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[OM] Re: Compact flash cards for E500

Subject: [OM] Re: Compact flash cards for E500
From: Chuck Norcutt <chucknorcutt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Wed, 13 Jun 2007 09:13:47 -0400
Microsoft is not likely to have created the file system software for our 
cameras and PDAs.  FAT file systems have been created by numerous DOS 
clone vendors.  FAT16 has no patent protection and the only patent that 
Microsoft holds on FAT32 is for long file names support.  I don't know 
of any camera that uses long file names so they're avoiding any patent 
issues there.  The FAT file system is simple enough that the 
manufacturers could even be doing their own implementation.  But that's 
probably worse than getting it from Microsoft where the same basic 
assembler code implemenation has been around for 27 years.  Besides, I 
think the file system code royalty is something like 25 cents per unit. 
  Don't know if that's an issue in the digicam market or not.

Anyhow, all that said, I am certain to reformat my CF cards as much 
faster and more reliable than deleting individual files.  If there is a 
chance for error to creep in it is *minimized* by reformatting.

On another related point it is best *not* to delete individual bad shots 
in camera unless you're running out of space.  Should something happen 
that you require a file recovery system to retrieve your images the 
holes in the allocation table created by the deletions will greatly 
confuse the recovery code and some of your images may be lost or trashed 
by being combined with other images.  With no reliable allocation table 
to work from the recovery code has to assume that file clusters that it 
finds are contiguous.  They are contiguous unless you delete something 
in the beginning or the middle.  Best to wait until you get the images 
to the computer before deleting if you can.

Chuck Norcutt



Wayne Harridge wrote:
>> If I am understanding correctly you are leaving one image on 
>> the card  
>> while deleting the rest? Doesn't that mean you can never 
>> reformat the  
>> card?  Sounds like a method for eventually losing a bunch of images  
>> to me. Even my C-7000 provides a reformat setting. It should be used.
>>
> 
> If the file system is implemented properly there should be no reason to
> reformat the card !!!!!
> 
> In my work I distribute software for PDAs on SD cards, we always reformat
> the SD cards before dropping the software on them.  Does that tell you how
> confident we are that MS knows how to properly implement the file system
> (and the PDA software) for these cards ?
> 
> ...Wayne
> 
> 
> 
> 
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