[sdiy] Spartan 3 and camera memory cards

[Grant Richter]

Anybody know how to access modern camera card data with a Spartan 3?

The old cards were like dynamic RAM, give them a RAS and a CAS and  
they returned the byte at the site.

Modern cards have file systems, which if memory serves, requires an  
Operating System, needing a FAT to handle sectors, bad sectors, non- 
sequential sectors and all kinds of complications having to do with a  
non-linear address space. My research shows all over the counter  
flash cards with linear address spaces to be gone.

A simple OS for Picoblaze would work, I just want to update large  
data chunks of internal flash from data on a camera card. Then switch  
to internal flash, the cards work is done.  Xilinx already makes a  
solution for updating the FPGA it self via flash cards, but not  
outboard data chunks. The status of that chip is also up in the air.  
First they say they do and then they don't, and then they say they  
will and then they won't, they're undecided now, what am I gonna do?  
(Thanks Django).

All suggestions appreciated. And for those who care, this MAY end up  
in a commercial product with a production run of 50 units lifetime.

Thank you kindly.