System76

My Serval Performance Laptop runs very hot ...

Asked by Angeles

I have two issues with my computer:

1. My built-in camera is not connected. I have tried using Skype and other web-chat/cam programs, but none of them can find the camera. I'm sure there is something that I am supposed to do to tell the camera to connect, but have not yet figured out what. Can you please tell me how to trigger the connection?

2 My computer gets HOT when it runs for more than an hour. I use my computer A LOT because I have to type up papers for school, plus I do plenty of 'net surfing and whatnot. As the computers were listed as LAPtops and not notebooks, I did expect to be able to use it without burning myself.
At first, i would keep a fan running close to me, and put a blanket over my legs and lap to keep warm while the computer stayed cool. However, I tire of carting the fan around wherever I take the computer. I then resolved this problem for about 8 months with a chill pad, but it recently stopped working. I honestly think that perhaps my internal fan is not set properly. Do you have any suggestions?

My computer specs are listed below:

*** I have since upgraded to Feisty Fawn, but am not yet upgraded to Gutsy Gibbon.

Display: 15.4" Widescreen WXGA+ (1440 x 900)
Graphics: nVidia 512 MB GeForce 8600M GT
Audio Output: Realtek ALC 268
Networking: Ethernet (LAN), WiFi
Wireless: 802.11 agn
Expansion: Express Card
Ports: VGA, 4x USB 2.0, MIC-In, Headphone Out, FireWire 1394, S-Video
Camera: Built-In Webcam
Card Reader: 3 in 1 Card Reader
Battery: 9 Cell Lithium Ion
Battery Life: 3 hours
Dimensions: 14.20" x 10.43" x 1.74" (WxDxH)
Weight: 6.4 lbs.

My options:
 *Hardware Warranty : 3 Yr. Ltd. Warranty and Technica
+ $195.00
*Laptop Bag : no bag
$0.00
*Extra AC Adapter : Additional Adapter
+ $65.00
*Extra Battery : Extra 6 Cell Lithium Ion
+ $79.00
*Portable Flash Drive : no flash drive option
$0.00
*Bluetooth : Bluetooth
+ $39.00
*CD/DVD Drive : CD-RW / DVD-RW (Dual Layer)
+ $49.00
*Hard Drive : 100 GB 5400 RPM SATA
+ $79.00
*Memory : 2 GB DDR2 667 MHz (2 x 1 GB)
+ $229.00
*Processor - Intel Core Duo : Core 2 Duo T7400 2.16GHz 4MB 667
+ $469.00
*Operating System : Ubuntu 6.10 (Edgy Eft) Linux
$0.00

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Thomas Aaron (tom-system76) said : 		#1

1. Web Cam.
It looks like you are using one of the older Servals. Maybe a SerP2. (I say this because it came with Edgy on it.) The webcam on this model is not supported.

2. Those older Servals were a little warm to the touch. However, to get a good idea of how hot it actually is. So, when you feel that it is hot, open a terminal and run this command: acpi -t

Best,
Tom

Revision history for this message
john (no2498) said : 		#2

for the webcam get (cheese) the program
open a terminal type (gstreamer-properties) click video try v4l1 or v4l2 if it comes on you have something to work with

this is from cheese

    * 6.1. The video is sluggish/has a slow response. What can I do?
    * 6.2. I have a Mac with iSight and a ATI graphics card, and the colors are weird.
    * 6.3. My webcam works with gstreamer, but does not work with Cheese. What's wrong?
    * 6.4. My webcam works with other programs such as Ekiga, Camorama, but not with Cheese. What's wrong?
    * 6.5. Where does Cheese store my photos and videos?
    * 6.6. My Quickcam Express doesn't work with Cheese...
    * 6.7. "No Camera Found" Error Message
    * 6.8. Which cameras are supported?

6.1. The video is sluggish/has a slow response. What can I do?

      You may have set "ximagesink" (X Window System (No Xv)) as video-output.
      This means that your CPU is doing all the work. Change it to "xvimagesink"
      (X Window System (X11/XShm/Xv)) in order to let your graphics card do the work.

      To change this setting, run the gstreamer-properties
      command, click the Video tab
      and change the appropriate setting.

it may help with the heat some too

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