The Philips webcam driver returns [LWN.net]

The removal of the Philips webcam driver from the kernel set off a long and sometimes inflammatory discussion. Its return has, instead, been greeted with almost total silence. Once people take a look, however, they might see something worth yelling about.

The new maintainer is Luc Saillard. He has posted a patch which restores the PWC driver to the kernel, but without the problematic hook for the proprietary compression module. As an added bonus, the driver can deal with compressed streams from some cameras (those using chipsets 2 or 3), in some modes. Work still needs to be done for chipset 1 and the Bayer mode.

The final result is yet to be seen, but it would appear that the whole PWC episode is heading toward a best-case conclusion: a 100% free driver. It would be hard to see that outcome as anything but a good thing.

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Is there an easy way of identifying which chipset you have?

Posted Sep 15, 2004 23:04 UTC (Wed) by rankincj (subscriber, #4865) [Link]

The only PWC-type camera I have access to is operated by a Linux 2.4 kernel, and is USB.

Is there an easy way of identifying which chipset you have?

Posted Sep 16, 2004 14:32 UTC (Thu) by luc (guest, #4358) [Link]

A patch for the 2.4.28-pre3 is available (WITHOUT testing, just build
fine). I don't use 2.4 kernel anymore, but i accept patch or bug
report :-)
For the chipset, only type 645 or 646 isn't supported (i do not have this
webcam).
type 645: Philips PCA645VC or Askey VC010 webcam
type 646: Philips PCA646VC

The Philips webcam driver returns

Posted Sep 16, 2004 7:08 UTC (Thu) by climent (subscriber, #7232) [Link]

Which kernel it returns to? The Kernel status above clearly states it has been removed...

The Philips webcam driver returns

Posted Sep 16, 2004 10:25 UTC (Thu) by hppnq (guest, #14462) [Link]

The patch has only been posted, so the official status is that the old driver has been removed and a new version is proposed for inclusion (as soon as possible, I think, maybe 2.6.9 or 2.6.10).

The Philips webcam driver returns

Posted Sep 16, 2004 20:48 UTC (Thu) by daugustus (guest, #8027) [Link]

I, for one, am very glad. My Logitech 4000 works with the *removed* drivers- I just haven't updated my kernel yet. Anyone know if it is supported *again* ?

Dave