Format Error

I recently bought a Mac G4 powerbook and use it as well as my PC at home. On the weeknend I bought a Datafab Memory stick reader and have had a bit of a problem with it. First of all it downloads my pictures to both mac and pc without problem, however, when I put the stick back in my camera after downloading to one of the computers I get a 'Format Error'. Formatting the stick clears this up but it means I can't download the pics to the other computer, whichever one it may be, because they're now deleted.

Does anyone know why this may occur? Is it because of the reader, or does the mac or pc leave something on the stick that needs erasing before it can be read on the other format?

I really would like to fix this as I like to load my pictures on both computers depending on what I do with them.

Thanks

Often some of the postprocessing photo software writes a file out.

I would suggest that you use internet explorer to DL the pc first and then see what happens with the Mac. (I don't know that much about Macs....but try to DL using the OS rather than any photo program.
That;s the only thing I can think of.

Homer

Stoodman said:

I recently bought a Mac G4 powerbook and use it as well as my PC at
home. On the weeknend I bought a Datafab Memory stick reader and
have had a bit of a problem with it. First of all it downloads my
pictures to both mac and pc without problem, however, when I put
the stick back in my camera after downloading to one of the
computers I get a 'Format Error'. Formatting the stick clears this
up but it means I can't download the pics to the other computer,
whichever one it may be, because they're now deleted.

Does anyone know why this may occur? Is it because of the reader,
or does the mac or pc leave something on the stick that needs
erasing before it can be read on the other format?

I really would like to fix this as I like to load my pictures on
both computers depending on what I do with them.

Thanks

Click to expand...

Homer said:

Homer40784 said:

both computers depending on what I do with them.

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

I only download through the OS, so I'm afraid there's no problem there. I'm thinking it might be more to do with the reader, just my guess though.

Member said:

I only download through the OS, so I'm afraid there's no problem
there. I'm thinking it might be more to do with the reader, just
my guess though.

Click to expand...

congrats with the titapobo, awesome machine
my next toy to be )))

i think your guess is right, seems the most logical explanation
and if i were you i wouldn't use the reader anymore

if there is indeed something wrong with the reader then
in the future it may destroy data on the stick before
you get the chance to up them to the computer

i'd use the supplied USB cable instead for the time being
(if the pobo came with 9.1 you don't need to install anything
it's plug and play, no need to install a driver
if you're running 9.04 you do, or did they supply X?)

and i'd take the gorgeous titapobo
out on street, to the store -shine on!-
and try another reader unit there
(if not ordered online)

one more thing to test before doing so is
try another memory stick, maybe it's the stick

winogran said:

congrats with the titapobo, awesome machine
my next toy to be )))

Click to expand...

Thanks, I certainly like it.

winogran said:

i'd use the supplied USB cable instead for the time being
(if the pobo came with 9.1 you don't need to install anything
it's plug and play, no need to install a driver
if you're running 9.04 you do, or did they supply X?)

Click to expand...

There's no worries there I used the cable to download before I picked up the reader. I'm running 9.1 and X, and they pick up my camera like a charm.

winogran said:

and i'd take the gorgeous titapobo
out on street, to the store -shine on!-
and try another reader unit there
(if not ordered online)

Click to expand...

I was actually going to go with the PCMCIA card apapter but they didn't have any in stock and on the spur of the moment I decided to go with the reader as I could use it with my pc also.... I think I made the wrong decision?

winogran said:

one more thing to test before doing so is
try another memory stick, maybe it's the stick

Click to expand...

Same thing with other sticks unfortunately.

Member said:

I was actually going to go with the PCMCIA card apapter but they
didn't have any in stock and on the spur of the moment I decided to
go with the reader as I could use it with my pc also.... I think I
made the wrong decision?

Click to expand...

no of course not
never read about a reader-problem before
so i guess you juzzz have a bad unit

By any chance, are you moving the pictures off the memory stick, as opposed to copying ? A move causes the computer to write to the memory stick, as a move is actually a copy/delete operation. You want to avoid letting the computer write to the stick.

Use your file manager (or whatever it's called in the Mac world) to copy the pictures from the reader to your hard drive. When you want to empty the memory stick, let your camera do it.

JS said:

By any chance, are you moving the pictures off the memory stick,
as opposed to copying ? A move causes the computer to write to
the memory stick, as a move is actually a copy/delete operation.
You want to avoid letting the computer write to the stick.
Use your file manager (or whatever it's called in the Mac world) to
copy the pictures from the reader to your hard drive. When you
want to empty the memory stick, let your camera do it.

Click to expand...

good thought JS but
none of these issues concern the macOS ;-D
mac-filemanagement works a tad differently

the only thing you can do wrong on mac with a cybershot attached
is unjack the USB cable when the MS-volume is mounted
even then it juzzz gives an alert, saying it's not smart to do so
you click that away, done, no reboot, nothing, you proceed

JS said:

By any chance, are you moving the pictures off the memory stick,
as opposed to copying ? A move causes the computer to write to
the memory stick, as a move is actually a copy/delete operation.
You want to avoid letting the computer write to the stick.

Use your file manager (or whatever it's called in the Mac world) to
copy the pictures from the reader to your hard drive. When you
want to empty the memory stick, let your camera do it.

Click to expand...

I always copy and paste, never move the pictures from the stick to the destination folder. And I always delete the files using the camera, that's why I think it may be a problem specific to the reader.

OK, I did some tests, scientifically this time (not my forte) and have come up with the following:

The 'Format Error' only occurs after the stick has been downloaded to my Mac and then downloaded to my PC. I don't understand what this means. If the Mac is putting something on the stick that the PC can't read why doesn't the error occur on the PC, not when it gets back to the camera?

I noticed another thing since using the Mac which might provide the answer, every time I download on PC now there is an extra folder that's been created on the stick called "Volume Settings" that comes up at the same point as the "Dcim" Folder. Can I get rid of this folder? And does anyone know it's purpose? Thirdly, if this is the information that causes the "'Format Error' why does it not occur after downloading to Mac only?

Test Results:

the first one means I used the reader to download to PC then moved it to the Mac and then put the stick back in the camera.

1. PC > MAC > CAMERA = OK
2. MAC > PC > CAMERA = FORMAT ERROR
3. PC > CAMERA = OK
4. MAC > CAMERA = OK
5. MAC > CAMERA (MORE PICS) > PC > CAMERA = FORMAT ERROR
6. PC > CAMERA (MORE PICS) > MAC > CAMERA = OK

Sorry, just wanted to draw attention to my new findings.

Member said:

The 'Format Error' only occurs after the stick has been downloaded
to my Mac and then downloaded to my PC. I don't understand what
this means. If the Mac is putting something on the stick that the
PC can't read why doesn't the error occur on the PC, not when it
gets back to the camera?

Click to expand...

reason why macOS is so easy is that it works with a lot of invisible files as soon as you mount a MS on the mac it places several of them on it, like desktop DF, desktop DB, volume settings and depending on what you are doing, more.. beside this a mac-file consist of a datafork and a resource fork, a PC-file is datafork only, mac's resource forks are initially invisible but become visible when you mount a mac volume on a PC, like all the other invisible files

Member said:

I noticed another thing since using the Mac which might provide the
answer, every time I download on PC now there is an extra folder
that's been created on the stick called "Volume Settings" that
comes up at the same point as the "Dcim" Folder. Can I get rid of
this folder?

Click to expand...

yes you can trash any invisble macfile you like, on the MS that is, even desktop DB and DF you can trash, this will result in rebuilding the desktop on the MS

Member said:

And does anyone know it's purpose?

Click to expand...

macintosh operating system

Member said:

Thirdly, if this
is the information that causes the "'Format Error' why does it not
occur after downloading to Mac only?

Click to expand...

viewing your test results here's my guess:

PC can handle mac's invisble files
sony firmware can hande mac's invisble files

as soon as a MS is mounted on a mac, invisible files are placed on it

but mounted on a PC they are always made visible, this alters those mac generated files

sony firmware can't handle macfiles that were made visible on a PC

i don't think i added much more insight on top of your lilttle investigation and i think you can draw the conclusion yourself..

dump your PC!!!

Member said:

Test Results:

the first one means I used the reader to download to PC then moved
it to the Mac and then put the stick back in the camera.

1. PC > MAC > CAMERA = OK
2. MAC > PC > CAMERA = FORMAT ERROR
3. PC > CAMERA = OK
4. MAC > CAMERA = OK
5. MAC > CAMERA (MORE PICS) > PC > CAMERA = FORMAT ERROR
6. PC > CAMERA (MORE PICS) > MAC > CAMERA = OK

Click to expand...

no kidding -ALAS-

juzzzzz try not to do things that are not OK ))

regards wino

winogran said:

winogran said:

1. PC > MAC > CAMERA = OK
2. MAC > PC > CAMERA = FORMAT ERROR
3. PC > CAMERA = OK
4. MAC > CAMERA = OK
5. MAC > CAMERA (MORE PICS) > PC > CAMERA = FORMAT ERROR
6. PC > CAMERA (MORE PICS) > MAC > CAMERA = OK

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

BTW Stoodman,
you could of course try to delete the mac-files first
before inserting the MS back into the cybershot
in method 2 and 5, good chance

winogran said:

viewing your test results here's my guess:

PC can handle mac's invisble files
sony firmware can hande mac's invisble files

as soon as a MS is mounted on a mac, invisible files are placed on it
but mounted on a PC they are always made visible, this alters those
mac generated files

sony firmware can't handle macfiles that were made visible on a PC

i don't think i added much more insight on top of your lilttle
investigation and i think you can draw the conclusion yourself..

Click to expand...

Thanks for your help Wino, your input is much appreciated. I think your deductions could be spot on, I just needed someone to point me there. So long as I know that now I'll just have to work within the limitations ie. download to PC before Mac if I have any need to have them on both.

Thanks again,

Stoodman