Action (batch) commands in Illustrator?

I want to include the File >> Document Setup . . . menu command as one
of the Action items or operations in an Illustrator Action, so that one
of the operations carried out when the Action is Played will be set the
Artboard size of the target image to new (pre-defined) height and width
values.

I can get that menu command into the list of operations included in the
Action, and can shrink the Artboard of the sample image that I'm using
to enter and record all the Action items -- but I can't seem to get the
operation itself to actually record.

Any hints here? (MacBook OS 10.4, Illustrator 7.0 Standard).