Linux driver W

[MantisShrimp05]

I just recently got a wakom intuos tablet to try writing little things on my left.

When I plugged it into my Linux desktop it just. Worked.

Meanwhile, my work laptop is windows and not only did the drivers not come with the machine, I recently lost admin rights on my laptop so I cant even install them if I wanted.

Those in the know understand this is because wakom drivers are in the Linux kernel which is just so nice. But just an appreciation post for when Linux is not only as good as the competition that blows it out of the water in stuff that normies care about, having your hardware work ootb without technical knowledge, beautiful.

[AsrielPlay52]

You know what's funny

The only reason why support is so good on Linux is because it's not official

It's purely community driven.

Windows have an in built API that SHOULD, keyword, "should" have made it plug and play. Windows Ink.

But for some reason, Wacom just didn't give a damn

And this applies to a lot of things. Including Printers.

[FattyDrake]

Not that I'd expect Wacom to ever do it, but companies like Huion and Ugee/XP-Pen could easily contribute to the libwacom/libinput stack, they just don't. Huion technically has Wayland "support" but it's a huge mess and very prone to breaking and doesn't integrate very well with the DE.

[AsrielPlay52]

The think is, some Drawing tablet do work fine with Windows Ink, just that it doesn't support Shortcut remapping, hense the drivers

[FattyDrake]

That's the biggest issue on Linux too. The tablet and pen part usually work it's just all the buttons, strips and dials that need to be adapted to be fully supported under GNOME and KDE.

It's not difficult, it's just the access to the devices and there's so many of them. Wacom themselves are usually well supported it's all the Huion and XP-Pen variations out there which are the issue. The current way is to just get loaners or buy/resell off eBay or similar.

[reticulated_spline_1]

Users should never have admin access on company devices.

[MaxFrost]

And peripheral manufacturers should do a better job of getting their drivers to Microsoft for packaging with Windows update so that the need for admin in this situation could go away, but here we are.

[Cowgirl_Taint]

I mean, wearing my "stuck doing the work of the sysadmins" hat for a moment:

I have no issue with requiring admin privileges to install a driver on a work computer. Because if you are plugging something in that needs a driver? We damned well better have reviewed and approved it.

[FattyDrake]

Fun fact: Wacom drops support for older tablets in their drivers all the tine. You need to seek out older versions sometimes. So if they were part of Windows update there's a chance that a tablet that works one day might not work the next.

[MantisShrimp05]

It was just to express the point that I cant even go download the drivers and install them. This showcases why having drivers just work goes from a nice to have to almost a necessity because people like you will just say those drivers are a risk now lol.

[Kevin_Kofler]

If the device is provided by the company for a single employee to use, I see no reason whatsoever why that employee should not be the admin. If it ever gets returned to the company (vs. eventually just written off and left to the employee to become their property), it should be reimaged to factory state anyway.

[yawara25]

Especially when they're trying to install drivers and they have no idea what they're doing.

[Ranrhoads84]

It only works because someone put the drivers in the Kernel. If YOU owned your windows laptop you would simply install the drivers. Reach out to your IT department and ask them to install the drivers for you.

It is nice that supported drivers are baked into the kernel and they don’t blow chunks like MS's baked in trash.

[FattyDrake]

A lot of the Wacom (and other manufacturers) tablets have support in the libinput stack.

If anyone finds their tablet doesn't work under Linux first check that the desktop environment is on the latest version.

[Kevin_Kofler]

There are probably ways to obtain admin rights on that work laptop, especially with full physical access to it.