FAT32 to NTFS problem...
 

I left-clicked on Computer, then Manage, then I choose the drive and under properties I clicked optimize for performance. I then clicked on the drive and the PC asked me to format. The problem is that the capacity is listed as 200MB instead of 16GB (or 15.8). I tried running it that way just to test it, but it just created a 200MB partition, with the rest as FAT32.

You what with the who now?

What are you trying to do to what, with what hardware and software?

Well it all started with discovering a USB port or two on the side of my HDTV (Samsung LN40B630 40" LCD, I highly recommend it). I put a few .avi files on my 4GB usb flash drive, but the TV couldn't read the drive for some reason. I realized it was because I have all my USB flash drives formatted for OS X, so I used Disk Utility to change it back to FAT32 format. It worked like a charm, I watched the Avatar trailer and Tron Legacy trailer in 1080p without any problems.

Figuring I'd hit the jackpot, I grabbed my 16GB USB flash drive and similarly switched it over to FAT32, but then I found I couldn't move my full-length 1080p movies onto it for some reason. Because I'm of the Mac people, I was unaware that FAT32 allows files only up to 4GB (minus 1B), so my 14GB .mkv file was out of the question. I posted a thread asking what the possible way around this might be, and Cynth mentioned the newer NTFS format, which doesn't have the 4GB file-size restriction.

I grabbed the 16GB USB flash drive, recently reformatted to FAT32 on my Mac, and plugged it into my laptop running Vista. I tried reformatting it under Vista, but it could only see a 200MB partition. So I made this thread.

Fast forward to now, and I think I figured out what happened. When you reformat to FAT32 on Mac, it doesn't necessarily reformat the entire drive, it just makes a big-ass partition. The leftovers of the partition, in my case about 200MB, is the only thing that a Vista (XP and also Windows 7, I've checked) can see. I had a friend of mine come over and check it out, and according to him (he's the Windows nerd to my Mac nerd), the drive is double-partitioned for good.

The "fix" is to go buy a new 16GB drive and format it to NTFS on a Windows machine, making sure to never try and format the drive on a Mac. I have NFTS-3G, the application for Mac that allows me to read and write NFTS formatted drives, so after I get back from Best Buy or wherever tomorrow and format it correctly, it should work just fine.

I hope.

I'll eat any portion of a llama someone cares to send me if gparted won't fix your drive. GParted -- Download Burn that to a CD, boot onto it, adjust the partition table.

Actually, if you're going to be burning something, might as well make an Ultimate Boot CD, and use the formatting/partitioning tools on that instead.

http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/

This is all assuming there isn't a handy windows utility that will handle partition table editing...I don't know of one, but would be VERY surprised to find one doesn't exist.

Another vote for GParted... saved me a lot of hassle! :)

None of this sounds right. Just a guess: is it a Sandisk U3 Cruzer?

Bingo.

It was the bullshit software they included on the drive that not even my Mac could erase. I found and downloaded the software, but honestly I don't like dealing with shady crap like that, so I sold it and bought a new one.

The firmware is designed to password protect the content from tampering. It would not stand against a physical attack by dismantling. The option to remove the firmware and have a simple as-is flash drive is available.

I have two Cruzers because I like the capless design but dropped the U3. My prefered U3 replacement is PortableApps.com's menu and FOSS and freeware apps.