I am on OS X 10.8.2 running Excel 2011 (Version 14.3.1). When I go into Preferences, View, and check "Show formula bar by default", it never remembers this selection. It will as long as Excel stays open, for new worksheets, but when I close Excel and re-open the box has become un-checked. Even if I select View Formula Bar for a particular worksheet, the next time I open the worksheet it has become un-checked. I tried writing a simple macro but that didn't work either.