HOW TO: Install a LinuxWacom Kernel Driver for Tablet PC's

**Favux** · June 5th, 2010

Hi monchiron,

Thanks for testing that and the feedback! I thought that would work.

Edit: Could you update your post to reflect that? I've linked to it from the HOW TO so updating it would be good.

**Rumtscho** · June 6th, 2010

Now I am utterly confused.

With the Git version, i ran into the same xorg-macros trouble as you people. Trying to install them from the tar Favux linked didn't work, make says

Code:

rumtscho@bradbury:~/Downloads/util-macros-1.8.0$ make
make: Nothing to be done for `all'.

I thought that what roberto.tomas has written means that I can disregard the error message, but autogen.sh says again

Code:

configure.ac:44: error: xorg-macros version 1.8 or higher is required but 1.5.0 found

so I guess the macros didn't get installed. Anyway, as far as I can follow you, even if I had succeeded to get these macros, I'd have encountered another problem.

I then got the xf86-input-wacom-0.10.6.tar.bz2 and tried to install it. Here I got

Code:

 rumtscho@bradbury:~/Downloads/xf86-input-wacom-0.10.6$ ./configure --enable-wacom
configure: WARNING: unrecognized options: --enable-wacom

It did create lots of files, but there is no wacom.ko in the current directory or in any of the subdirectories. I tried a make, although I thought that I shouldn't do it on Lucid, but still no wacom.ko. And if I understand correctly, there is no other version I can try, as the old tars won't work on Lucid, or am I wrong here? I had a git version working some weeks ago (thanks, Favux!) but now I had to reinstall the OS and didn't keep the driver source.

Can someone explain me how to get some version to work, even if it isn't the newest? I'd settle for stylus only support for now.

I have the Bamboo CTH-661/S and Lucid 64 bit.

**Favux** · June 6th, 2010

Hi Rumtsco,

I would thing once the xorg-macro.m4 file was made by the compile you need to copy it to the directory I pointed out. If it wasn't in the directory that would be why you got the error message. Unless roberto.tomas has something different to say.

But to:

Can someone explain me how to get some version to work, even if it isn't the newest? I'd settle for stylus only support for now.

all you need is the wacom.ko not the xf86-input-wacom wacom_drv.so.

So either follow the HOW TO's Section 1 or use the commands I abstracted here: http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php...postcount=1077

**Rumtscho** · June 7th, 2010

As aways, your answer helped - thank you Favux. I installed 0.8.6-2 according to the howto and it works. So I guess I won't bother with the macros and the X server driver until it gets part of a stable version.

Now comes the actual noob question. All info I found on the linuxwacom driver assumes that the person installing knows the answer, so I may be able to get everything done on my own next time if I knew it too. I am sorry for bothering you people here if it has been answered somewhere else, I just couldn't find it.

What is a kernel driver, what is a X server driver, what is the difference between the two, and how do I know which one I need for a given situation?

**Favux** · June 7th, 2010

Not a noob, but a good question. Paraphrasing the explanation in Section 1 of the HOW TO:

The usb driver (wacom.ko) inside the kernel translates the raw usb data into system data and sends that to Xinput/Xserver where Xorg's (XFree86's) Wacom X driver (xf86-input-wacom), the wacom_drv.so takes control.

So for a usb device/tablet you need both. If you had a serial device you would only need the xf86-input-wacom driver. The Xserver is Xorg's gui, or graphical windowing software that gives you the Desktop instead of just the command line. In other words the X windowing system. And if I have the history right, Xorg used to be XFree86, and they renamed themselves to Xorg about 5 years ago. And that's why everything to do with the windowing system has an X associated with it.

Also be aware, to quote this time:

Remember if you update to a newer kernel and have a usb tablet it will seem to "break". This is because the wacom.ko usb kernel driver/module you compiled won't be in the directory for kernel modules the new kernel creates. Either copy your compiled wacom.ko into the new directory (see 6) below) or if that doesn't work recompile.

**telecoda** · June 9th, 2010

Thanks monchiron, you legend,

it worked for me.

Had a few late nights trying to get this to work

Now I can get on with colouring my cartoons in Inkscape.

**Favux** · June 12th, 2010

Hi,

Like I discussed with Rumtscho, it looks like Xorg's util-macros-1.8.0 puts the xorg-macros.m4 in the wrong place unless you use the appropriate flag.

Backup the Lucid default 1.5 version:

Code:

sudo cp /usr/share/aclocal/xorg-macros.m4 /usr/share/aclocal/xorg-macros.m4.bak

For the configure line add the usr flag, that should put xorg-macros.m4 in the right directory:

Code:

./configure --prefix=/usr

See Appendix 5 in the HOW TO.

**MarkoCro** · June 20th, 2010

I have Bamboo1 and Lucid Lynx 32-bit. This is how i upgraded my wacom driver:

Code:

wget http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/linuxwacom/linuxwacom-0.8.8-3.tar.bz2
wget http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/linuxwacom/xf86-input-wacom-0.10.7.tar.bz2
sudo apt-get install build-essential libx11-dev libxi-dev x11proto-input-dev xserver-xorg-dev tk8.4-dev tcl8.4-dev libncurses5-dev libxrandr-dev
tar xjvf linuxwacom-0.8.8-3.tar.bz2
cd linuxwacom-0.8.8-3
./configure --enable-wacom --prefix=/usr
cd src/2.6.30
make
sudo cp wacom.ko /lib/modules/`uname -r`/kernel/drivers/input/tablet/wacom.ko
sudo depmod -a
sudo apt-get install build-essential libx11-dev libxi-dev x11proto-input-dev xserver-xorg-dev libncurses5-dev xutils-dev autoconf libtool pkg-config
tar xjvf xf86-input-wacom-0.10.7.tar.bz2
cd xf86-input-wacom*
./configure --prefix=/usr
make
sudo make install

After this i rebooted of-course. Works great.

**Favux** · June 20th, 2010

Hi MarkoCro,

Nice work. You didn't tripped up on the 1.8 macro when compiling the xf86-input-wacom 0.10.7 tar?

**majedaly** · June 22nd, 2010

Hello,
I have been struggling trying to make the stylus work on Fujitsu t4010 tablet, I followed all the instructions on the first page of this thread. Tried installing many versions of the linuxwacom . I am running 9.10
Checking the xorg.0.log , the error is all the time
Wacom xf86WcmWrite ISDV4_STOP error : Input/output error
(EE) Couldn't init device "touch"
(II) UnloadModule: "wacom"

Tried installing setserial, and played with the serial configuration, didn't work
Please find attached the X11.conf and the Xorg.0.log
Appreciate your support