It just won't work!! Never thought I'd say that about a Mac...

edanto

So, bizarrely, a USB key that used to work just fine with a Mac just won't work at all?! No idea why.

The mac says 'The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer' There's an initialise button, but in the First Aid section none of the buttons are clickable.

Any ideas how I can fix this pls?

Breezer

Have you recently reformatted it on Windows XP or Vista? It sounds like it may be set to use NTFS, which isn't readable on a Mac. If that's the case, you'll need to reformat it in Disk Utility (use MS-DOS, which is really FAT32, to keep Windows compatibility).

Be aware that this will erase the disk. Copy your files over to a Windows machine first if you want to keep them.

edanto

Nice one, I'll try that.

davmigil

Breezer wrote: »

Have you recently reformatted it on Windows XP or Vista? It sounds like it may be set to use NTFS, which isn't readable on a Mac. If that's the case, you'll need to reformat it in Disk Utility (use MS-DOS, which is really FAT32, to keep Windows compatibility).

Be aware that this will erase the disk. Copy your files over to a Windows machine first if you want to keep them.

I thought OSX can read NTFS but not write to it. So USB stick should be readable even if NTFS? Still re-formatting might sort it anyway.

Breezer

Woops, my bad. I keep doing this. *Repeats 'Macs can read NTFS' over and over, bashing head with every syllable*

I never really use NTFS, that's probably why my brain is refusing to accept this notion :eek:

Anyway, the reformat thing is still probably the simplest solution, particularly for a USB stick that won't have much data. I had a weird issue a while ago where everything I put on one ended up getting corrupted; reformat sorted it nicely.

edanto

Thanks for the tips lads, but I think the USB drive is just dead, it must have gotten a knock or something.

Windows can't Format it - even though it gives it a letter, it has a size of 0 bytes, 100% free space and when I clicked Format... nothing happened.

The problem had nothing to do with the mac, all's good in the world!

smcelhinney

Then I propose that this thread be committed to the annals of Mac blasphemy, and be brought out and ridiculed each century, possibly coinciding with some bleak pagan ritual involving virgins and decapitated animals.

How DARE you say that a Mac cant do anything (Mine is hoovering the house as we speak..)

Glad you got your problem sorted out though.

nialler

Is there a lock switch on the USB stick to protect the data on it? It may be corrupted but the write-protect switch might be preventing you from erasing it.

WUSBDesign

Goes to show that Mac can do anything except resurrect the dead, flash drives included.

edanto

nialler wrote: »

Is there a lock switch on the USB stick to protect the data on it? It may be corrupted but the write-protect switch might be preventing you from erasing it.

nope, no switch nothing like that.

smcelhinney, you're right, it was bordering on blasphemy. I'll arrange for myself to be flaggellated post haste. Is yore ma free?

Diarmuid

nialler wrote: »

Is there a lock switch on the USB stick to protect the data on it? It may be corrupted but the write-protect switch might be preventing you from erasing it.

The exact same thing happened to me. I never found out the issue or the solution, just binned the key. However my guess was that even though there was no external write-protect switch, on the pcb the feature was implemented and have got enabled somehow (contact broken or something like that)
With the price of usb keys it's not worth trying to get it back working unless it's a 8Gig+ version