Transfering pics from camera

[Dave Davison]

For no apparent reason when I plug my Olympus digital camera into the computer to transfer photos the menu (see below) that used to appear on screen fails to appear so the only way I can achieve this goal is to use an ancient laptop for the transfer, copy them to a memory stick then to the computer. I have tried reinstalling the Olympus software but to no avail. Any suggestions as to how to rectify this problem would be appreciated. Dave.

[viking33]

Have you tried a different USB port?
Looked in Device Manager to see if any yellow flags are set, indicating a problem?

[DaveA]

Have you tried to just open Windows Explorer and see if the camera is listed?

Also note, I never install any of the camera software, I just use the USB drivers that come with the OS.

[Rudi]

It seems the association with the default program for your camera is lost.
Have you clicked on "Transfer Images" option in that dialog? What happens if you do?

I second Dave's advice simply because I do it too. I plug in my USB device like a camera or phone and then via Windows Explorer browse and copy the images to your hard drive.

I am not a Windows system expert so I think its best to wait for a second opinion on the advice in the page link below, but what might help (if all else fails) is to reset your USB host controllers. This probably would mean that after resetting the controllers, any previous plugged in device will need to be re-associated with its preferred application/action. To reset your USB controllers, see this page with simple instructions...

[Dave Davison]

Sorry guys I should have made it clear that the screen shot of the menu shown was captured from the laptop when I plugged the camera in, it fails to appear on screen when I plug it into ANY port on the computer. There are no yellow flags shown in the device manager and the camera is lot listed in Windows explorer. SO, maybe the solution lies in the USB host controller issue BUT that's new territory for me so I'm reluctant to venture there. Still Dave.

[HansV]

Plug in your camera.
It should appear as a drive in Windows Explorer.
Right click on the drive.
Select Properties from the context menu.
Activate the AutoPlay tab.
Select "Prompt me each time to choose an action".
Click OK.

[Dave Davison]

Followed your directions Hans but after plugging in the camera - as the screen shot shows- no appropriate drive icon appears and the message on the screen of the camera stays as "one minute please" constantly till unplugged so it is obviously not being recognized by the computer. Dave.

[HansV]

Can you plug the camera into a different USB port?

[Dave Davison]

Thanks Hans...........tried every USB port available and just this minute I clicked on the "Olympus2" icon on the "All Progs" tab and got a message saying an updated version was available so I downloaded it BUT when I plugged the camera in the message below appeared so I'm baffled. Cheers Dave.

[HansV]

Since the laptop recognizes the camera and the desktop computer doesn't, there appears to be a problem with the connection between the camera and the desktop. It could be the USB cable, or the USB controller of the computer.
What do you see if you expand 'Universal Serial Bus controllers' in Device Manager?

[Dave Davison]

Hi again Hans, I'm using the same USB cable for both computers so I doubt that is the problem and below is what I see when I follow your last suggestion. Cheers Dave.

[HansV]

There's no sign that any of the USB controllers on the computer is malfunctioning. I'm afraid I'm stumped. Sorry.

[Dave Davison]

Thanks Hans, my only conclusion for what it's worth is that the problem must lie with the computer as the same cable connected to two lap tops works ok, maybe I will have a word with the shop owner from whom I purchased it & see what he comes up with. Regards Dave.

[BobH]

Dave,

Are you connecting the USB cable from the camera to a USB hub or to one of the ports on the computer? It really shouldn't make any difference, I wouldn't think.

Here's another diagnostic you might try. Using the same USB cable, connect it to a different USB device and then to your desktop then look at Windows Explorer to see if that device is appearing in the list of resources. If it does not, I would suspect the cable. If it does appear, I would suspect the camera; but because it works connected to the laptop, I doubt it is the problem.

Another diagnostic would be to delete the Olympus software (Add/Remove Programs) and search each of the USB devices in Device Manager to see what drivers are installed. If you run across one labeled as Olympus, disable it then try again. The desktop should revert to a standard USB device driver, however it might not.

This is an interesting problem to troubleshoot. Please be sure to report back when you resolve it. I, for one, am very curious to know what caused it.

[Rudi]

Do other USB devices register OK on your laptop? Earlier I posted a link to a page describing the resetting of the USB host controller. Did you have a look at it? (Post # 130143)

The only other thing I can advice is what Bob mentioned above. I'd uninstall the camera software (using Revo Uninstaller) to ensure it removes all traces of the software from the registry, then I'd browse to see if there is updated software and drivers for the Make/Model of camera you have and reinstall the software. Hopefully something corrects itself between these actions to resolve this issue...

[Dave Davison]

Sincere thanks for all the suggestions guys; as I said earlier i am using the same lead when plugging the camera into the laptops and the desktop and seeing the plug that goes into the camera is special it is not suitable for any other gadget, besides I don't have any other that I plug into the USB sockets apart from memory sticks. All the USB sockets are working just fine as I have plugged a memory stick in each one and it appears in W.E. (shown below as "H" drive.] Regarding the suggestion about the USB host controller, I did hint that it is something I have never attempted so am reluctant to so do. Using Revo uninstaller I dredged every trace of the software from the registry and plugged the camera in again but it did not appear in W.E. so I installed the software again but nothing changed so I'll delete it again and see if there are any drivers on the web that I can download and try that. During one of the numerous attempts to transfer photos I did somehow get an icon in W.E. but clicking on it showed NO content though I can't for the life of me get one to appear again. FRUST RATED

Regards Dave.

[BobH]

Dave,

I mean no offense by the following question, but I don't recall reading whether or not the camera was turned on when you were trying to transfer files. Are you sure that the power in the camera is on and that the batteries are good?

Don't ask me how I know to ask this question, please.

[Dave Davison]

Hi Bob. I don't know about other digital cameras but if I attempt to plug mine into the computer to transfer photos whilst it is switched on it automatically switches off, must be a built in safety device & yes the battery is fully charged. As for the problem, it is just of recent origin as I have transferred hundreds of photos over the 7 years I have had this camera and the screen shot I showed in my original post used to instantly appear on screen whenever I plugged the camera in. Incidentally, I have just this minute plugged it into my ancient Packard Bell laptop and the said menu appeared instantly on screen so I'm persuaded the fault is with the desktop. Thanks anyway for the suggestion, anything is worth a try but it's not totally "curtains as I can utilize the laptops all be it a little irksome. As for downloading software / drivers from the net, I did a search and it seems Olympus have stopped providing such for my rather old model. If anyone can point me to a web source where it IS available I will give it a try. Still Regards Dave.

[StuartR]

Last time I had a similar issue it turned out to be a tiny piece of fluff in the USB socket on the camera. Try giving it a good blow.

[HansV]

But then other computers wouldn't recognize the camera either - perhaps the culprit is fluff in the USB socket on the problem PC.