Firm ware

Might sound a bit thick from me but can someone explain it's meaning and how it relates to the DSLR please.

Ok, I'll have a go!

Hardware is the stuff you can touch, like your computer.

Software is a programe you load once the computer is running, but it does not affect the actual running of the computer, just what you can do on it.

Firmware is the programme already contained within the circuitry of the hardware that fires up automatically every time you switch on (without having to load software), similar to the BIOS of a computer - it dictates the settings and running of the device's internal electronics. If improvements are made (e.g. the programmers find that the camera can actually handle a greater range of ISO settings than at first thought), or bugs that have been found are subsequently fixed, then the firmware is able to be upgraded to take advantage of this, hence firmware upgrades. HTH

Ray.

That's pretty much "spot on" Argee. Well done Ray.

Well done, I could not have put it better

Thanks Ray so when I download a new firm ware onto my computer I persume this needs to be transferd to the camera if Im reading this correctly. If so can you tell me how, sorry if I have got this wrong but this is all new to me.

Instructions for upgrading the firmware are on the same page where you download the firmware from. I think there's also a readm.txt file.

The most important instruction which you should not ignore is to perform the upgrade with fully charged batteries. The process takes up to a couple of minutes and you don't want to run the risk of power failing part way through.

Essentially,
you download the firmware image file,
copy it to the root of a formatted card of the type that suits your model camera,
Put the card in the camera with power off,
press and hold the menu button and turn on the camera.

The camera will display current firmware version, and the version you have put on the card. It'll give you the option to upgrade.

Assuming you still have the K100D, the firmware and instructions are available here.

The instructions look complicated, but they really aren't.

Follow them through, carefully and precisely, and you'll be surprised how straightforward it turns out to be.

Thanks guys I will check out a bit hesitant to be honest.

Well if you aren't having problems with the camera, and you don't need any of the fixes or new features the latest firmware introduces, there's no need to update it

The cameras working fine Chris but just thought to get the best out of it then these upgrades will do that.

I tend to think the same, myself.

There's no question then - take a deep breath, and do it! The advice about fresh batteries is important though. Now that you know what firmware is, you can probably see that it's very important for the upgrade process not to be interrupted - else it'll end up with half a program inside it.

And since it's the previous version of the firmware that controls its own replacement, if it gets corrupted and therefore no longer works, neither will the camera, and worse, you can't have another go without sending the camera in.

But really, it's not hard if you read and follow the instructions carefully. Clarify any of them that you don't understand first.

Good luck

Since you asked about firmware, I want to make sure that you understood the instruction above to transfer the upgrade file to the "root of a formatted card." In case you don't know, this means that the upgrade file must NOT be in any type of folder on the card, but at the highest level of the file tree if examined in, say, Windows Explorer.

If you clicked on the card in Windows Explorer, you should see the name of the upgrade file ABOVE anything else on the card. The only way to guarantee this is to format the card first, then transfer the actual file onto it.



In my case, with the card in my reader and showing as "Removeable Disk ( I: )," clicking on it ONLY shows the firmware upgrade in the right-hand pane. I hope that makes sense?

Once you're sure that this is the case, plus your battery is fully charged, there's nothing to worry about - just follow the instructions.

Ray.

Ray,

It's not the .EXE file that you copy to the root of the card. You would double click the .exe which is a self extracting application. One or more files will be extracted, one of which is the image file having a .BIN extension. It is that .BIN file that needs to be copied to the root folder of the card.

You only need to upgrade to the latest firmware, skip all the in between ones, they are not necessary as each upgrade incorporates all the changes in any previous upgrades.

[quote="Mannesty"]Ray,

It's not the .EXE file that you copy to the root of the card. You would double click the .exe which is a self extracting application. One or more files will be extracted, one of which is the image file having a .BIN extension. It is that .BIN file that needs to be copied to the root folder of the card.[/quote]Yes, accepted - I thought that would be clear in the instructions. I was trying to show just a single file on the card, but, of course, I should have used the actual file.

Ray

Thanks for the input guys most helpful.