Webcam for zoom meeting

[wiseant]

Hi

I have never used Zoom meetings before but I am interested in taking some Spanish lessons whereby I need the Zoom software and a webcam.

I am on Linux - I have downloaded the appropriate software but I have not installed it as yet.

Right now I am looking at Logitech HD Wbcam C310, it is only $36.64 CAN

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B003PAIV2Q?

Do you think this would be suitable - it would be a one-one student-teacher arrangement?

Any recommendations for a different webcam under $100 CAN

TIA

[TreeTops]

If you have a lap top with a camera try that. That's all I have been using for two years and it works OK. NO need to spend any money. That's what most of the millions that have had to do Zoom for work during Covid used.

[rrats]

What Linux distro. Ones like Ubuntu have webcams already working

[wiseant]

@TreeTops
Thanks for the reply. I had an old lap top that I gave to a friend to use - I had tried the camera and it wasn't very good
I just purchased this Logitech C310 online - figured $40 was worth it

@s-mp
I am using Puppy Linux based on Ubuntu 18.04 - I noticed that Logitech HD Wbcam C310 only has Windows drivers - but since there is a Zoom app for Linux [Ubuntu] - I figure it should work

[Ai Haibara]

You'd be better off asking this on the Puppy forum... they'll also likely be able to point you to a Zoom build geared more toward your specific version of Puppy.

I can't remember if that's the webcam I bought, but from what I was told, you need to have PulseAudio installed to use the microphone. Puppy users try to steer you away from installing or using PulseAudio.

[wiseant]

@Ai Haibara

Thanks for the heads up.

I have bionicpup64

According to a quick search:

https://forum.puppylinux.com/viewtopic.php?t=81

Internet video Conferencing.

Not known to work in 32bit Pups. Below are for 64bit Pups.

64bit .pet: https://archive.org/download/Puppy_Linux_Forum_Pets/zoom-1_amd64.pet

sfs: https://archive.org/download/Puppy_Linux_Forum_Pets/zoom-5.1.418436.0628-x86_64-1.sfs

also:

"Up-to-date .debs - these will work in Xenialpup64, Bionicpup64 and Busterpup64 for definite - can be obtained from the Zoom website downloads page:"

I'll see what happens when I receive my Logitech webcam

[TreeTops]

"I'll see what happens when I receive my Logitech webcam"

Please let us know if that Logitech webcam works with your version of Linux.

[Ai Haibara]

It should. I have the Logitech C270 (the OP is getting the C310), and it works out-of-the-box with Puppy, with the exception of the microphone. (As I mentioned earlier, someone told me that the microphone requires PulseAudio to be installed, to work, and Puppy tends NOT to have PulseAudio installed by default. I don't know if there's any workarounds.)

Of course, the camera works fine on my Win10 tower.

[TreeTops]

Too bad about the microphone as I use Puppy Linux also.

[Ai Haibara]

I'm wondering if it'll work with apulse. I really don't want to have to install PulseAudio just for this one thing, when everything else is working without it.

Then again, there's always the possibility that the person who told me about the PulseAudio requirement was either mistaken or didn't know about any other alternatives or workarounds, and that's why I suggested taking this to the Puppy forums.

[wiseant]

Nice to see other people using Puppy Linux.

I'll let you know what happens when I get the Logitech webcam

[wiseant]

I was able to get a cheap microphone working in Puppy Linux - the trick seems to be checking the capture box in Retrovol

It did not work when I just had Mic checked


[Attachment 66359 - Click to enlarge]

I then ran this command in terminal

arecord -f cd -d 10 --device="hw:0,0" test-mic.wav

after confirming that my sound card was device hw:0,0

and I was able to play the wav file in DeaDBeeF

[Ai Haibara]

I don't have that in retrovol, with either the C270 plugged in (USB) or an old microphone plugged into the microphone jack on the front panel of my tower. The only thing that I currently have in retrovol is the one (!) PCM slider for my external USB speakers.

[wiseant]

@Ai Haibara

Did you right click on the tray volume icon and select Mixer? or try Menu/Setup/ALSA Sound Wizard/Adjust levels


[Attachment 66360 - Click to enlarge]

[Ai Haibara]

Yes. I'm using an external USB speaker - external USB speakers, in my experience, tend to act like their own extremely limited stand-alone sound card (which is why I only had the PCM slider in the mixer in retrovol). I'd have all of the options with the internal sound card, but nothing's currently using it and I don't have speakers connected to it at the moment, so...

[Ai Haibara]

Okay, I've pulled out the USB speakers and switched back to the onboard sound card (sheesh, I need to get an amp hooked up to this...) for testing.

The system doesn't seem to recognize my old microphone AT ALL. I'll admit I didn't try plugging it into the tower's rear microphone jack, but I did try every possible microphone input while recording in Audacity. Nothing.
...however, with the C270 plugged in, I can select the webcam's microphone and record from that!

What I've been using to test the webcam overall, is Discord. Discord detects and uses the camera/video just fine, but it still doesn't detect any microphones as being connected - either the webcam's built-in microphone, or anything plugged into the front mic jack.

[wiseant]

@Ai Haibara
So the C270 webcam's microphone works in Audacity and the camera does work in Discord but not the microphone?

Maybe this will help

https://www.troubleshootingcentral.com/how-to-fix-the-discord-not-detecting-mic-error/

https://themictest.com/discord-mic-not-working/

[Ai Haibara]

I've already tried all the Discord troubleshooting suggestions out there (including the ones listed in Discord itself). It's that Discord doesn't seem to want to admit there's ever any microphones plugged in.

If I can convince myself to get around to it, I'll install Skype and see if it likewise has problems detecting the microphone.

[wiseant]

I finally got my Logitech webcam.

The webcam microphone works in Audacity

The webcam video and audio capture work in guvcview

I installed Zoom from Puppy Package Manger - Zoom showed up in the Network menu and created an icon

I signed up at zoom.us but was unable to sign in from the desktop Zoom icon menu

I tried Zoom in Firefox - the video worked but the microphone did not [the old mic plugged into the onboard sound card did work]

Then I uninstalled the Puppy version of Zoom and installed the latest Zoom for Ubuntu

Tried Zoom again in Firefox - the video worked but the microphone did not [the old mic plugged into the onboard sound card did work]

Then I tried the latest Opera browser - and both the video and the webcam microphone worked!

Then I uninstalled the Zoom app and deleted all Zoom entries [The Desktop client did not work in PuppyLinux]

To test Zoom in Opera, after signing in - I went to https://zoom.us/test

This loads a Join Meeting page - I clicked on Join - I had to select "Join from Your Browser"


[Attachment 66388 - Click to enlarge]

then I clicked on Settings [on the bottom of the page]


[Attachment 66387 - Click to enlarge]

It also works the same way in Chrome as it does in Opera