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Re: Skype Webcam Issues

Posted: 2018/02/10 17:08:53
by desertcat
kt53 wrote:May be, but the update on December 15th was a "stable" release.

2017-12-15: skypeforlinux x86_64 8.13.76.6-1 skype-stable 98 M
Still wondering about the webcam you are using. I started having troubles when the version got to 8.13.x.y. Also kind of curious as to what is lying behind all the recent releases in the unstable tree. Informal research is showing that a lot of people are having troubles with their webcams. I wonder if this what they are trying to fix. Thus if you are having no troubles it becomes informative to know what webcam you are using.

Re: Skype Webcam Issues

Posted: 2018/02/10 17:29:57
by kt53
It is a laptop with built-in webcam; Lenovo ideapad Y700 15ISK.

Re: Skype Webcam Issues

Posted: 2018/02/10 21:14:55
by desertcat
kt53 wrote:It is a laptop with built-in webcam; Lenovo ideapad Y700 15ISK.
Hummm. That probably makes a difference. The people who are having problems have USB webcams like the Logitech C525, C615, etc., etc., etc. Do you happen to have a USB webcam laying around the place?? It would be an interesting experiment to see if you could still connect to Skype with it, or if you would encounter the, "No Camera Detected" ( or whatever the annoying message is) problem. The only way you could connect was to unplug, replug, etc. until you eventually make a connection. Of course you end up doing that all over the second you reboot the computer or unplug the webacam. The funny thing was both skypeforlinux-8.11.76.3-1.x86_64, and skypeforlinux-8.11.0.4-1.x86_64 don't have this problem. Nor does the problem exist with either Cheese or Phonon (Pulse Audio), the problem *seems* to only exist in M$'s Skype... even if it says "SkypeforLinux. I'm now starting to suspect that M$ is trying to "integrate" Linux USB coding, so that Linux will work "seamlessly" with all its products, as lsusb shows the webcam and its ID.

During a laptop rebuild project I was working on a year ago I tried to create a "Skype Name" only to have it fail every time. I contacted Skype, now owned by M$, and learned that M$'s GRAND PLAN is to integrate EVERYTHING -- including Skype -- to run "seamlessly" together. Further I was told that if you already had a Skype Name you could continue to use it, but everyone else would be REQUIRED to have a M$ Account of some sort. Since I use Hotmail, I therefore had the required M$ account; my buddy has a Skype Name so he could still use it, but I was told that the M$ GRAND PLAN at some point in the future, EVERYONE who uses Skype, including those who currently sign in with a Skype Name, will be REQUIRED to have a M$ account in order to use Skype. Is the "No Camera Detected" problem arising from M$ trying to do funny things with Skype and USB implementation? Enquiring Minds Want To Know!!!

Re: Skype Webcam Issues

Posted: 2018/02/11 02:18:33
by kt53
USB webcams like the Logitech C525, C615, etc., ...
I am afraid that I do not have any USB webcams, but if I ever find one, I will give it a try and post the result.

I did a search for the C615 and the description on website of a major online retailer says:

Works with Windows, Mac, Chrome OS and Android. This product is compatible with Mac OS® X 10.5 - 10.6x as a plug and play camera.

So, as you can see it does not mention Linux.

On the same web page, there is this comment:

Struggling to get it to work with Ubuntu 17.10. Still isn't working even with wine and playonlinux helping.

Comparing Apples with Oranges (pun intended), the iOS/FaceTime is a far superior product to M$/Skype.

Re: Skype Webcam Issues

Posted: 2018/02/11 05:15:50
by desertcat
kt53 wrote:
USB webcams like the Logitech C525, C615, etc., ...
I am afraid that I do not have any USB webcams, but if I ever find one, I will give it a try and post the result.

I did a search for the C615 and the description on website of a major online retailer says:

Works with Windows, Mac, Chrome OS and Android. This product is compatible with Mac OS® X 10.5 - 10.6x as a plug and play camera.

So, as you can see it does not mention Linux.

On the same web page, there is this comment:

Struggling to get it to work with Ubuntu 17.10. Still isn't working even with wine and playonlinux helping.

Comparing Apples with Oranges (pun intended), the iOS/FaceTime is a far superior product to M$/Skype.
As with everything Linux there is an "underground list" of webcams that are known to work, and some of shall we say questionable working. This is a good list to consult before you buy a webcam if you are running Linux.

http://www.ideasonboard.org/uvc/

Both the Logitech C525 and the C615 are listed as being known to work. Running both lsusb show both webcams as being correctly ID and running both Cheese and Phonon (Pulse Audio) in Video mode both work. Skype -- at least for the time being -- is the dominate player, a poor very distant second is Google Hangouts. If M$ manages to screw up SkypeforLinux, they may drive devels towards Google.

Please keep in touch if you find a USB webcam and post your results if it works with whatever version of SfL you are running.

Here are some posts I ran across while trying to solve the problem:

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/sky ... 208b3be599

https://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic. ... 7&t=261307

The problem seems to be across the Linux world and not just confined to CentOS, and the problem seems to have started with 8.13.0.2. I suspect that maybe the reason for so many releases in the Skype-Unstable.

Thank you for yours posts.