Xref: utzoo comp.sys.mac:43378 comp.sys.mac.programmer:10848
Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!usc!jarthur!uci-ics!truesdel
From: truesdel@ics.uci.edu (Scott Truesdell)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac,comp.sys.mac.programmer
Subject: Re: Resizing the System Heap
Keywords: heap system macsbug
Message-ID: <2578F219.21993@paris.ics.uci.edu>
Date: 3 Dec 89 10:14:48 GMT
References: <1195@kl-cs.UUCP> <32961@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
Lines: 31

oster@dewey.soe.berkeley.edu (David Phillip Oster) writes:


>You should not need to manually resize the system heap. There is a
>mechanism, documented in the Startup Manager chapter of Inside Mac, Vol 5,
>for attaching a 'size' resource to an INIT that will cause the system to
>automatically grow the system heap.

>Apple put this in so INITs that start big device drivers in the system
>heap can get the system heap space without going through contortions at
>run time.

> [...]

>Ordinary mortals should never need to concern themselves with this level
>of system booga-booga.

Then why is it that when people start running lots of INITs and/or some
memory hog INITs, the system heap gets so full? Is this because not
many INIT writers use the aforementioned 'size" resource correctly or
at all? Why is it that when my users start experiencing "unexplainable"
random crashes and I check out "About Finder..." and see that the
System "thermometer" is all black with no free white, that after I pump
up the system heap size, the crashes disappear?

Is there a better way to deal with this problem?

  --scott

--
Scott Truesdell