Re: Should I have multiple firewire cards?

"JNLSeb" <jnlseb@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:13pfm90b4ltr20c@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
My computer has been working fine for the longest time and uploading videos from the camera was never a problem.

Then an External HD was purchased and connected via firewire port.

The card has 3 jacks so I assume just use one for the camera and one for the External HD.
The HD works fine until I attempt to upload video from the camera to the External HD.
As a result, I started uploading from the camera to an internal HD which worked fine, but afterwards, the external HD wouldn't be recognized unless I rebooted.

This isn't likely to be an OS issue.

Did you connect and disconnect the camera with the system running?

My assumption is that either the drivers are not up to date

This is not particularly likely.

or the card only supports one device at a time even though there are multiple ports.

Firewire cards should not have a problem with more than one device, provided there's enough power. However, there are *other* problems that can arise from hot-plugging - attaching or removing devices while power is applied.

Hot-plugging is supposed to be supported by the FireWire spec, but in reality it can cause a number of problems, including electrical damage requiring service or outright replacement.

Permanent electrical damage can occur to both the port and the connected device, and so a number of manufacturers of FireWire devices warn against hot-plugging. Technical details of the problem are available on the web.

The only safe approach is to power down the system and devices and attach or detatch them with power off. Turn power on for peripherals first, then turn the PC on. If the peripherals are bus-powered, they'll come on with the port.

This kind of damage can happen to USB devices as well, but it's much less common. I've personally had all but one of the FireWire devices I've purchased fail for this reason. Consequently, I no longer buy them unless the application requires the bandwidth and the units aren't likely to be moved with any frequency.

Finally, not all FireWire chipsets are of equal quality. It may be that connecting and disconnecting the camera is disrupting the card in a way you just didn't notice before you got the external drive.

HTH
-pk

.

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