Will my system take 32-bit Windows 7?

[dkimber]

Hi, I am currently running a Gateway FX6800-01e with 3 GB of DDR3 RAM, and an Intel icore7 processor and Windows 7 Ultimate. I have both the 64-bit and the 32-bit version disks. I tried to install the 32-bit version but the disk wouldn't recognize my system, so I installed the 64-bit instead. I was wondering if my system is not compatible with 32-bit systems or if there is just something wrong with the 32-bit disk. Am I supposed to make a change in the BIOS or something? Thanks for anyone's help on this. I really would rather the 32-bit system.

 

[apache_lives]

why would you want a 32-bit OS with an i7? you want a minimum of 4-6gb of ram and a 512mb video card so 32-bit is out of the question to start with.

As for it not installing, probably an old disk or badly burnt image/corrupted etc - it should install otherwise.

 

[jitpublisher]

No reason it should not install, maybe a bad disk. But with your system, like apache said, you want the 64 bit version. No sense going to the trouble of having an i7 system, then crippling it with a 32 bit OS. I reckon you must be going on the misguided advice of someone who apparently is not quite as sharp they think they are?

 

[dkimber]

it's a brand new disk out of box so it shouldn't be corrupt. The two disks came together when i bought them. And well the reason I want 32-bit is that some of my older programs don't work with 64-bit, although I guess the fact that it can take more RAM would be a good reason to keep the 64-bit. But then 3 GB of DDR3 seems to do the trick right now. Thanks for the advice. I just wanted to know why it wouldn't take it. Thinking I should call Microsoft and see if I can get a replacement disk. Not sure they'll do it, but it's worth a try. Do things run faster on 64-bit though? This computer does seem to work much better than my other AMD64 32-bit did but then it only had 2 GB of DDR2 RAM, but it had a faster processor speed. See how much I know about computers. Just enough to get into trouble. Thanks for your help.

 

[sminlal]

How do you know your older programs won't work? I ask because there seems to be a fairly common misconception that only 64-bit programs will work on a 64-bit OS, but that's absolutely not true. It's true for device drivers, but not for regular programs like browsers, games, image editors, word processors, etc. etc. etc.

In fact the only programs that are certain not to work are very old 16-bit programs. Almost all 32-bit programs will work fine. Some may require a bit of tweaking of the compatibility settings, and if all else fails you can run them in the Windows XP virtual machine whose license is included with Windows 7 Pro or Ultimate.

 

[coolronz]

its gotta be a bad disk... id suggest try someone elses 32 bit operating system disk and see if that will solve anything.. altho i have only used a 64 bit system for years now, i can totally relate to why one would stick with 32 for compatability. yes there are work arounds and even if they do work, its still a pain...

 

[dkimber]

Well i have tried a few of my programs like Creat-A-Card 2 and there was a program I was going to buy for my ipod that I cannot think of the name of and they dont even make a 64-bit version. It even says on their website that it will specifically not work on 64-bit systems. My friend has also tried a few programs that do not work on his system either. And yes sometimes there are work-arounds like trying them in Windows XP mode, but my experience with that is that programs that run in the background like Ad Muncher will not work in the browser if used when not in the virtual machine. And yes they do make a version that now works in 64-bit but that meant paying for a new version. Anyways, like coolronz said, it's a pain. But for now I will stick with 64-bit and see how it goes for a little longer. There are not that many programs that don't run in 64-bit so I will live for now. Guess it's just going to take some getting used to. I do admit that things do run faster, but that could be my processor, etc. and not a 64-bit issue. Also, since I do a lot of graphics it is probably best to have the ability to add more RAM anyways. Thanks for all your help.