Reformatting memory cards

DonRicklinDonRicklin Registered Users Posts: 5,551 Major grins
edited March 13, 2009 in The Big Picture
Very interesting, especially the comments, discussion about the need (or not) to reformat you Camera's memory cards.

From MAKE: Magazine

Reformatting memory cards

Don
Don Ricklin - Gear: Canon EOS 5D Mark III, was Pentax K7
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Comments

  • mercphotomercphoto Registered Users Posts: 4,550 Major grins
    edited March 13, 2009
    DonRicklin wrote:
    Very intersting, especially the comments, discussion about the need (or not) to reformat you Camera's memeory cards.

    From MAKE: Magazine

    Reformatting memory cards

    Don

    Hmmm.... I happen to know someone who used to write firmware for flash memory cards, and one thing that any controller worth its salt will do is make sure that the memory bits are used in a somewhat uniform manner, even though the host thinks its writing to the same place over and over again. To say that reformatting often makes the card re-use the same bits of flash is simply not true.

    That said, it is rather surprising to me that its so dang problematic to reformat a card. I mean its just a simple, outdated FAT file system. Why one cannot reliably reformat on a computer and expect it to work in the camera to me is troubling.
    Bill Jurasz - Mercury Photography - Cedar Park, TX
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  • dwayne_bradleydwayne_bradley Registered Users Posts: 52 Big grins
    edited March 13, 2009
    Every time that I download pics from my cards...
    I reformat them. Never had a problem (knock on wood).

    Dwayne
  • Art ScottArt Scott Registered Users Posts: 8,959 Major grins
    edited March 13, 2009
    All of the major card companies use to have it on the home page to re-format after downloading the cards......and to do it in camera............- - - ALWAYS

    i have never had a problem caused by formatting......I have had problems when I did not format.......
    "Genuine Fractals was, is and will always be the best solution for enlarging digital photos." ....Vincent Versace ... ... COPYRIGHT YOUR WORK ONLINE ... ... My Website

  • RichardRichard Administrators, Vanilla Admin Posts: 19,962 moderator
    edited March 13, 2009
    Art Scott wrote:
    All of the major card companies use to have it on the home page to re-format after downloading the cards......and to do it in camera............- - - ALWAYS

    i have never had a problem caused by formatting......I have had problems when I did not format.......

    Interesting...I never reformat cards. I shoot Canon, and just deleting the DCIM folder and all its contents while connected to my computer has worked flawlessly for well over 50K shots. I also have ignored the advice about not filling cards completely. About the only conventional wisdom I follow is that I don't delete pics in camera. ne_nau.gif
    My Pics
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