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Re: video capture under linux

>>Date: Tue, 04 May 1999 00:20:21 -0500
>>From: Ashley Clark <>
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>>I am thinking of installing a camera on my computer and I need to know a few 
>>things.

I am presuming this is for a wearable computer.  There are a few sites on the
more generic camera-on-linux issue.

>>
>>1. What cameras work with linux (I know the Quickcam BW does, but what else?)

Its not just a question of camera's,  it is a question  of capture devices.
The BW quickcam uses the Parallel  port, so it does not need any special
devices.  There performance is pretty poor but if they are sufficient depends
on what you want to do with them.

The bt848 based cards (see below) are good devices for capture.
If you don't have  a wearable CPU yet, then the netwinder might be a good
choice for you (it includes a video capture device) 

There are also specialized cards like the Adjeco card that are both a capture
and DSP device.  Good if you know what you want to do to the picture.  

>>2. Where can I find the Quickcam's that work with Linux, I've heard that some 
>>of the newer ones don't work at all with Linux...

can't say, I found them unusable for my work.  If you are set on it, I could
sell my old one (ugrad students currently use it for projects).

>>3. What about video capture using the video4linux subsystem? (Like SGIs do?)

While its a poor video capture standard (and even more poorly documented) it
works okay for bt848 based cards as well as a few other cards.  Of the
supported cards, however, only bt848 cards comes in a wearable size, i.e. in
pc104+ format.  Both imagenation and sensoray make pc104+ bt848 based cards
but I've had lots of problems with the sensoray cards.

Be careful when going this route as many of the pc104+ mainboards are not
compatable with DMA oriented frame-capturing devices like the bt848.
(E.g. the parvus screaming 104 and the advanced digital logic msmp5-smart
both lock up the bus when used with bus-mastering devices.  The manufacturers
have not been helpful in resolving the problems)

Terry Boult --- Vision and Software Technology Lab, EECS Dept. Lehigh Univ.
		         http://www.eecs.lehigh.edu/~tboult

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