Trouble transferring pictures: USB transfer freezes

[Travis86]

I'm having problems transferring photos from my camera to the computer.
The transfer stops and just hangs there. I can't stop the transfer, unmount the CF card, shut down, or restart. The only way to recover is to hold down the power button and restart. The system does not freeze, just the transfer.

If I transfer all of my pictures at once, it usually hangs after about 150 pictures. If I transfer 300 or so pictures 10 at a time, it will hang a couple of times. However, while the computer is waiting on a hung transfer, I can start more transfers and those will work fine. After I "restart," I have no problem copying the previously-troublesome pictures.

This happens when I use iPhoto, copy using the Finder, or copy using Terminal. I have two CF cards, and it does this for both cards. (Before I use a card, I usually format the card inside the camera.) I have two readers, and it does this for both readers. It has to be a problem in the system somewhere.

I'm running 10.4.11.

I would appreciate any help. Thanks.

 

[MisterMe]

Have you tried to transfer your photographs in stages?

 

[Travis86]

I've tried moving them over 10 at a time if that's what you mean.

 

[Hughvane]

Next time you've done a successful transfer of xx images from your camera to computer, reformat your camera card(s). It can usually be done from the camera itself, but if not, I believe you can use Disk Utility.

The only other suggestion I have is to use a dedicated card reader rather than the USB cable from the camera. There may be a problem with the controller chip of the USB port on your camera.

 

[Travis86]

As I said, I reformat my cards inside my camera, and I have two readers.

One reader is a normal card reader, one is the camera itself.