--- highlight.c.previous	Fri Mar 17 16:09:50 2000
+++ highlight.c	Sat Mar 25 01:35:37 2000
@@ -1510,18 +1510,38 @@
 */
 static Pixel allocColor(Widget w, char *colorName)
 {
-    XColor colorDef;
+    XColor colorDef , screenDef;
     Display *display = XtDisplay(w);
+    double tred, tgreen, tblue, dist, small = 1.0e9;
+    unsigned long i, found;	/* pixel value */
     int screenNum = XScreenNumberOfScreen(XtScreen(w));
+    Visual *visual = DefaultVisual( display, screenNum);
     Colormap cMap = DefaultColormap(display, screenNum);
     Pixel foreground;
 
     /* Allocate and return the color cell, or print an error and fall through */
-    if (XParseColor(display, cMap,  colorName, &colorDef)) {
+    if (XParseColor(display, cMap, colorName, &colorDef)) {
 	if (XAllocColor(display, cMap, &colorDef))
 	    return colorDef.pixel;
-    	else
-	    fprintf(stderr, "NEdit: Can't allocate color: %s\n", colorName);
+    	/* even if out of memory, share an available color */
+	for (i = 0; i < visual->map_entries; i++ )
+	{
+	    screenDef.pixel = i;
+	    XQueryColor( display, cMap, &screenDef);
+	    tred = (double)(screenDef.red >> 8) - (double)(colorDef.red >> 8);
+	    tgreen = (double)(screenDef.green >> 8)
+		     - (double)(colorDef.green >> 8);
+	    tblue = (double)(screenDef.blue >> 8)
+		    - (double)(colorDef.blue >> 8);
+	    /* use square euclidien distance */
+	    dist = tred * tred + tgreen * tgreen + tblue * tblue;
+	    if ( dist < small )
+	    {
+		found = i;
+		small = dist;
+	    }
+	}
+	return found;
     } else
 	fprintf(stderr, "NEdit: Color name %s not in database\n",  colorName);