Mark Rath wrote: <<I have a USB Jump Drive -when I put files on it from my iBook running OS X then take it to another computer (Mac or Windows) it has every file on there twice one file will be myfile.doc and another will be _myfile.doc the files with the underscore will not open.>>
The Mac file system retains some of it's pre-OSX strangeness, in that a single file has two parts, called forks. The data fork is what we normally associate with a file's contents. The resource fork contains special data like the icon associated with a file, and info telling the Finder which program should be used to open it. Windows file systems have only a data fork. Those strange files on your jump drive are the result of the Finder splitting the Mac files (with resource forks) into two files, a data file (normal file name) and resource file (prepended with ._ ). It occurs because the USB drive is usually formatted in FAT16 (Windows format), which the Finder can read and write to but which cannot hold single files with both resource and data forks. The extra files are harmless, though annoying. If you truly intend to use only the data fork of a file, you might find that using a command line program like 'cp' might copy the data without cluttering up the drive with resource fork files. Kurt -- G-Books is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives | -- Check our web site for refurbished PowerBooks | & CDRWs on Sale! | Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> G-Books list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-books.html> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; Send list messages to: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/g-books%40mail.maclaunch.com/> --------------------------------------------------------------- >The Think Different Store http://www.ThinkDifferentStore.com ---------------------------------------------------------------
