Setting Excel Memory Size

PRoblem

giving a program more memory
setting application memory partition for MacNail construction accounting software running on Macintosh
Excel does frequent crashes or 'unexpected quits' RAM allocation for different XL versions

Diagnosis

'not enough memory' message, frequent crashes or 'unexpected quits', or very slow Excel operation with hard disk 'chugging' or hard disk light flashing a lot.

Solution

In Finder, click on Excel program (generally named Microsoft Excel, inside Microsoft Excel folder--see note below). Choose Get Info from the File menu. Type a larger number in the box at lower right.
EXCEL 2.2-- 'suggested' 1024, CHANGE TO: 1800-2400
EXCEL 3.0-- 'suggested' 1536, CHANGE TO: 2400-3200
EXCEL 4.0-- 'suggested' 2048, CHANGE TO: 3000-4800
EXCEL 5.0-- 'suggested' 2816, CHANGE TO: 4000-6000

Comments

If System 7.1 or newer, will have two numbers: make Minimum equal to Suggested, and Preferred equal to the 'change to' above.

COMMON PROBLEM-- they click on Excel FOLDER not Excel APPLICATION, before they Get Info. To check which they're selecting (System 7)-- the first line under the name of the item is "Kind". Have them read it to you: if it's "folder", then you've found the problem-- for the excel program itself it will be "application program".

Entered 1/7/93 by Dennis.