Hi Tailwag,
You can increase the error limit to 25000. Many times this will allow the conversion to complete, before erroring out. You can then see the error message for the file.
My guessis something in toe formatting of the source file or a simple option.
Support can help you get going again.
Depending on the type of data you are looking for, you can probably get all of the historical data downloaded in one session, from Reuters DataLink (for probably less than a dollar a day).
As for setting defaults for your charts...
Open a chart that you have
already formatted and looks the way you wish all other charts to look.
Right click in the chart
Select Save as Default
Template
Click Yes to replace the
existing one.
All NEW charts that you open
from this point on will look the way you want, because they were built from the
new default template. All charts that have been previously opened with the old
template, will still look the same. You can get around this by deleting the
existing Smart Charts, so the program will build a new Smart Chart from your
new default template, the next time you open up that Smart Chart.
To delete your existing Smart
Charts:
Close all existing charts in
MetaStock (File | Close All)
Minimize MetaStock
Open the Windows Start menu
Select Find | Files or folders
(or Search | For files or folders in some operating systems)
In the named field, type in
MSSmart
In the Look-in field, select
the C: drive (or the drive where your data is stored)
Click Find Now (or Search
Now)
Select all folders found and
delete them
Restore MetaStock
Open the File menu
Select Open
Select a security
Click Open
All charts should open and
look like your default template.