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TICKET ARCHIVE -> Error Code -36 Solution?

logick - Aug 4, 2005 - 12:14 pm

Every time I try to play a mpg file I always get an -36 error code. This means that it is an I/O error according to what I have researched.

How can it be corrected?

kethraal - Aug 4, 2005 - 12:39 pm

Hi Jack,

So that I can diagnose your problem, I'd like a bit more information.

1) Are you using QuickTime Player?
2) Is the problem specific to one mpeg file? If it is, that particular file may have been corrupted.
3) What version of OS X are you using? What version of QuickTime are you using?

That particular error code can be caused by any number of things, but providing me with this information will help me pinpoint the trouble.

Best of luck,
--------
Rob, MacOSX.com Tech.

logick - Aug 5, 2005 - 3:35 pm

Hello, Rob. Sorry for the wait. Here is the information you requested:

1) Yes. I am using QuickTime version 7.0.1
2) No. I have mpg files on three separate disks. I can see the files but can't copy them to the desktop or play them.
3) OSX Panther version 10.3.9 and QuickTime version 7.0.1

Thanks Rob. I really appreciate you help.

Jack

kethraal - Aug 5, 2005 - 8:30 pm

Ok... thanks for the information. What is the type of medium that the mpegs are on? Are you able to play ones that you download directly onto your internal hard drive? Can you read other files off of those drives, i.e. is it just the mpegs that can't be retrieved?

I'd like to try and see if this is a drive issue (usb/firewire/or cd) or a Quicktime issue. Quicktime is very picky about corrupt files, and will often refuse to play if only a few bytes of a file are damaged... so I'm not ruling out read errors just yet.

Thanks,
--------
Rob, MacOSX.com Tech.

logick - Aug 5, 2005 - 10:23 pm

The mpegs are on cd's. I can play the ones that are downloaded to the hard drive. I can read the other files on the cd's just not the mpeg files.

-Jack

kethraal - Aug 5, 2005 - 11:58 pm

Hi Jack,

If mpegs that are downloaded play correctly, then that rules out a problem with the mpeg-decoder in Quicktime. It's possible that all three disks have unreadable portions on them, and that Quicktime is simply being picky about this. However, since the problem occurs on three seperate disks, it seems to me as though it might be a problem with your computer's ability to read a continuous, uninterrupted stream of data from CD.

Are you familiar with how to use 'Console'? If so, can you access the logs and see if any sort of read error has been logged? "console.log" and "system.log" are two of the best bets, although it is possible (although improbable) that the OS logged a detailed message elsewhere.

Best of luck,
--------
Rob, MacOSX.com Tech.

logick - Aug 7, 2005 - 1:36 pm

What is 'Console'? Did it come with the OS or is this a separate program?

-Jack

logick - Aug 7, 2005 - 1:46 pm

Oh, wait a minute...It's in Utilities. I put the disk in and in the system.log I get the following:

Aug 7 13:41:54 localhost kernel: SAM Multimedia: READ or WRITE failed, ASC = 0x64, ASCQ = 0x00
Aug 7 13:41:54 localhost kernel: disk2s0: unsupported mode.

Does this help at all?

-Jack

kethraal - Aug 7, 2005 - 1:53 pm

Hi Jack,

Yes that does help! It seems that the Mac is encountering read errors when trying to read the data from the disk. This can either be due to the surface of the disk being obstructed (fingerprints, dirt, or scratches) or due to a problem with the actual drive itself. Check to make sure that the disks are clean and intact, and try reading other disks (not the three you are having trouble with.) It is possible that the disks themselves have bad sectors on them (if they're burned.)

Hope this helps,
--------
Rob, MacOSX.com Tech.

logick - Aug 8, 2005 - 11:52 am

Well I checked the disks and they look fine. I don't see any damage or fingerprints. Also, I tried reading other disks that were burned and no problems were encountered.

I went to my brothers house and tried viewing the mpegs on his computer (PC running Window XP) and the only problem he had was a codex problem. Once he had the right codex he could play the mpegs with no problems.

Also, I failed to mention that these disks were burned in Germany and mailed to me. Is this important?

-Jack

kethraal - Aug 9, 2005 - 12:25 am

Well. Burned disks often vary considerably in terms of quality. Furthermore, some drives seem to be more picky about reading burned disks than others... it really can differ on a machine by machine basis. Unfortunately, short of using another drive, I don't really think there's much that you can do about this one. If it reads the majority of other disks correctly, then I think it may simply be your hardware being picky.

Best,
--------
Rob, MacOSX.com Tech.
Helpful? Let me know... give feedback!

logick - Aug 9, 2005 - 8:10 am

Thanks for the help. I'm going to recommend this site to my friends. This was a great learning experience for me. Hey, one last question: what books would you recommend for troubleshooting the mac? Where can I learn more about 'Consol' and how to use it?

-Jack

kethraal - Aug 10, 2005 - 1:14 am

Hi Jack,

I've worked in this field for a while, and I from what I've seen, there are no good all-in-one guides for troubleshooting... alot of it is just learn-as-you-go. Often times, a simple Google search will yield information on a similar situation.

The Console is a diagnostic information tool, i.e. a log reader. You (hopefully) won't have to use it again, but if you do, you can use this page ( http://www.informit.com/articles/art...69576&seqNum=9 ) as a starting point.

I'll close this ticket on the way out.

Good luck, and enjoy your Mac!
--------
Rob, MacOSX.com Tech.
Helpful? Let me know... give feedback!