Memory card is loose, it cannot record the images.

Are you sure it is a xD card and not an SDXC?

Then there should be a little arrow, pointing in the direction it should be going while inserting.
Try to eject the card and reinsert the card.
If you never used a xD card, and nobody else ever tried to put something in the slot, the card should go in smooth.
After placing the card, don't forget to format the card in the camera.

It sounds like your XD card is corrupted. How and why i couldn't tell you. You will need to get the pictures recovered from the card using a special software (image recovery software, can down load for free from some web sites, or some companies can try and do it for you) and then try and format the card in the camera. DO NOT FORMAT THE CARD BEFORE YOU RETRIVE YOUR IMAGES. If you do all traces of the images may be lost.

All the best and happy snapping.

This problem is caused by the little piece of plastic that you flip down to hold the XD card in place. It has a nipple sticking out of it that is prone to breaking off. Unfortunately, this nipple (about 1/16" x 1/8" x 1/8") holds down a little button which tells the camera that the the plastic piece has been flipped down. Once the nipple breaks off, you need to find some other way to hold the button down.

I simply took a small plastic peg from an old boardgame -- a cribbage-board peg might work -- and whittled it down to fit the opening. Remove the XD card and you'll see the small 1/16" x 1/8" rectangular opening. There's a tiny, squarish black button inside. Use a toothpick or tiny screwdriver to carefully press the button in while the camera is on, and you'll see the error message disappear.

Once you get the idea, use a tiny Phillips screwdriver to remove the plastic piece that you flip down. There are two screws to remove, two little metal retaining brackets and a tiny metal rod. Be careful not to lose any of these pieces! Then gradually whittle your piece of plastic so it fits the rectangular opening snugly, and consistently turns off the error message. Then cut it to about 1/8" in length, insert it into the opening, and reassemble the rod, brackets and screws to hold it in place.

Now the little button will always be pushed in and the camera will be functional once again. Since the XD card has its own spring-loaded "locking mechanism" (you push to insert and push to remove), the piece of plastic you flip down isn't really needed in the first place. You can save it, anyway, just for the memories....

You can add memory to your camera by purchasing an xd memory card.
Compatible cards
xD-Picture Card (16MB – 1GB)
There are two ways to record the pictures you take with this camera.
Recording pictures to the internal memory
• Pictures are recorded to the internal memory, and when the number of storable still
pictures reaches 0, you must connect the camera to a computer to download the
pictures, and then erase the pictures from the internal memory.
Using an xD-Picture Card (optional)
• Pictures are recorded to the card when inserted in the camera. When the card is
full, you download the pictures to a computer, and then either erase the pictures
from the card or use a new card.
• Pictures are not recorded to the internal memory when a card is inserted in the
camera. Pictures in the internal memory can be copied to the card using the
[BACKUP] function.
g“BACKUP Copying pictures in the internal memory to the card” (P.25)
“The card” (P.60)
Number of storable still pictures and recording length of movies
Still pictures
Movie
• If you use a non-Olympus card or a card used for another application, such as for
a computer, the message [CARD ERROR] is displayed. To use this card with this
camera, use the [FORMAT] function to format the card.
g“MEMORY FORMAT (FORMAT) Formatting the internal memory/card” (P.24)
Additional shooting tips and information
Increasing the number of pictures that can be taken
IMAGE QUALITY Image size
Number of storable still pictures
Internal memory Card (128 MB)
SHQ 2816 × 2112 2 25
HQ 2816 × 2112 6 76
SQ1 2048 × 1536 8 108
SQ2 640 × 480 60 726
IMAGE QUALITY Image size
Remaining recording time
Internal memory Card (128 MB)
HQ 320 × 240 (15 frames/sec.) 32 sec. 6 min. 37 sec.
SQ 160 × 120 (15 frames/sec.) 2 min. 8 sec. 26 min. 28 sec.

The images saved to the internal memory can be copied to the xD-Picture Card, but you cannot copy images from the xD-Picture Card to the internal memory.

The internal memory and the xD-Picture Card cannot be used at the same time. When the card is inserted the internal memory is disabled. When you want to use the internal memory, remove the xD Picture Card. The LCD display will indicate that images are saved to internal memory by displaying [IN] in the lower right corner of the screen. When using the xD-Picture Card the camera’s LCD will display [xD] in the lower right corner of the screen. These indicators are displayed just above the number of available frames.

The images saved to the internal memory can be copied to the xD Picture Card, but you cannot copy images from the xD Picture Card to the internal memory. Before you choose to copy the files to the xD card be sure that there is enough room on that card. To copy the images to the xD card make sure the camera is powered on, then and press the menu button. Use the down arrow key to navigate through the menu to the BACK UP feature. Use the right arrow key to enter the Back Up screen and select YES to copy the images to the xD card, or NO if you choose not to coy the image files.

Quality Mode Resolution 14MB Internal Memory 256MB xD Picture Card 512MB xD Picture Card SHQ 2592 x 1944 3 images 69 images 139 images HQ 2592 x 1944 11 images 204 images 409 images SQ1 1600 x 1200 27 images 515 images 1030 images SQ2 640 x 480 144 images 2663 images 5324 images

Quality Mode Resolution 14MB Internal Memory 16MB xD-Picture Card 512MB xD-Picture Card SHQ 2288 x 1712 4 images 5 images 178 images HQ 2288 x 1712 14 images 16 images 523 images SQ1 1600 x 1200 27 images 32 images 1030 images SQ2 640 x 480 144 images 165 images 5324 images Storable movie length and resolution (approximate figures). The number of movies saved is based upon the storage capacity of the xD-Picture Card and length of each movie. Quality Mode Resolution 14MB Internal Memory 16MB xD-Picture Card 512MB xD-Picture Card HQ 320 x 240 30 fps movie 20 sec. max movie 24 sec. max movie 12 min. 54 sec. movie SQ 320 x 240 15 fps movie 41 sec. max movie 48 sec. max movie 25 min. 48 sec. movie

The internal memory and the xD Picture Card cannot be used at the same time. When the card is inserted the internal memory is disabled. When you want to use the internal memory, remove the xD Picture Card. The LCD display will indicate that images are saved to internal memory by displaying [IN] in the lower right corner of the screen. When using the xD Picture Card the camera’s LCD will display [xD] in the lower right corner of the screen. These indicators are displayed just above the number of available frames.