SuSE 9.2 (and .3?) - What webcams work well?
 

As the title asks...

I've got some Redhat 9 systems (2.4.20 kernel) using Logitech 4000 cameras for semi-automated snapshots, working okay, and very good quality photos in variety of lighting and focal lengths, so I'm really pleased with the camera's price and performance.

Unfortunately, this is a Philips Web Cam chipset (pwc) and apparently isn't supported in the SuSE kernel, which is a mess because Philips wouldn't let the driver developer release source code and the Linux kernel wienies wouldn't let him "hook" it into the system, so it appears to have died, or at least gone really flat... which is a shame because it IS a good camera.

So I'm looking at choosing between struggling with the driver issues or going to a different camera - if there's something that works as well in the same price range, that would make the choice a little easier!

Actually, your Logitech Quickcam Pro 4000 is pretty easily supported on SuSE 93. I am using one right now on SuSE 9.3. SuSE 9.3 doesn't come with the necessary pwc driver, but it is easy to install.

- install package kernel-source

- go to www.saillard.org and download the source tarball for the driver.
- also download the INSTALL.en file, which tells you what to do.

Basically, you just unpack the tarball, go into the newly created directory, and issue "make".
When that is done, su to root, and issue "make install"

Plug in your webcam and SuSE 9.3 auto loads the newly created pwc module, and you are off
and running.