Free space slowly decreasing on apple Mac

There is a thread on the subject:

http://forums.sandisk.com/sansa/board/message?board.id=clip&thread.id=12743

But it is marked as resolved and I must say this isn’t resolved at all. The OP of this thread  found that the best way to solve that is to format the clip once in a while.

Others posters said that we must install software to remove unwanted file.

But is there a way to correct that in next firmware update. I am about sure that the problem came from the automatic data uptade that the clip is making when removed fromt the usb plug.

So can this be checked in the next firmware update? Mod?

if you are deleting the files using your MAC you will also first need to empty the trash before disconnecting the device. this is the only way to free up the space. it is the way MAC works and has nothing to do with the firmware of the device. 

You don’t need to install software. I could just now examine the hidden sansa files from a mac, but don’t have time to finish giving all the right steps. If you go into mac applications/utilities/terminal.app you bring up a very powerful mode - you are a superman for good or evil and may kill your sansa or mac or the universe if not done right. So don’t try the preliminary stuff below unless either you know what you are doing or I clean up the directions a bit later. If you don’t like this approach, tough luck… it can be for other readers to see or help with.  

What I did is plug in sansa and click on mac’s terminal. In that window I did something like

cd /

ls

cd Volumes

ls

cd “SANSA CLIP”

ls -a -S

That gave me a file list: 

MTABLE.SYS .Spotlight-V100 .fseventsd MUSIC SYS_CONF.SYS

RES_INFO.SYS .Trashes AUDIBLE PODCASTS …

. ._.Trashes AUDIOBOOKS RECORD version.sdk

I have heard of that stupid useless spotlight directory that mac generates, so I experimented with “rm -r .Spotlight-V100” which removes it. you have to kill the terminal window in order to eject the sansa. I found the mac recreated it when bringing things online again, maybe the problem is the .trashes anyway. Now I just remembered I want to always use the ls -a -o option to see the sizes, which are modest in my case although it probably doesn’t include under the directory. TBD

DO NOT TRY THE BELOW STEPS, IT IS JUST TO COPY IN SOME NOTES ON SOLVING A SIMILAR PROBLEM ON THE MAC ITSELF and gives raw material to come up with relevant commands later:

For the record, if your disk space disappears, go into applications utility “terminal” and risk total meltdown with:
sudo du -h -d 1 /
…which will show the huge file. Get rid of it by
cd / (move to the top) 
ls -a (see what is there including hidden files)
sudo mdutil -i off / (turn spotlight off)
sudo rm -r .Spotlight-V100 (delete the old index)
sudo rm .metadata_never_index (delete the never index file, if there)
sudo mdutil -i on / (turn spotlight back on)

@drlucky wrote:
if you are deleting the files using your MAC you will also first need to empty the trash before disconnecting the device. this is the only way to free up the space. it is the way MAC works and has nothing to do with the firmware of the device. 

Unfortunately it is not related with that. Thanks anyway.

@daft wrote:

You don’t need to install software. I could just now examine the hidden sansa files from a mac, but don’t have time to finish giving all the right steps. If you go into mac applications/utilities/terminal.app you bring up a very powerful mode - you are a superman for good or evil and may kill your sansa or mac or the universe if not done right. So don’t try the preliminary stuff below unless either you know what you are doing or I clean up the directions a bit later. If you don’t like this approach, tough luck… it can be for other readers to see or help with.  

 

Thanks for your answer. I only play in terminal when I have step by step instructions. I’ll try your code, but rather prefer that this be fix in a next firmware ud. 

  It  is somekind of a major bug :robotsad:

 

@canadien wrote:


@daft wrote:

You don’t need to install software. I could just now examine the hidden sansa files from a mac, but don’t have time to finish giving all the right steps. If you go into mac applications/utilities/terminal.app you bring up a very powerful mode - you are a superman for good or evil and may kill your sansa or mac or the universe if not done right. So don’t try the preliminary stuff below unless either you know what you are doing or I clean up the directions a bit later. If you don’t like this approach, tough luck… it can be for other readers to see or help with.  

 


Thanks for your answer. I only play in terminal when I have step by step instructions. I’ll try your code, but rather prefer that this be fix in a next firmware ud. 

  It  is somekind of a major bug :robotsad:

 

 

 

Its not got to do so much with the firmware as it does the way the player and the Mac communicate. What I mean is the way the Mac transfers files is different from PC. It leaves remnant files from the transfer process the same thing happens with Flash drives I think its a Mac thing. 

 

Its not got to do so much with the firmware as it does the way the player and the Mac communicate. What I mean is the way the Mac transfers files is different from PC. It leaves remnant files from the transfer process the same thing happens with Flash drives I think its a Mac thing. 

 

Well, I had several mp3 players in that past that were doing great with both Pc and Mac.  That’s the reason why I am thinking that something can be done in the firmware…

By the way, those strange superuser commands at bottom of my post was to solve a problem of my mac space disappearing when running some mp4 utility program. It would cause the mac to create a multi gig spotlight directory.

But on the clip, I gave up examining mine in terminal. I don’t seem to be losing noticible space, and I have an embarassing obstacle in getting the command options right. When I want to check the syntax of a command using the “man” command, I don’t know how to get back out of the manual without killing terminal.

@daft wrote:

By the way, those strange superuser commands at bottom of my post was to solve a problem of my mac space disappearing when running some mp4 utility program. It would cause the mac to create a multi gig spotlight directory.

 

But on the clip, I gave up examining mine in terminal. I don’t seem to be losing noticible space, and I have an embarassing obstacle in getting the command options right. When I want to check the syntax of a command using the “man” command, I don’t know how to get back out of the manual without killing terminal.

Think it will work the same way on the Fuze? I have only been using my clip on my mac (because its the one that if something major happens I can deal because it was cheaper) but I would like to start using my fuze with it too. As of now I have only used my PC to transfer to the fuze.

I would only hesitate to use those sudo commands, but I think you can examine the situation with the earlier commands (add the -o option to ls to see the sizes). And in my case, the simple rm -r seemed to work for deleteing. A new version was later created, but maybe in the standard smaller size. 

I have had mostly good luck using 3 different kinds of mp3 player with the mac. Seems even more forgiving than apple ipods, which can be fussy. 

@canadien wrote:

Its not got to do so much with the firmware as it does the way the player and the Mac communicate. What I mean is the way the Mac transfers files is different from PC. It leaves remnant files from the transfer process the same thing happens with Flash drives I think its a Mac thing. 

 


Well, I had several mp3 players in that past that were doing great with both Pc and Mac.  That’s the reason why I am thinking that something can be done in the firmware…

 

It has precisely NOTHING to do with the Sansa firmware!

The problem is that the $%@#$%@#$% Mac INSISTS on walking the dog on EVERYTHING it touches!  My wife is forced to use one of those monstrosities at work (your taxbucks at “work”, ugh) – and every time she sticks one of my USB flash “thumb” drives into it, it does the EXACT SAME THING – it loads them up with TONS of garbage, a HUGE hierarchy of junk – indexing files, database files (the kind of stuff a REAL operating system can keep track of on it own WITHOUT having to scrawl virtual grafitti on every wall it passes just to keep track of itself), and, of course, every file ever “deleted” (lots of fun seeing the ■■■■ her students “delete” when THEY manage to get hold of MY flash drive, argh.)

If you are using a fairly recent mac, there’s good news – your machine is – under the hood – a generic PC, with a proprietary DRM chip, intended to prevent the use of their toy OS on OTHER machines (the OS won’t work unless it finds that chip).  So, you CAN install Windows on it, and finally have a DECENT machine – one that WON’T turn the world into its very own personal litterbox.

Until then, your best bet (if you don’t want to have to keep reformatting – and reloading – your Sansa) is to periodically (as in “the more often, the better”) connect your Sansa to a REAL computer, and delete the ■■■■ the Mac has deposited onto it.

Now, every time I point out these facts, a buncha insipid little apple fan"boys" (in girls’s jeans, LOL! They’re in touch with their SENSITIVE side!) will come screaming into the thread, snapping like mad at my ankles.  Yip! Yip! Yip!  SCRAM, begone ye anklebiting fannieboys, SHOO!

For the rest of y’all, remember, 1) connect to a REAL computer, 2) DELETE all the applecrap, 3) enjoy the continued use of your MP3 player/USB flash drive/etc.

(And for those who insist THEIR players have NOT had the mac consume mass quantities of storage, all I can figure is that either you’re using a HUGE player, or, an older version of the Mac “OS” (that perhaps was before they began their “walk the dog on the whole world” plan), or, MAYBE your player has outsmarted the apple (i.e., perhaps it knows that when an apple touches it, it needs to do a bunch of housekeeping lest it get clogged to the rafters).  Or, maybe, just maybe, they’re using an actual apple-branded eye-pod, which, I would surmise, the mackentosh cleans up after itself on.

Gee, if THAT’s the case, go figure!  I mean, walking the dog on all OTHER brands of player, but NOT filling their OWN brand players with eFeces?  If THAT is going on, wow…

Can anyone verify if the mac does or does NOT dump its load all over the eye-pod, the way it does to OTHER players?  Never having touched a mack – but, being married to an eye-pod owner/mack-user, who does NOT run into that problem, I am going to guess that what’s going on is that they do NOT allow THEIR player (the eye-pod) to connect as a NORMAL type of USB device, i.e., it can ONLY connect via their eye-tunes program, rather than standard USB protocols.

In that case, since it’s never “seen” AS a drive, it’s not subject to the contamination that all devices that DO show up as drives must endure.

Is there any flaw in my analysis?  Anyone?  Bueller?  Anyone?

Your venting rings pretty hollow to me since you haven’t even tried a mac, but prodded me into some experiments. Using mac terminal to get into the directory of various mp3 players, it looked like “sudo du -h -d 1” shows the sizes of every thing underneath, hidden or otherwise.

There would be a few dozen K for trash and sevensomething(?) hidden directories. Assuming you have emptied the trash - I wish trash was automatically emptied at disconnect or logoff (and their hidden directories eliminated), but it has saved me a few times.

There would be a meg or two for hidden spotlight directories. I used to hate these spotlight “leavings”, but for one thing I guess you can turn it off at spotlight preferences. For another thing, I think it is responsible for the unbelievable search speed now available. Used to take several minutes to do a whole disk search, but now it is instantaneous.

On an apple ipod only, there would be some itunes hidden directory of some size that I forget but possibly more than a meg.  I hate itunes, but I guess it is a neccesary evil that is keeping artists paid due to having more revenue than shrinking CD oriented companies.

So bottom line is mac’s do generate a bit of junk, but normally of insignificant size. It seems to me this is in exchange for vastly superior human factors than Windows, which is one of the worst computer interfaces ever stolen/invented and illegally marketed. I don’t say this from knee-jerk allegiances, because learned windows before apple, and 2 other systems before windows. I have worked on intel-clone chips and apple proprietary chips. Apple has a few annoyances, but Windows is the epicenter of ■■■■. It’s ruthless practices killed a lot of software systems superior to both windows and apple.

Fee fi fo fum, I sense FANBOY sniffin’ by me bum!

But then, did forecast this, didn’t I…

@daft wrote:

So bottom line is mac’s do generate a bit of junk, but normally of insignificant size. It seems to me this is in exchange for vastly superior human factors than Windows, which is one of the worst computer interfaces ever stolen/invented and illegally marketed.

 Oh, this is SO rich, coming from a Cupertinostan Macolyte.

How quickly y’all forget how Steeeeeebie stole the XEROX STAR concept – and got SUED by Xerox, who waited until after APPLE sued Microsoft – for USING the GUI they PAID Apple a LICENSE fee for, to ALLOW them to use it!

Irony compounded upon gall heaped upon unmitigated arrogance!

But then, what would be expected from a company that was FOUNDED on the basis of funding produced by the sales of illegal telephone “blueboxes”?

You DO know what the “blueboxes” were, right?

And you have the brass pair necessary to, with THAT “heritage” behind your beloved cult, invoke the words “stolen” and “illegally marketed” when referencing their COMPETITORS?

That’s rich, but, boring.  Yes, boring.  A few decades of scraping Macolyte fanboys off my face like so many splatted bugs off the windshield WILL tend to remove any vestiges of patience or tolerance toward the cult.

“Vastly superior”, LMAO!  Oh, man, you’re KILLING me, LOL!  My sides are SPLITTING!

Y’know, if you fannies were just a LITTLE more subtle (or, “less blatant”) you MIGHT be good for SOME comic relief. But an army of angry clowns, dressed up like an army of carbon-copy “individualists” DOES tend to get just a tad tedious after a decade or two.

*yawn*…

I think you both need to cool off a little. Here is the reality as I see it. Mac is NOT Windows, Windows is NOT Mac. They are Different OMG! They work differently I cant believe it! I have a Macbook that I use for School (It works great with Adobe CS4) and a PC that I use at home. I use both for my player. AND GUESS WHAT I USE THEM DIFFERENTLY. If I use the MAC to transfer files I use KopyMac, to add files, and I get the little remnants, on the PC I use Media Monkey or Drag and Drop and no little remnants. I knew this when I bought the Fuze, because I knew I would have a Mac eventually, so I found out. How do I stop this well I attach the Fuze to a PC and delete the little files I dont want. I was able to ADAPT! I am not a Mac fan by any means, IN FACT I would never have bought a Mac (The school Provides them), as I am a Windows Fanboy. So to DAFT and PickMorel instead of Arguing Mac vs. PC, and attacking each other why not come together and try and find a solution for the mac users. PickMorel, The rants are not what this forum is about, attacking people is not what this forum is about and you know it. Daft, good research, but to call people out and attack their opinions isn’t warranted either. Windows is awesome for Windows users and Mac is awesome for Mac users, and I would be Lunix users would say both of you are crazy. So as I said lets just try and find a solution.

I just found a way to recover the missing space without reformatting (and thus losing everything elseon your Clip). Attach your Clip to your Mac, open Disk Utility, select your Clip, click on Repair Disk, click on Eject. All your free space will again be available.