When I bought me PC last year it came with a small little webcam which never worked for me until today when I plugged it in and Ubuntu Linux detected it using the Spca5xx driver. This is what the kernel reported:
“USB SPCA5XX camera found. SONIX sn9c102 + Pas106″
Easycam made it easy enough to install new drivers, and Camorama is a useful tool to control it. (via)
Unfortunately this isn’t very exciting for a number of reasons:
- It has a manual focus and doesn’t handle changes in light very well.
- I can’t get it to capture more than
176×144352×288. - There’s no busy road or traffic to see from my window. I could point it at the LEDS on my DSL router?
Oh well! That was fun for five minutes!
An exciting scene in blarney today
11 Comments
Anthony (14 comments.) on January 23, 2006 at 8:57 pm.
I think the lights would have been better. lol
Daragh Mc Grath (6 comments.) on January 24, 2006 at 12:59 pm.
I’ve seen that image before……
Donncha (1707 comments.) on January 24, 2006 at 1:21 pm.
Yes, my garden is famous as it was one of the photos that appeared in the US book
Marc on January 25, 2006 at 4:55 pm.
Hi.
Well you can make a mix of the two things.
Leds router reflecting on the view of your green garden.
At night you will have “close ecounter” look’n feel.
Don’t you think ?
Just kidding from france.
Marc.
Pranab Salian (2 comments.) on January 28, 2006 at 11:08 am.
SPCA5XX – That reminds me. I had one of those, the el cheapo SunPlus chip webcams. Couldn’t do anything productive with it, so played with it and modded it to see infrared only.
Simple mod involving a waste film strip; worth half a day’s fun.
Link to the mod is on /. somewhere.
Pranab Salian (2 comments.) on January 28, 2006 at 11:10 am.
Oh did I mention that in infrared you can see weird colours, differentiate green metal from green trees, check out the flashing LEDs on your remotes, and theoretically see through clothes…
Shawn Wachter on February 3, 2006 at 9:56 pm.
Blarney is cool in any focus! Erin go bragh.
Snus on April 21, 2006 at 12:54 pm.
You can take of the lins and mount the cam on a telescope.. you have to remove the ocular on the telescope to..
Apple (1 comments.) on May 26, 2006 at 3:20 am.
SPCA5XX – That reminds me. I had one of those, the el cheapo SunPlus chip webcams. Couldn’t do anything productive with it, so played with it and modded it to see infrared only.
Simple mod involving a waste film strip; worth half a day’s fun.
Link to the mod is on /. somewhere.
Ricardo (1 comments.) on June 6, 2006 at 11:07 am.
I followed your idea and pointed my webcam at the LEDs on my router, since I’m still unable to set the webcam’s sensitivity (I’m also using spca5xx) in order to show outdoor activity. It’s a very good way to check net connection – at least while it is up
Worthless, yet fun!
jason on July 5, 2008 at 4:59 am.
iam new to linux iam trying to install a webcam the green light its pn and i checked in usb part and it picking up its linux compatable can anyone help plz email me jasonbadali@hotmail.com thanks