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You've got questions? We've got answers.
Q: What's in the cards?
Other than prices and capacity ratings, what are the differences among CompactFlash cards?
-Jeanne Campbell
Montclair, NJ
A: There are three types of CompactFlash cards: Type I, II, and Microdrives. The major difference between CF Type I and II is thickness and capacity. Both use solid-state "flash RAM," and are more durable than Microdrives, which use a miniature, spinning hard drive, but cost less per megabyte. You can use any manufacturer's brand of CF card in your CF-compatible digital camera, and it will record the same image data. There are "high-speed" cards that provide faster read and write speeds. It is a useful feature; just make sure your camera is designed to take advantage of a card's extra speed.
Q: Transparent solution
I have been storing my slides in transparent plastic pages and thought there was no problem until a friend told me his slides had been ruined by similar pages. Is it a bad idea to store slides this way?
-Tom Resse
Salt Lake City, UT
A: There is nothing wrong with storing slides in plastic pages, so long as they are not made of PVC (poly-vinyl-chloride), which can become unstable, leak, and adhere to the film. Most slide pages are now made of polyethylene or polypropylene to eliminate this problem, and should be safe. If you're not sure what your slide pages are made of, transfer your slides to polyethylene slide pages. A good source for archival slide pages is Light Impressions: www.lightimpressionsdirect.com; 800-828-6216.
Q: Buy and cell
My brother gave me his old Asahi Pentax ME camera. The manual says it uses either an Eveready S76E or Mallory MS76H battery, which, I believe, are no longer manufactured. What's the replacement? I'm currently using two LR44 batteries, but the in-camera lightmeter gives an overexposed reading when compared with a separate lightmeter. Can the wrong readings be caused by the different battery?
-Kunio Matsumoto
Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil
A: Silver-oxide MS76 batteries for your old Pentax ME are still being made. They're sold at most camera stores in the US—we don't know about Brazil. (The designations used by different makers vary slightly, but any MS76-equivalent battery, such as Energizer's EPX76 or Panasonic's SP76, will work.) LR44 batteries are similar in size and voltage to MS76s, but they're alkaline cells and don't deliver as much power. This may be the cause of the discrepancy in light readings. However, it is common to experience slight differences when comparing in-camera and handheld meters, and any variation under 1¼2 stop is likely to be insignificant. The best practical check of your ME's metering system is to shoot a roll of slide film and examine the results—after switching to MS76 cells.
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