Smartmedia Card Problems

[abc123]

I am using a Datafab USB Smartmedia Reader (MDSM-B-USB). I have recently bought some 16MB Fuji Smartmedia cards for use with my Fujifilm MX500 digital camera. I initialised the cards for use in the camera and proceeded to take pictures with no problems. However when I came to put it in the Datafab Smartmedia Reader no files or folders appeared in the Readers Removable Drive Window in My Computer. I then proceeded to take the card out of the reader and put it back in the digital camera, when I turned the camera on a message saying "Card Error!" appears and the camera wont let me take or view pictures, and it locks up when I try using the format option on the camera. This has left me with one useless card. Thinking that I might have a faulty card I tried some other 16MB cards and had the same problem.

Do you have any ideas on what is causing this problem, and more importantly, do you know of anyway I can reinitialise the 16MB Smartmedia Cards so I can use them in my camera again.

I am using Windows 98
a Belkin 2 port PCI to USB Adapter
Version 2.0 Drivers (came with Smartmedia Reader)
Fujifilm MX500 Digital Camera
16MB Smartmedia Card 3.3V

I tried using the Smartmedia Reader with an 8MB Smartmedia card which came with the camera and have had no problems with them.

 

[abc123]

Anyone?

 

[corkyg]

Sounds to me like your cited reader may not be capable of reading 16 MB S/M cards. I had that problem a couple of years ago and fried a couple of S/Ms with a reader . . . basically because I acccessed it with Windows Explorer and it insisted on installing a Recycle Bin, etc. just as it does on any external drive.

I dumped it and now use a Hagiwara reader (USB), a Lexar combo reader CF and SM (USB), and a Hagiwara PCMCIA reader. All tested and work through 64 MB SM cards.

Just got a SanDisk USB reader (BuyComp) for a friend, and it would not read 64 MB media . . . slightly too thick!

Thjere are two kinds of SM modules . . . 3.3 volt and 5 volt. Most readers are both . . . but if it is only a 5 volt reader, it can screw up 3.3 modules.

Once the SMs were blitzed, I had to send them back to Olympus and they replaced them free. Fortunately they were both 2 MB . . . no big deal.

I have also learned that media can be hot plugged in, but really needs to be extracted with "permission." To do that, open My Computer and right click on the Reader drive letter, then hit EJECT. Then remove the card. With the laptop I always use the PCMCIA STOP command before removal.

Never heard of Datafab . . . who makes them and who sells them? The best buy I see now for USB SM readers is SanDisk for up thru 32 MB cards.They are at BuyCom.

 

[Lore]

I have a Microtech International (http://www.microtechint.com) USB Cameramate. It works great - small and compact, very fast.