Works 2000: The Computer Runs Out of Memory if Too Many Programs Are Open

When you have several instances of Microsoft Works 2000 Spreadsheet, Works 2000 Database, Works 2000 Word Processor, or Microsoft Word open, and you then attempt to open another Works program, one or more of the following (or similar) symptoms may occur:

• You may receive the following error message:
  Works cannot complete the task because there is not enough memory on your computer.
  
  Try closing some programs or restarting Windows.
  When you click OK on the message, you may receive the following error message
  Program
  This program has performed an illegal operation and will be shut down.
  
  If the problem persists contact the program vendor.
  where Program is the program that you were last attempting to open.
  
  When you click OK, the program does not open, but the other instances of the same program work as expected. -or-
• The program opens, but the Help pane does not work as expected. -or-
• The program stops responding and must be closed manually, but all other instances of the program work as expected. There is no warning that you are running out of resources or memory.

The behavior can occur because the computer has run low on Graphics Device Interface (GDI) memory.

To resolve this issue, increase the amount of random access memory (RAM) in your computer.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

To work around this issue, limit the number of Works 2000 programs that you have open at one time.