Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!uunet!zephyr.ens.tek.com!uw-beaver!mit-eddie!rutgers!umn-d-ub!cs.umn.edu!ux.acs!clarson
From: clarson@ux.acs.umn.edu (Chaz Larson)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Problem with message "Application Suddenly Quit"
Keywords: applications quitting unexpectedly
Message-ID: <1091@ux.acs.umn.edu>
Date: 8 Feb 90 18:54:34 GMT
References: <110@medisun.UUCP> <2911@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu> <3546@zehntel.UUCP>
Reply-To: clarson@ux.acs.umn.edu (Chaz Larson)
Organization: University of Minnesota, ACSS
Lines: 41

In article <3546@zehntel.UUCP> dac@zehntel.UUCP (Dennis Carlson) writes:
>In article <2911@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu> consp22@bingsung.cc.binghamton.edu (Darren Handler) writes:
>>-> Does anyone know why a group of our Macs would suddenly start flashing
>>-> the message "application unexpectedly quit" when we are working in
>>
>>That is a Multi-Finder error.  You have run low on memory.  If you see a small
>>icon in the upper right hand corner of the menubar, you are running under 
>>MultiFinder.  Go to Set Startup in the Special menu of the finder to set it
>>back to the Finder and reboot.
>>
>Out of memory? But I am only using 2.5  of my available 4 megs.

You machine is not low on memory, the individual applications are.  Under
MultiFinder, each application is allocated a certain amount of memory when
it is launched [Word is configured to grab 1024K, for example].  This 
partition size is fixed, so if the application needs more memory than that,
its SOL and you get the "Application unexpectedly quit" message.  There
are two ways to avoid this error.  One is, as Mr. Handler notes, to stop
using MultiFinder, which will make all four megs available to your
applications.  This has the drawback of not allowing you to use several 
applications at the same time.  The other method is to reconfigure the
applications you are using to assume bigger partition sizes.

To do this, start up with MultiFinder.  In the Finder, select the icon of,
for example, FoxBase +.  Select "Get Info". In the lower right-hand corner
of the Get Info window is a pair of numbers, "Suggested Memory Size" and
"Application Memory Size".  Try adding about 100K to the number in the
lower box.  This will increase the program's partition size, and should
avoid the errors you're getting.

For more information along these lines, see pp. 238-243 of the System 6.0
"Macintosh System Software User's Guide."

<chaz>


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------
                 Chaz Larson - clarson@ux.acs.umn.edu
            "Hey, I'm no Jack Kennedy..." - Flaming Carrot
----------------------------------------------------------------------