GNOME Bugzilla – Bug 446050
Firewire camera not found with ekiga 1394avc plugin
Last modified: 2008-09-14 18:15:41 UTC
Please describe the problem: This was reported on Launchpad : https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/pwlib/+bug/50923 by : https://bugs.launchpad.net/~launchpad-bsb sing ekiga (2.0.1-0ubuntu6) and libpt-plugins-avc (1.10.0-1ubuntu1) my camcorder is not detected. The correct modules get loaded (dv1394 and raw1394) and the camera works with the dv interface in Kino so the connection and camera setup are fine. A very similar configuration with the same hardware works in another distribution. The only difference I can see is that it uses version 1.10.1 of the "pwlib" plugins. I'm not sure if this is an Ekiga issue or a pwlib issue, sorry if I did not forwarded it in the right place. Steps to reproduce: Plugin the camera and launch Ekiga. Actual results: The camera shows images in Kino (on /dev/dv1394/0) but Ekiga can't see it. Expected results: I wish I could use the camera with Ekiga Does this happen every time? Yes Other information: There are some workarounds in the Launchpad report.
Does it work with 2.0.9 and the corresponding pwlib version ?
[quote] Jérôme, This sounds like a "just in case it works" suggestion. Unless ekiga and the plugins have been rewritten to work in an entirely new way (unlikely for a minor bump in the version number) I can't see how anything could have changed. Anyway, always willing to do as I am told, I tried. Of course the latest versions simple try to open /dev/raw1394 just like before and fail. Also like before, chmod o+rw /dev/raw1394 makes it all work. If there is a bug at all, it is in whatever subsystem sets up permissions and ownership in /dev and/or the subsystem that decides what group a user should belong to. I can't see how ekiga or its plugins can get round that issue. There may be a problem in ekiga in that a diagnostic or hint that granting access to /dev/raw1394 might be required would help ordinary users. /[quote]
So, does it work when changing the permissions or not? If so, I would like to close as NOTABUG. The FAQ can be updated with hints, but it is not Ekiga's job to fix permissions :)
Yes it works if permissions are changed. Of course it's not Ekiga's job, but for example Kino works out of the box without doing any permission change. Concerning permissions where should I report this ?
I have no idea why ekiga didn't have the right permissions while kino had them. I'm not sure the distribution will want to open /dev/raw1394 too much : after all that could be a *disk* and not just a *cam*... Perhaps there's something to do there... Can you check why kino doesn't need the permissions?
In Launchpad comment I found : "For me, on Feisty, Ekiga looks to /dev/raw1394 for Firewire cameras, not /dev/dv1394/0 as Kino does. I had to change the permissions on /dev/raw1394 (chmod o+rw /dev/raw1394) for my camera to be detected." Maybe it explains the permission problem.
Sigh... I'll try to have a look, since obviously there's a problem. Notice that a working gstreamer plugin would help.
We indeed use a different device. But for me, if permissions are not right on that different device, that is a problem of the distribution...