Windows 7: 64 bit or 32 bit?
Yes
by Jimmy Greystone - 10/28/09 10:45 AM In reply to: That clears most of the things.. by ankurq7Yes. Either the CPU-Z author, or Intel, decided to drop the stupid EMT64 designation and just call it x86-64. That's AMD's designation, which has more or less become the official one, since Intel's IA64 instruction set has failed pretty miserably to gain any real traction.
Thanks Jimmy
by ankurq7 - 10/29/09 12:50 AM In reply to: Yes by Jimmy GreystoneI guess I can go x64 without any problems. Thanks for the help. Will buy and upgrade this weekend 
Are you sure?
by rhandrh - 10/31/09 11:54 AM In reply to: More answers by Jimmy GreystoneJimmy you sound very knowledgeable but I wonder about you answer to 1.1. My new Dell Studio says it is a 32bit operating system but it does has 4gb ram. They are 2 duo processors. I have another computer that is 64bit and it has the same ram makeup. Are you saying that I can now upgrade my Dell to 64 bit by simply upgrading to 64 bit Windows 7? I was under the understanding that I would have to upgrade my processor which is a pentium 2 duo.
First
by Jimmy Greystone - 10/31/09 12:14 PM In reply to: Are you sure? by rhandrhFirst you need to figure out exactly what processor you have, because there's Pentium D (or Pentium Dual Core) and then there's Core 2 Duo. Two completely different CPUs. The former is garbage, and the latter is quite nice.
So while I'm not 100% on the Pentium D being 64-bit, though I am pretty sure it is, the Core 2 Duo is most definitely 64-bit. They are just also capable of running in a 32-bit mode.
Meaning that yes, assuming you can find 64-bit drivers, you can convert that system to 64-bit. You basically need 3 things to make a complete conversion. A 64-bit CPU, a 64-bit OS, and a 64-bit app. And aside from the original Core Solo and Core Duo (NOT to be mistaken for the Core 2 Duo) every CPU Intel has made for several years has been 64-bit. Same for AMD ever since the Athlon64 rolled onto the scene.
Another ?
by rhandrh - 10/31/09 12:24 PM In reply to: First by Jimmy GreystoneThank you now answer me this if you will. The Dell I was talking about came with Vista 32 bit. I just bought the Win 7 upgrade and it came with both the 32 and the 64 bit upgrade disc. Can I install the 64 bit upgrade and will it work? I upgraded to the 32 bit because I was told that I had to use the 32 bit upgrade since my Vista was only 32. Can I just upgrade my 32 bit Win 7 now to the 64 bit Win 7?
No, you can't upgrade ...
by Kees Bakker
- 10/31/09 12:25 PM
In reply to: Another ? by rhandrh
from a 32 bit OS to a 64 bit OS. That requires a custom (clean) install.
Kees
Find out what processor you have
by orlbuckeye - 10/29/09 4:35 AM In reply to: Hmmm.. by ankurq7and go to Intel or the Amd website and look up the specs for your processor.
Yup
by ankurq7 - 10/29/09 4:43 AM In reply to: Find out what processor you have by orlbuckeyeI did that the first thing. I did notice Core2Duo being 64 bit but as I am not that good with processors or with the various variants, I just wanted a sure shot way to know if mine was 64 bit. Used cpu-z.. doubts cleared.. Anyway thanks for the reply.
Pros and Cons of a 64 bit system:
by BigGik - 10/29/09 8:19 AM In reply to: 64 bit or 32 bit? by Judesman* You can address much more than 4GB of memory, which is ideal for avid gamers, CAD, video editors and heavy multi-taskers. However, any 32 bit software you use will still be restricted to 4GB memory – you need a 64 bit CPU, OS and applications to take full advantage of the extra RAM.
* 16 bit applications will no longer run. Although this is unlikely to be a problem, if you use very old software (from the Windows 3.1 days!) then it will not work under a 64 bit OS.
* Existing 32 bit drivers no longer work.If you have older or poorly supported hardware you may find that it can no longer be used. Got a 7 year old scanner that just about works in Vista? You may not be able to get it working in 64 bit Windows 7.
* Unsigned kernel-mode drivers no longer work. Along with the issue above, the inability to run unsigned kernel mode drivers will cause problems for old hardware. (There is reportedly a way to bypass this check).
* Running some 32 bit applications on a 64 bit OS could actually be slower. The additional overheads in running 32 bit software in 64 bit mode could cause a slight degradation in performance. It will take some time for 64 bit software to become the norm.
Thank you BigGik...
by Judesman - 10/29/09 11:37 AM In reply to: Pros and Cons of a 64 bit system: by BigGikAs I am getting a new computer and printer I don't anticipate a problem with hardware, provided HP supply 64 bit drivers for Windows 7. However I am wondering if there might be a problem running Photosop Elements V.8. (In my original post I mentioned Photoshop, in haste, but I should have specified Elements)
Judesman
No
by Jimmy Greystone - 10/29/09 12:17 PM In reply to: Thank you BigGik... by JudesmanNo, that program will be just fine. It won't receive the full benefits of a 64-bit OS, but it will run just the same as it would on a 32-bit OS.
How Much RAM is enough?
by Uther8_07 - 10/31/09 7:22 AM In reply to: 64 bit or 32 bit? by JudesmanI'm running an *ANCIENT*, 8 year old HP Pavilion 7935 AMD Athlon 1.30 GHz PC, with only 1 GB of PC100 RAM, running 32 bit XP Pro SP3, with a fairly sizable load of running apps, and believe it or not, it runs just fine. Of course I've turned off a whole bunch of unneeded services.
As I am writing this, I'm running mIRC 6.21, (an IRC chat client), 2 instances of NetTerm 4.2a, Eve Online Apocrypha (an MMORPG) at 1680x1050x32, around 35 fps, Windows Media Player 11.0, and FireFox 3.5.4 with 3 open tabs (including this CNet tab), on an HP W2207 LCD monitor, all at 1680x1050x32 resolution. Never misses a beat. I can switch tasks in the blink of an eye. Surprise!
According to Task Manager, I still have 402,644KB RAM available (402MB), with a 577MB paging file. My 1,536 MB permanent paging lives on a second ATA100 120GB drive, which is on the second IDE channel. My boot boot C: drive is a 40GB ATA100, on the primary IDE channel, and it has a permanent 64MB paging file.
The system is very responsive - no stuttering or delay, switching from task to task. This PC has a lowly, ancient 256MB PNY nVidia FX-5200 PCI video card w/2005-vintage 71.84 nVidia drivers. It also has an equally ancient SoundBlaster Live! 24 bit PCI sound card. Yet the system as a whole runs everything very well, at a very good clip.
Even with all of those apps running, I know that can fire up Quake III at any time (also at 1680x1050x32) for a little multiplayer fragging, and it won't be a problem. Q3 will start right up in about 7 or 8 seconds, very smooth playing - around 50 fps, no lag or dropped frames.
My point is: 1 GB of RAM on a 32 bit system should be just fine for Windows XP, provided you do a little fine tuning of the OS. It's all about balance.
(By the way, just for the heck of it, I dual boot Windows 7 7100 RC1, also at 1680x1050x32 res., with Aero/Flip3D (DirectX 9), and it runs passably well with IE8 or FireFox, but I end up with nowhere near as much free RAM as in XP, but I expected that.)
(NT) SHOULD THIS BE A NEW TOPIC?
by Judesman - 10/31/09 7:40 AM In reply to: How Much RAM is enough? by Uther8_07Missing 64 bit drivers
by Jelly Baby - 10/31/09 12:49 PM In reply to: 64 bit or 32 bit? by JudesmanHi there.
The point which is being made about the lack of 64 bit drivers is valid, but it depends on your hardware.
I've been running 64 bit Vista nad have moved to 64 bit 7 and Nikon have still to release any drivers for a 64 bit OS for any of their scanners. I've had to keep an old XP PC aside, which I use if I need to scan negatives or 35mm trasparencies. Appart from that - the only piece of hardware which I have had to replace was an old sound card. The manufacturer had either been swallowed up by someone else or had one out of business as there was nothing available.
64 bit applications are a bit different. Hardware won't work without a proper 64 bit driver but almost all 32 bit applications will run without any problem - however, they run as a 32 bit program so have the same memory limits as they would on a 32 bit OS. Nikon, again, don't officially "support" any 64 bit OS - which means that if you have a problem with any Nikon software and you tell them you run 64 bit Win 7, they'll politely decline to offer any help.
However, there's a big user base out there now so there shouldn't be any problem finding a support forum among other users.
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