to 64 bit or not to 64 bit? that is the question!

No simple way to answer your question. Too many variables I think. For what it's worth my Vista 64 with 6 gigs RAM is smooth and responsive to the point that I do not ever seem to wait for anything. I also have XP 32 with 2 gig on the same machine (memory remapping enabled cuts the avail. memory down to 2 gig for my 32 bit os) and it may be a little snappier in some things but Vista seems to beat it in others.

I also have a good secondary XP machine on my desktop for running the occasional app that still don't work on Vista.

Maybe wait a few days for the new benchmarks to come in for Vista sp1. Personally, with SP1 finally here, I think an investment in Vista 64 is the best overall solution at this point for the home user/gamer. If you read the hardware forums you will find the opinion of Vista is actually almost evenly divided, with still an edge going to XP. But Vista is by NO MEANS universally hated by enthusiasts, no indeed, it's has it's following too. Business is a harder call and depends on many factors. On the the hand there is no compelling reason to go to Vista if you don't like it. DX-10 has yet to make a big splash. It probably will over time.

4,4,4 ... or 5,5,5, I'm pretty sure on Intel systems it makes little difference at this point.

I thought I was a newbie


Read up h0mie. Running 8gigs in Vista 64 will allow you to turn off virtual memory, among other benefits.

Anything about 2 gigs is not helpful? LOL, k. 4gb at least for Vista if you're gaming 2gb in XP is just fine though.

I had XP 64 and i couldnt do 2 things with it :
Playing a game (PES 2008) and also it didnt recognize my printer and also it had a problem with some apps when i wanted to launch them so i installed XP 32 bit and i actually didnt see any single performance loss in any app

Hey Pinkpanther.

I dual boot between XP MCE 32-bit and Vista 64-bit. I originally got Vista for Crysis and its DX10 features. I don't have SP1 yet but I'll honestly say that I have not had any issues (except for minor issues with HG:L) with Vista.

If you convert to Vista, I'd say for money added value that 4 gigs of RAM will be plenty for you if you're a gamer and 2 gigs would be sufficient if you only use IE or word processing programs.

Make sure you have the following before considering 64-bit OS.
-A 64-bit CPU architechture.
-Using more than 2gigs?
-Hardware and computer add-ons that have Vista 64-bit drivers (recommended).

Pros with Vista 64-bit:
-My Vista 64-bit boots faster than my XP 32-bit!
-Renders faster? How much faster? It all comes down to each program and how they were written. Currently, you wouldn't see much of a difference. Tops 5% improvement in recent games such as Crysis.
-Future proof when it comes to OS.
-If you have a high-end PC, some DX10 features are stunning (i.e. Crysis).
-The higher the resolution, the more 64-bit coding makes a difference (i.e. Videocard drivers in 64-bit rendering 3D application in very high resolution such as 1080p or higher).

Cons with Vista 64-bit:
-If you have old hardware, you may not have Vista 64-bit drivers. However, 64-bit OS have an emulator for 32-bit programs, drivers, etc. So not all is lost.
-You need a high-end PC to play games in Vista 32-bit or 64-bit and even better PCs to benefit from DX10 features.

Conclusion:

If you upgrade to Vista, it would be stupid upgrading to 32-bit Vista. Go 64-bit as you'll eventually need more than 2 gigs in the near future (or now if you're a gamer).

Hope this helps.

Alex

Um... what!!!??? I know I do my fair share of post that make no sense... but DAMN!!! You have me beet by a long shot!

If you're using XP, stick with 32-bit.
If you're using Vista, you might as well go 64-bit, since driver and vendor support for 64-bit Vista is only growing...

As for 8 GB...well...if you are running virtual machines, games, and encoding videos at the same time while having Ultimate's bells and whistles turned on (Dreamscene, for example), then 8 GB is worth it. One of my DIMMs were bad, so I'm down to 6 GB now. For me, that's the difference between doing all of the above while recording TV with Media Center and not. That's obviously not the end of the world, and for the average user, completely irrelevant.

If you're going to use Vista x64, 4-6 GB would be a good range. Vista RAM hogging no longer slows you down at that point.

Vista x86 is kind of a waste unless it's a vLited installation or you turn off all but the bare minimum of services. Out of the box, I wouldn't run it with less that 2 GB of RAM. Some people can get away with running it with 1 GB of RAM, but again, that's turning off all the stuff that makes it Vista (for better or worse). If you're going to do that, you might as well just stick with XP.

I still do not understand what he said.


Something about a bird, food, not in machine.... A monk. I tried to run it through spell check, but it locked the program up.

http://www.gamespot.com/features/6167115/index.html

Hahaha, thanks for the clarification!

If you have a specific application that requires a 64 bit OS, then get one. If not, then don't buy the BS hype, Bill Gates has enough money.

For the same price, get 64-bit. I don't get the hype thing...