My compact flash cards worked fine for a few weeks, then my Nikon D200 stopped recognizing the cards. It reads "E" (empty) when I put the cards in the slot. Strangely, Canon and some other digital camera brands and my desktop computer still are able to read the cards, but not the D200. The problem has occurred now with the following compact flash cards: two separate Ridata 4GB Pro 150x, two SanDisk Ultra II 1GB. The cards were originally formatted in the D200. I tried reformatting in the D200, but since they were not recognized in the D200 as being present, the reformat option was not available in the D200 menu. The only thing I can think of that might have caused the problem is my use of the rapid continous shooting mode, during which I might have switched the camera off & on while it was reading data to the card. Has anyone else experienced this problem and can suggest a fix? Is there any software out there that will reset the cards so they are recognized by the D200 again? I tried reformatting on my desktop, but this didn't help either. I can replace the compact flash cards under their warranty, but it's a pain to keep having to do this, and I need to get to the bottom of this problem to avoid it occurring during an important shoot or while on a photo vacation far from any stores where I could be buy replacement cards. Is it the D200? My computer? My card reader? Or am I over taxing the card with my rapid shooting? For now, I am not taking photos in rapid mode and am very careful not to switch off the D200 while the green light is blinking. Thanks
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Hi

Unlike what other brands might do, the D200 actually will not shut off if you flip the switch off while it is accessing the memory card. Since the camera just goes into sleep mode anyways, it stays awake (just look at the displays) as long as the camera is writing and then shuts down the moment the light goes off.

Have you checked in the compartment for bent or broken pins?
I assume you did not format these cards with the computer in between.
Does the two-button format shortcut work when a card is inserted? (Mode+Delete)
Ordinarily i'd suspect the Ridata card, but the fact that the same happens with approved SanDisk cards makes me suspicious.

Worst case, I'd suggest you copy down your settings and do a two-button reset.

Was my first thought.

"Does the two-button format shortcut work when a card is inserted? (Mode+Delete)"

That was my second thought!

Also, any chance the cards were placed on or near a strong magnetic source?

Thanks for your feedback. Unfortunately I tried everything suggested with each of the four cards (again, two Ritadata 4gb 150x, and two SanDisk Ultra II 1gb). Any additional suggestions greatly appreciated. Specifically:

(1) The two-button format shortcut when the card is inserted (Mode+Delete) does not work, since it doesn't recognize the presence of the card.

(2) I checked the compartment for bent or broken pins, no problems there.

(3) I tried reformatting the cards on the PC as a FAT32 disk, made no difference.

(4) I took the cards to a professional camera store, the cards wouldn't work on three other D200s we tested it with, but did work on the Canon and Pentax.

(5) Again, the computer recognizes the cards when I plug in the card into a card reader, the drive reads "Nikon D200" and I can read and write from/to the cards.

Many thanks for your advice.

Does any CF card work in the D200? Check Nikons web site they do lest the supported cards. I know that for my Nikon the SanDisk Utlra II cards are supported. You just my have to send the camera in for repair