Ubuntu 14.04 multi touch screen support

Question

Just installed 14.04. It seems to be converting all my screen touch gestures to mouse gestures. And it only supports one point touch. It is supposed to support ten touch points (tested with windows 8.1).

Am I missing something here? Do I have to install some kind of package? Or is it just not supported?

Test - being able to draw here: http://www.paulirish.com/demo/multi

Solution 1

This is not a problem with "multitouch", it is a problem with "touch".

Before the 14.04 update, the touchscreen was interpreted as another mouse. After the update it is not, but unfortunately Chromium is not reporting touch-events. This means that no graphical web app can be used with Ubuntu on a touch screen.

I managed to make it work on my computer by starting Chromium with the command:

chromium-browser --touch-events=enabled

Solution 2

I just got myself a laptop with a touch screen and have been thinking the same thing. I haven't tried it myself yet,but I just found this: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Multitouch

Three fingers seems to be the answer, instead of two for zoom and stuff.

You might be able to use Ginn to setup your own multitouch actions: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Multitouch/Ginn

Solution 3

In Firefox you can do this: https://support.mozilla.org/es/questions/1091627

Enter about:config and set the value of dom.w3c.touch_events.enabled to 1.

Now you can scroll.

Comments

[civilian0746]

That all works. But I still can not draw here: paulirish.com/demo/multi I can draw using my iPad and windows 8.1

[civilian0746]

In wiki.ubuntu.com/Multitouch/Testing/CheckingMTDevice mdiv test works and I can see inputs from all ten fingers. However, that is not translated onto the above test.

[bot]

All the stuff from the link I shared worked for me as well, but not that draw demo (worked on my pad, though). Maybe there isn't that use of multitouch yet.

[civilian0746]

This works! The enable-touch flag of chromium. Shame it does not work with google chrome.

[Lambart]

You say "no graphical web app can be used with Ubuntu on a touch screen," but you don't mention trying any browser but Chromium! Given the workaround, it sounds like it could have just been a Chromium issue?

[Robbie Wxyz]

I'll add that GINN won't work with Unity. Other shells work though.

[Hack-R]

@civilian0746 Chrome is just the evil twin of Chromium

[robocat]

On Ubuntu 18.04 in Chromium I needed to go to chrome://flags and change the Touch Events API to Enabled. Worked for me (using Dell XPS 15 with touchscreen). Unfortunately it looks like multi-touch is not working. Test using output.jsbin.com/pevalur