I thought that I'd like to access the SmartMedia cards (from my Olympus
digital camera) at faster-than-serial-port speeds.  (The camera has an
interface for good ol' 115kbps serial ports, and uses SmartMedia for the
removable media format.)

Is it possible that my camera is just doing something funky for the format
and NetBSD can't recognize it as valid?  Or is the reader brain-damaged?
I assume that it *should* look like an sd unit that I can mount using
``mount -t msdos /dev/sd??'' for appropriate ??.

When I plug the device into a USB port, it probes as follows, in my 1.6
machine (presently running absolutely stock GENERIC 1.6):

 /~~~ dmesg excerpt

umass0 at uhub0 port 2 configuration 1 interface 0
umass0: vendor 0x55aa 8-in-2, rev 1.10/1.01, addr 2
umass0: using SCSI over Bulk-Only
scsibus0 at umass0: 2 targets, 2 luns per target
scsibus0: waiting 2 seconds for devices to settle...
sd0 at scsibus0 target 1 lun 0: <, , > SCSI0 0/direct fixed
sd0: drive offline

 \___ dmesg excerpt

The "offline" bit at the end worries me.  I get that "offline" bit whether
or not there is media inserted in the reader when the reader is plugged
in.  Inserting or removing media doesn't register with the device.

I've tried inserting the SmartMedia card both ways.  There is no sign from
NetBSD that the OS even knows that the card is present.


The camera is an Olympus 360D, FWIW.  The reader is Belkin's "USB 8-in-1
Media Reader & Writer".  (I seem to recall that Olympus claimed to have
some special format that they used for one of their imaging modes and
suggested (but didn't require, I think) reformatting SmartMedia cards with
the camera prior to use, to get maximum use.)

Has anyone used a USB reader/writer on NetBSD with Olympus 360D SmartMedia
cards?  Or has anyone used the Belkin "8-in-1" with any SmartMedia?


The card is nearly full with pictures already.  If someone has something
to suggest trying, I can download the pictures to my camera via serial and
try reformatting the card in the Belkin reader/writer.

If there are no suggestions "soonish", I may simply return the reader, and
consider trying another one.  (Or get another, higher capacity media card
and see if I can use *it* with the Belkin reader---though the "drive
offline" message (whether or not media is present) suggests to me that I'm
going to be stuck...)


(ramble)


P.S.: Please include me *directly* in any replies.  I read the lists via a
web-browser and so will see a reply much sooner if it's directly sent to
me.


  ``I probably don't know what I'm talking about.'' --rauch@math.rice.edu