changing filename case on devices and partitions, kde4

English Applications
1

For years, under KDE3, I would copy files across from my digital camera onto a FAT32 partition that had the ‘mixedmode’ attribute set in the fstab, thereby ensuring all my photos would be copied as dsc01234.jpg rather than DSC01234.JPG

Now under KDE4.2 (on 11.1), I use only ext3 partitions and when I access the files via either USB mass storage or directly from a Memory Stick, they always show/copy as DSC01234.JPG. It’s rather frustrating that there is no batch rename option in Gwenview/Digikam to change case, nor any general KDE find & replace function that would do the same. I do not want to individually rename hundreds of photos on a regular basis.

Is there some way I can go about correcting this without having to install special software just for the purpose?

2

I suspect that the quickest and easiest way to do this is to create a small FAT32 partition set up as you had it in KDE3. That was what allowed you to do it previously, not KDE3.

For the long term put it as an idea in KDE Brainstorm - Page 1

3

kRename application is in the repo though I think

4

I’m confused though as to why the pictures showed before in lowercase even whilst on the mounted camera/stick media, and now since the KDE4 upgrade they are uppercase. This seems to be dissociated with the types of partition on my hard drive and rather some system setting for media devices.

As regards KRename, yes I’d already downloaded it from the repo. Excellent utility though it is and one I’ve used for other purposes in the past, my workflow is now complicated by extra steps I never used to have to perform, which rather goes against the KDE4 ethos. Don’t get me wrong, I think KDE4 is a big improvement overall but this is one of those exceptions where I’m having to take a step backwards.

5

I suspect it is a change in the defaults in hal.

if you look at man mount and the vfat options you notice it will take shortname=lower but hal is involved the only thing i found is … having fstab-sync mount fat case-insensitive - LinuxQuestions.org

6

The changes of default shortname settings are indeed annoying. Does anyone know how the (HAL) default settings can be changed? Or can they be changed?

7

Hi,
sorry to reactivate such an old post but I am having similar problem with opensuse 11.2 and default KDE and I can’t solve it >:(.
Does anyone have a solution?

8

Please just reiterate what you need to do:)

9

Sure, but don’t be surprised by my horrible english mistakes :wink:

Since I installed opensuse 11.2 / KDE from 11.1 / KDE (standard KDE provided by the opensuse releases), I see filenames in uppercase in my USB key while these filenames where in lowercase with opensuse 11.1.
I know the problem comes from an option of the mount command (“shortname=mixed” should fix the problem). But, my USB key is automounted, it doesn’t appear in the /etc/fstab.
So I search how to fix this stuff from KDE knowing it is not KDE that directly sets this parameter but the HAL or something else. I try to look at the file /usr/share/hal/fdi/policy/10osvendor/20-storage-methods.fdi but I am not sure to fully understand what I read…

      <match key="volume.fstype" string="vfat">
        <match key="/org/freedesktop/Hal/devices/computer:system.kernel.name" string="Linux">
          <append key="volume.mount.valid_options" type="strlist">utf8</append>
          <append key="volume.mount.valid_options" type="strlist">shortname=</append>
          <append key="volume.mount.valid_options" type="strlist">codepage=</append>
          <append key="volume.mount.valid_options" type="strlist">iocharset=</append>
          <append key="volume.mount.valid_options" type="strlist">umask=</append>
          <append key="volume.mount.valid_options" type="strlist">dmask=</append>
          <append key="volume.mount.valid_options" type="strlist">fmask=</append>
          <append key="volume.mount.valid_options" type="strlist">uid=</append>
          <append key="volume.mount.valid_options" type="strlist">flush</append>
        </match>
...]
      </match>

I hope I am not too obfuscated :X