This is something that should be undertaken on a regular basis and should be considered part of your regular maintenance routine. Unlike computer hard drives the memory cards used in all digital cameras (DSLRs and compact cameras) tend to be solid state as in they have no moving parts (with the exception of the IBM / Hitachi compact flash micro drives) and should theoretically be free of errors that may occur due to physical damage. These solid state memory cards do however share some similarities to that of computer hard drives in that is they use use a basic operating system called a File Allocation Table (FAT).

The main purpose of this operating system is that of communication. When the card is inserted into the camera, the operating system communicates the capacity of the card thus enabling the camera to display the number of images available at a given resolution setting. On playback the card communicates the location of all the images that have been recorded and thus the camera is able to display them.

Potential problems

Over time with continued use the File Allocation Table tends to break down. This can result in a communication error occurring. This error can manifest itself at the time the card is inserted into the camera or when an attempt is made to either record or playback an image and the corresponding  error is displayed as either CF Card Error (when using Compact Flash CF cards) or Card Error on the camera’s LCD screen.

Solutions

Don’t panic, If the card is blank and has not been used the problem can easily be rectified by formatting the card. This action effectively rewrites the operating system and corrects any errors or bad sectors within the File Allocation Table.

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