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64bit windows xp pro ?

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sarah99   10-21-2008 at 08:48:07 PM

I was told that I needed a 64 bit software os to run 8 meg ddr2 memory ..I looked at windows xp profesional ...do they have two different xp profesionals and one does not support 64 bit ?

Thanks.

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ijack   10-21-2008 at 09:53:13 PM
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You won't get any version of Windows, beyond 98, to run with 8Mb of RAM - presumably you mean 8Gb.

Yes, there is a 64-bit version of XP. It's OEM only, and probably not available in shops nowadays, but you can normally pick one up on eBay for about £60 ($100). Be aware that not all software will run happily on XP64, and it doesn't support as much hardware as the 32-bit version. You may be better of with a 64-bit version of Vista. Or there are 64-bit versions of Linux, BSD, etc.

Be aware that there is also another 64-bit XP designed for the Itanium processor - you don't want that version!

I run XP64 and it is fine, but I don't have any unusual hardware or software. Do you have a particular application that needs 8Gb of memory?

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sarah99   10-22-2008 at 01:50:37 AM
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OK, sorry, thought I had 8 gb of memory and it turns out I have two pairs of dual memory each pair being two . So all I have is four gb . That said I guess i will go with the Windows XP Profesional as my best OS choice . RIght ?
Thanks.

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ijack   10-22-2008 at 10:22:20 AM
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Unless you particularly need any 64-bit features, or are interested in 64-bit development, I'd stick with the normal XP Professional.

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br3nd064   10-22-2008 at 11:10:45 PM
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Don't get xp x64. If you decide you need a 64bit OS later on, get vista x64. The driver support for xp x64 is horrible and many programs have problems with it.

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BeakerUK   10-23-2008 at 03:54:17 PM
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br3nd064 wrote :

Don't get xp x64. If you decide you need a 64bit OS later on, get vista x64. The driver support for xp x64 is horrible and many programs have problems with it.




Rubbish, total rubbish. I hate it when misinformed people make delarations like that.

XP64 has just as good (if not better for older hardware) than Vista. I've been using it for over 2 years now, with minimal problems. I've only had issues with 16Bit programs, and a cheap lexmark printer. Either way it wasn't an issue as you would have had the same issue with the 16Bit proggies, and the lexmark printer was cheaper to bin and replace with a HP than it was for a new set of carts.

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captaincharisma   10-23-2008 at 08:00:18 PM
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from all this is till don't know hiw much memory you have

If you have 2GB of memory don't bother with 64-bit. if you have 4GB or more then you will have to use a 64-bit OS to use all that memory

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br3nd064   10-23-2008 at 11:02:19 PM
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BeakerUK wrote :

Rubbish, total rubbish. I hate it when misinformed people make delarations like that.

XP64 has just as good (if not better for older hardware) than Vista. I've been using it for over 2 years now, with minimal problems. I've only had issues with 16Bit programs, and a cheap lexmark printer. Either way it wasn't an issue as you would have had the same issue with the 16Bit proggies, and the lexmark printer was cheaper to bin and replace with a HP than it was for a new set of carts.


What makes you think the OP has old hardware? A lot of modern hardware doesn't have xp x64 support because of the lack of people using it. They're concentrating on vista x64 drivers because it will be around longer than xp, and more people are switching to vista every day. I'll admit that vista x64 used to be useless and had horrible driver support, but all that has changed now.

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BeakerUK   10-24-2008 at 01:55:49 AM
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br3nd064 wrote :

What makes you think the OP has old hardware? A lot of modern hardware doesn't have xp x64 support because of the lack of people using it. They're concentrating on vista x64 drivers because it will be around longer than xp, and more people are switching to vista every day. I'll admit that vista x64 used to be useless and had horrible driver support, but all that has changed now.




piffle. Unless you have something REALLY weird then there is more chance of having XP64 Driver support than not. I've got a couple of Terratec bits here, and they aren't a big manufacturer, but even they supply 64Bit drivers. ATi, nVidia, AMD (obviously), Intel, Creative, HP, Canon, Brother, Samsung, Realtek, Broadcom etc etc (Just keep on going) all supply 64Bit drivers.

I've piled it onto all of the machines I've used since 2005/2006, and other than old proggies and aforementioned printer I've never had an issue. It's just Server 2k3 with an XP front end bolted on, i.e Vista64 without all the unneeded cruft.

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br3nd064   10-24-2008 at 02:15:23 AM
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I had nothing but problems with xp x64 when I tried it, while all my hardware claimed to have xp 64bit support. Also, contradictory to what some may say, vista does manage memory better than xp (due to superfetch).

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BeakerUK   10-24-2008 at 02:28:45 AM
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read the comment above about the kernel. It's Server 2k3 SP1, the same as Vista. The improved superfetch is a carryover from it's server roots. Hell, XP64 even used 2k3 Service packs and updates.

I don't pay for my Windows licences as I get it all through an associate's MSDN Subs. However I'm still using XP64 because it works (in my experience) much better. Also XP64 has way more backwards compatability that Vista. I do have some oddball bits of software lying around (EPROM Programmers for instance) that are supposedly supported in Vista, but they are limited in functionality. under XP64 they Just work. In the past I've also deployed x64 out to about 100 machines of varying specs when a site needed an upgrade. We offered them Vista (32 or 64Bit), but they wanted XP on the general desktops, and the developers point-blank refused to use vista because half the kit they used didn't work on it.

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