Error 89 Insuff. ISAM buffers

[MagAero Systems]

I've got a specialised point of sale program that sometimes gives an error 89
Insufficient ISAM Buffers error message when creating reports from the ISAM
databases in VB DOS 1.0 Professional. By increasing the /I:xx parameter when I
compile to 75 the errors have mostly stopped. Documentation is sparse in the
manual, but how high can I increase this parameter without causing other
problems, and where might the impact be if it's too high?

Thanks in advance for the help.

Mike

[Ethan Winer]

Mike,

Post by MagAero Systems
I've got a specialised point of sale program that sometimes gives an error 89
Insufficient ISAM Buffers error message

I've never used ISAM, but I wonder if it's simply a lack of memory. What
does SETMEM report as being free before and after you open the ISAM file?

--Ethan

[A***@NOT.AT.Arargh.com]

On Thu, 22 Mar 2007 11:56:57 -0400, "Ethan Winer" <ethanw at

Post by Ethan Winer
Mike,

Post by MagAero Systems
I've got a specialised point of sale program that sometimes gives an error 89
Insufficient ISAM Buffers error message

I've never used ISAM,

Wise choice. :-)

Post by Ethan Winer
but I wonder if it's simply a lack of memory. What
does SETMEM report as being free before and after you open the ISAM file?

ISAM was always something of a memory hog. I always used standalone
Btrieve, instead.

From PDS 7.1 help:

ISAM Use of Expanded Memory
By default, the ISAM memory-resident programs use up to approximately
1.2 Mb of expanded memory for buffer space. This frees significant
conventional memory and improves ISAM performance, as expanded memory
provides more buffers than could exist in conventional memory. ISAM's
use of expanded memory can affect how other programs, such as QBX,
utilize expanded memory. To limit ISAM's use of expanded memory, use
the /Ie option:

[MagAero Systems]

To make this all a bit more challenging, I have never been able to duplicate
the problem on any of my computers, even using the databases from the computers
having the problem. It always seems to be on a computer that's three or four
hundred miles away, so it's not practical to sit at the computer having the
error.

I have determined that the error will occur both in a Windows98SE window, or if
I restart in pure DOS. It also doesn't seem to happen every time,
either!

Increasing the /I:xx setting when I compile seems to solve the problem, but my
main concern is if I am getting close to impacting something else if I set that
too high.

I have run the Isamrepr.exe utility on the databases, but it didn't make any
difference.

Thanks,

Mike
##

Post by A***@NOT.AT.Arargh.com
On Thu, 22 Mar 2007 11:56:57 -0400, "Ethan Winer" <ethanw at

Post by Ethan Winer
Mike,

Post by MagAero Systems
I've got a specialised point of sale program that sometimes gives an error 89
Insufficient ISAM Buffers error message

I've never used ISAM,

Wise choice. :-)

Post by Ethan Winer
but I wonder if it's simply a lack of memory. What
does SETMEM report as being free before and after you open the ISAM file?

ISAM was always something of a memory hog. I always used standalone
Btrieve, instead.
ISAM Use of Expanded Memory
By default, the ISAM memory-resident programs use up to approximately
1.2 Mb of expanded memory for buffer space. This frees significant
conventional memory and improves ISAM performance, as expanded memory
provides more buffers than could exist in conventional memory. ISAM's
use of expanded memory can affect how other programs, such as QBX,
utilize expanded memory. To limit ISAM's use of expanded memory, use
--
ArarghMail703 at [drop the 'http://www.' from ->] http://www.arargh.com
BCET Basic Compiler Page: http://www.arargh.com/basic/index.html
To reply by email, remove the extra stuff from the reply address.

[Dan Barclay]

Post by A***@NOT.AT.Arargh.com
ISAM was always something of a memory hog. I always used standalone
Btrieve, instead.

Yup, me too. Btrieve was cross platform as well. Heck, I'm still using the
same code in Win32 that I was using in DOS with just a change in
declaration.

Dan

Post by A***@NOT.AT.Arargh.com
On Thu, 22 Mar 2007 11:56:57 -0400, "Ethan Winer" <ethanw at

Post by Ethan Winer
Mike,

Post by MagAero Systems
I've got a specialised point of sale program that sometimes gives an
error
89
Insufficient ISAM Buffers error message

I've never used ISAM,

Wise choice. :-)

Post by Ethan Winer
but I wonder if it's simply a lack of memory. What
does SETMEM report as being free before and after you open the ISAM file?

ISAM was always something of a memory hog. I always used standalone
Btrieve, instead.
ISAM Use of Expanded Memory
By default, the ISAM memory-resident programs use up to approximately
1.2 Mb of expanded memory for buffer space. This frees significant
conventional memory and improves ISAM performance, as expanded memory
provides more buffers than could exist in conventional memory. ISAM's
use of expanded memory can affect how other programs, such as QBX,
utilize expanded memory. To limit ISAM's use of expanded memory, use
--
ArarghMail703 at [drop the 'http://www.' from ->] http://www.arargh.com
BCET Basic Compiler Page: http://www.arargh.com/basic/index.html
To reply by email, remove the extra stuff from the reply address.