files from hdd, re-learning how to zip a group of files & upload them to the cloud; then for the installation after learning how to defragment a partition from linux.

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rcrsn51
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Location: Stratford, Ontario

#18 Post by rcrsn51 »

If it installed correctly, you shouldn't be getting the "Module r5u870 not found" message.

I am testing this PET with Puppy 525 and it definitely installs. On your system, install the PET again and run these commands

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depmod-FULL
modprobe r5u870
Preparing to make a temporary frugal install, but some kind of corruption occurred in a few folders from one of my CFCards as well as in the hdd.
It's hard to test new hardware under these conditions.

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benny7440
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#19 Post by benny7440 »

Thank you very much rcrsn51 for all your "good" help! And, I'm sorry that I went through some instructions with a hole in my 'cerebellum'. I thought that I was following the instructions ok but there was a catch: since I'm running PL 511 from the livecd & RAM with no pupsave file everything I do in one session is lost at the next, unless I take specific precautions for making any change persistent. Something I didn't.
All the above means that, after running the command <mplayer tv://> I was almost kicked out of the chair (saw myself in the screen...). The 2nd command there still gave me a 'Fatal Error' message but it worked at the end.
My other problem now with Skype is the audio. I've never used or saw someone using that api, so I've been guessing that if this notebook has a built-in mic, it should be useful for this kind of communication: am I wrong on this?
Any help with the mic will be very much appreciated!
Thanks again for your help!

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rcrsn51
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#20 Post by rcrsn51 »

Excellent. Just for clarification, do you need the second group of modprobe commands to make your webcam work?

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modprobe videodev
modprobe v4l1-compat
modprobe v4l2-common
The 2nd command there still gave me a 'Fatal Error' message but it worked at the end.
Please explain. Are you talking about "modprobe video-buf"?

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benny7440
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#21 Post by benny7440 »

Ok, today I did the following:
1) navigated to where I'm holding the PET file for the Ricoh driver in cfcard, once there opened a terminal;
2) typed 'mplayer tv://' with just a couple messages suggesting non-capable of running the command;
3) typed 'modprobe r5u870' & the system told me the module wasn't found;
4) at the folder where the PET is located clicked on it & installed it;
5) at the terminal repeated the last command & received just a "Warning" message;
6) tried the 'mplayer tv://' command again &, "voila" I jumped inside the screen.
I didn't used any of the following commands (today):
a)modprobe videodev; b)modprobe v4l1-compat;
c)modprobe v4l2-common.
Answering the last question, yes I was referring to "modprobe video-buf" there.
Thanks again!

PS. Since the use of Skype is now really important for me, all that I need to get it working is the internal mic. I remember that in another laptop running xp I was able to record sounds with the embedded mic but not to talk via the phone api that came with xp. In this machine I can hear the internal speakers sound the notebooks' welcome wave file, but nothing else afterwards. I only have sound if I connect an auxiliary amp via the 1/8" headphone jack.
With respect to ALSA Mixer, is there a good tutorial/manual for it? Have a lot of confusion with respect to the cards detected and the programs that are supposed to deal with them.

smil99
Posts: 174
Joined: Sat 18 Aug 2007, 22:12

#22 Post by smil99 »

Hi rcrsn51,
I know this thread is a bit old but I would appreciate it if you can compile drivers for r5u870 this time, for Barry's Precise Pup 5.4 using the 3.2.29 kernel. I tried installing the one you provided earlier in this thread but it didn't work due to kernel mismatch.

lsusb for my sony computer gives the following about the inbuilt webcam:

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Bus 001 Device 002: ID 05ca:1839 Ricoh Co., Ltd Visual Communication Camera VGP-VCC6 [R5U870]
Thanks for all that you continue to do for us all in puppyland. :)
Cheers.
[b][color=green]Success is never ending. ... Failure is never final![/color][/b]
[size=75][i](Used with kind permission from jejy69)[/i][/size]

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rcrsn51
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Location: Stratford, Ontario

#23 Post by rcrsn51 »

The original driver above won't compile in new kernels like Precise. However, there is an alternate project here that appears to support your webcam model.

The PET contains a udev rule, so if you reboot your system, the webcam should be auto-detected. Then run some video app like "mplayer tv://".

If not, run "r5u87x-loader --reload".
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smil99
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Joined: Sat 18 Aug 2007, 22:12

#24 Post by smil99 »

Thank you very much mate. I really appreciate your quick response.
I just tried the pet you provided and presto! my webcam sprung back to life. :D
Now both linphone and skype work with video on my computer. Hooray!.

Cheers.
[b][color=green]Success is never ending. ... Failure is never final![/color][/b]
[size=75][i](Used with kind permission from jejy69)[/i][/size]

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