Vaio VGN-NW120D Webcam

[cradke]

Hi, I'm new here.

My webcam hasn't been getting recognized by my applications, and when I looked under Devices and Printers it showed up as "Unknown Device". I ran a troubleshoot on it and it tells me that it's been stopped because it has reported problems (Code 43 - see attachment).

The thing is, it was working fine on Skype yesterday so I'm doubtful that there's actually anything wrong with the webcam. Is there any way I can override this, or get to the root of the problem?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Craig

 

[Kirsch]

1. Go to this page and download that program, run it. If that doesn't work..
2. Check for updated chip set drivers
3. Check for a BIOS update

 

[cradke]

Thanks for the quick reply, Kirsch.

I tried downloading the MediaPlus Extension and that didn't work. How do I check for updated chip set drivers?

 

[Kirsch]

Before we get into that, can you try this one first?

 

[cradke]

That didn't work either. Thanks, though.

 

[Kirsch]

Did you restart? Also, just for me, please try a different USB port, and then restart.

 

[cradke]

Sorry, I didn't mention that it's a built-in webcam. I've restarted with both installs, but no luck so far.

 

[Kirsch]

Derr... vaio.. my bad..

On this page you will see "BIOS" and "Motherboard". Expand them to see downloads for each one (the Motherboard one is the chipset). Give those a shot.

 

[cradke]

Thanks to you, I can now share my morning bed head with the world.

The BIOS upgrade worked. What exactly does BIOS do? I'd never heard about it until here.

 

[Kirsch]

BIOS Upgrade did the trick? AWESOME!! Glad I could help! Sometimes (from my original post) 3rd time's a charm!!

BIOS

The BIOS of a PC software is built into the PC, and is the first code run by a PC when powered on ('boot firmware'). The primary function of the BIOS is to load and start an operating system

 

[cradke]

Bad news - the BIOS update only fixed it for a few days, and the webcam stopped turning on again.

Can you think of anything else that might be causing this problem? I haven't had time to try fixing it until now, but I'm starting to think it's a hardware issue... I just hope it's something else because I don't know if the webcam is covered by my warrantee and I don't feel like going to all the trouble to get it serviced.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.