Page 1 of 1
W500 FingerPrint scanner support in Linux/Ubuntu
Posted: Sat Sep 20, 2008 10:42 am
by wtam
Have anyone gotton the finger printer scanner to work in Linux? I am running ubuntu 2.6.27.3 64 bit kernel. I tried both fprint
http://reactivated.net/fprint/wiki/Main_Page and ThinkFinger
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/ThinkFinger but neither can find the device. Thanks.
mod edit: moved to linux forum where you'll probably have better luck finding help.
Posted: Thu Sep 25, 2008 11:03 pm
by Bashar
off topic, hows everything else working on W500 ?
i'm buying one in few days, i was a bit unhappy how its a bit complicated to get everything working on my X300 and ubuntu , yet i don't have the microphone working neither the built-in or using the jack

Posted: Fri Sep 26, 2008 9:37 am
by wtam
Bashar wrote:off topic, hows everything else working on W500 ?
i'm buying one in few days, i was a bit unhappy how its a bit complicated to get everything working on my X300 and ubuntu , yet i don't have the microphone working neither the built-in or using the jack

You need 2.6.27 kernel to get wifi to work. However, 2.6.27 is in alpha which has a serious bug (
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+sour ... bug/263555) so basically, the ethernet is currently disabled in 2.6.27.4 kernel. The switchable graphics is not supported. I had to disable it in BIOS. DisplayPort connecting to an external monitor does not work (works in Vista). Everything else (including bluetooth mouse) works well.
Posted: Fri Sep 26, 2008 1:04 pm
by Bashar
thats weird, displayport works well with my T42P and my X300 with ubuntu just hitting Fn+F7 and it works
are you sure it doesn't with W500 ?
Posted: Sat Sep 27, 2008 9:47 pm
by wtam
Bashar wrote:thats weird, displayport works well with my T42P and my X300 with ubuntu just hitting Fn+F7 and it works
are you sure it doesn't with W500 ?
I tried several times but eventually gave up. (The VGA port works fine.) The Ubuntu boot screen did show fine on the external monitor via DisplayPort but it wasn't able to start X server. The screen got garbled and turned black. My monitor then went to power saving mode.
Posted: Sun Sep 28, 2008 4:19 am
by Bashar
what is the difference between VGA port and DisplayPort ? maybe i'm confused with the naming of the ports
Thanks
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2008 11:11 am
by ZPrime
Displayport is a new thing on the left side of the T500/W500 where the modem jack used to be. It looks kind of like HDMI but is different.
I'm not sure where wtam even found a DisplayPort device as they are still very rare. AFAIK even dongles to convert DisplayPort to DVI or VGA aren't out yet....
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2008 12:23 pm
by Bashar
Hello ZPrime,
Thank you

btw i noticed in your signature that you changed the keyboard to T60P? is the W500 keyboard that bad (its the flux right?) ? or its like the X300 one if you experienced it ?
i didn't notice MUCH difference between the T42P and the X300 except maybe being new heh
Thanks
Posted: Mon Oct 06, 2008 12:57 pm
by wtam
ZPrime wrote:Displayport is a new thing on the left side of the T500/W500 where the modem jack used to be. It looks kind of like HDMI but is different.
I'm not sure where wtam even found a DisplayPort device as they are still very rare. AFAIK even dongles to convert DisplayPort to DVI or VGA aren't out yet....
I brought a Dell LCD 24'' monitor a few months ago. It's pretty high end. It has a DisplayPort on the back and it even comes with a cable.
Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 4:57 am
by Bashar
wtam wrote:Bashar wrote:off topic, hows everything else working on W500 ?
i'm buying one in few days, i was a bit unhappy how its a bit complicated to get everything working on my X300 and ubuntu , yet i don't have the microphone working neither the built-in or using the jack

You need 2.6.27 kernel to get wifi to work. However, 2.6.27 is in alpha which has a serious bug (
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+sour ... bug/263555) so basically, the ethernet is currently disabled in 2.6.27.4 kernel. The switchable graphics is not supported. I had to disable it in BIOS. DisplayPort connecting to an external monitor does not work (works in Vista). Everything else (including bluetooth mouse) works well.
i booted ubuntu live CD and it said running into low-resolution, are you sure ubuntu 8.04 worked out of the box for your ATI card?
Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 9:09 pm
by lightweight
What kind of fingerprint reader does the W500 use? My laptops' fingerprint readers are identified as Thomson Microelectronics and are detected as USB devices (supported by thinkfinger).
If nothing returns, post the output of lsusb and see if you can get any information about the specific hardware used on your machine. It may be easiest to just look at the thing -- Thinkpads are fun to take apart and the HMM is great

Posted: Sat Oct 25, 2008 1:22 pm
by wtam
lightweight wrote:What kind of fingerprint reader does the W500 use? My laptops' fingerprint readers are identified as Thomson Microelectronics and are detected as USB devices (supported by thinkfinger).
If nothing returns, post the output of lsusb and see if you can get any information about the specific hardware used on your machine. It may be easiest to just look at the thing -- Thinkpads are fun to take apart and the HMM is great

Bus 002 Device 004: ID 08ff:2810 AuthenTec, Inc.
Device Descriptor:
bLength 18
bDescriptorType 1
bcdUSB 2.00
bDeviceClass 255 Vendor Specific Class
bDeviceSubClass 255 Vendor Specific Subclass
bDeviceProtocol 255 Vendor Specific Protocol
bMaxPacketSize0 8
idVendor 0x08ff AuthenTec, Inc.
idProduct 0x2810
bcdDevice 17.03
iManufacturer 0
iProduct 1
iSerial 0
bNumConfigurations 1
Configuration Descriptor:
bLength 9
bDescriptorType 2
wTotalLength 32
bNumInterfaces 1
bConfigurationValue 1
iConfiguration 0
bmAttributes 0xa0
(Bus Powered)
Remote Wakeup
MaxPower 100mA
Interface Descriptor:
bLength 9
bDescriptorType 4
bInterfaceNumber 0
bAlternateSetting 0
bNumEndpoints 2
bInterfaceClass 255 Vendor Specific Class
bInterfaceSubClass 255 Vendor Specific Subclass
bInterfaceProtocol 255 Vendor Specific Protocol
iInterface 0
Endpoint Descriptor:
bLength 7
bDescriptorType 5
bEndpointAddress 0x81 EP 1 IN
bmAttributes 2
Transfer Type Bulk
Synch Type None
Usage Type Data
wMaxPacketSize 0x0040 1x 64 bytes
bInterval 0
Endpoint Descriptor:
bLength 7
bDescriptorType 5
bEndpointAddress 0x02 EP 2 OUT
bmAttributes 2
Transfer Type Bulk
Synch Type None
Usage Type Data
wMaxPacketSize 0x0008 1x 8 bytes
bInterval 0
Thanks.
Posted: Sun Dec 07, 2008 11:22 am
by Bashar
Hello guys,
i recently bought thinkvision L220x and has DVI port and i was wondering if i buy this converter
http://www.startech.com/item/DP2DVI-Dis ... apter.aspx it won't work on ubuntu too ?
Posted: Sun Dec 07, 2008 11:23 am
by Bashar
also i was trying to configure the fingerprint header seems lsusb isn't showing it, any workaround solution ?
Best Regards