Re: UDF
yet incompatible due to how the OS's format the UDF partition
More than how they format, the problem lies on where the filesystem is placed:
MacOS expects the filesystem fill the whole device, and gets confused if the UDF filesystem is inside a partition
Windows expects a partition table for all non-removable devices and a UDF filesystem inside it, so when it encounters such device without a partition table it doesn't know what to do with it
Linux doesn't care at all as long as you mount the proper device (full disk or partition)
The "compatibility trick" consists on creating a partition table with a single partition starting at sector 0, including the partition table itself, so Windows sees that partition and MacOS sees an UDF filesystem filling the whole device
Note that for what Windows sees as "removable devices" there are no such issues and a partition-less, whole-filled UDF filesystem works cross-platform
Biting the hand that feeds IT
