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32-bit vs. 64-bit
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Yapette
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July 16, 2009 - 8:31 pm
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Plez, someone, 'splain why I should use 64-bit.

And plez, can someone follow my logic and point out the flaws. thx.

Right now I have a computer with no OS besides Win7 beta (not even RC), B+/A- specs, cobbled together to test win7. Own no spare XP license: 3 in use, 1 activated on middlin' specs back-up computer to be used if one of 3 terminally craps.

I preordered 2 Win7 upgrades @ $49.99 just cuz it was such a bargain. But that isn't really part of this equation.

I'm thinking it's prudent to order one Vista Premium oem @ $109 with free upgrade to Win7. My reasoning is I won't have a spare 5th XP license to use a Win7 upgrade. Meaning, I'd have to eventually buy a full Win7 edition, double the price of upgrade edition.

Or…say months after I've upgraded from XP to Win7 & therefore “deactived” the XP serial #, would that # then become free to use on another computer…install XP and immediately upgrade to Win7?

As I understand it, XP must first be installed, then wiped out/HDD reformated in order to install Win7 (even an upgrade). Same with Vista, install then wiped out in an upgrade.

Is this making any sense at all?

Naturally, I can't predict exactly the upgrade schedule. I know my husband won't do it willingly and will hang onto XP for years if possible. So, upgrades won't happen for all 3 active computers or (god forbid) the backup for many months.

P.S. I speak of “3 active computers” as the 4th isn't one I built but a crappy, 3 yr. old Compaq. My husband uses it for WoW, surfing, bill paying & emails….the computer I've spent the last three days cleaning up trojans, horrid hijacking stuff and a rootkit. It's been clean about 6 hrs. but I don't trust it (yet).

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Pokey
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July 16, 2009 - 10:29 pm
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Yapette, I won't be much help since I am still in the confusion stage with Win 7. I do believe the Win 7 upgrade has both the 32 bit and the 64 bit. I don't see much use for the 64 bit myself. I have been combing through forums trying to find out what the deal is. You can upgrade Vista fairly easily, but XP seems to need a clean install. I did hear that you can upgrade a Win 7 RC--it will qualify as a valid OS. We had the Win beta, so went ahead and got the RC. I ordered 3 upgrades hoping they would work. We have a Vista machine, one with Win 7 RC and one with XP.  We have 3 months to figure it out before the order is shipped. Hope someone on the forum knows more about this.

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Helmut
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July 16, 2009 - 10:47 pm
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I don't have any information on the operating systems, but the 32/64 bit thingy I've been through. It's an addressing space issue for the most part, which means 4Gig of memory (- a little bit in winXP) in 32 bit and a lot more in 64 bit simply because you can construct larger numbers (addresses) using 64 bits over 32. I had xp 64 bit installed for a while and went back because the only game that was written natively for 64 bit xp was Far Cry. No game publisher is going to ignore all the installed 32 bit os's, so they'll all make their games compile under 32 bit os's, so... what's the point indeed. However if your future holds a Nehelem processor and a fancy mobo with triple banked memory with a nice 2Gig stick in each slot that's ... um... 6Gig of memory. With a 32 bit OS, you wont even be able to see 2G of that memory.

Scumbag printer makers often don't offer upgrades to their drivers, so I said goodbye to a lot of peripherals while on 64 bit. Also, even the peripheral makers that did offer a 64 bit version didn't make them very nice. All the fancy Gui with the Creative sound card failed to show up properly until I went backwards. Ditto my logitech peripherals. And all this for a tiny performance penalty while operating games in a 64 bit os in 32 bit compatibility mode.

So unless you have a special work application or some media creation s/w that you know has been ported with significant performance improvements, I wouldn't bother. Like all things, time does change the landscape, and in a while maybe the 64 bit drivers will be the preferred set. According to steam: http://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey 60.4% of users are still XP 32 bit so there's still a ways to go before 64 bit os is the mainstream for driver development.

My Dark Souls single player sensibilities are protected by a +10 GfWL Firewall of Ineptitude

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Yapette
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July 16, 2009 - 11:19 pm
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Both great responses, thanks.

Helmut, I was aware of a ram limit issue (I have 4gb seen as 3) but wasn't sure if that were a 32-bit or XP limitation. The "Big Guys" seem to go 64-bit. From your description, sounds like I'm better as one of the lil' guys. I run nothing but games & a printer so a safe bet seems to be 32-bit.

Pokey, if I order Vista, it comes in either 32 or 64 bit, not both. Interesting what you've read about upgrades. I've read such conflicting "yes, this is the way it will be" that I count on nothing for certain.

Today's email about the d/l of Win7 RC only working till Aug. 20 means I can no longer avoid a decision. Off chance RC will be sufficient for an Win7 upgrade edition is motivation to get crackin'.

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Helmut
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July 17, 2009 - 1:13 am
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Actually, Yapette, thinking on this a bit more, the answer might not be so simple as obsolete driver comparison bitching. The commercial options available to you might swing your choice one way or t'other. For example, if you've got a great- but time limited- deal upgrading from Vista 32 to 7/64, it might be better to do that now than later. Perhaps for Win7 the 64 bit drivers are considered mainstream (rather than the legacy 32 bit ones from XP.

I sense a bit of a pent up demand for win-7 over vista. Firstly, it hasn't gotten egg-sucking reviews, secondly, there's a viable direct-x version (11) that has meaningful technical improvements over 9c other than Alan Wake is only Dx10, and DX10 is only Vista type nonsense. Therefore, win7 (64) might be the platform of choice that  you'd find yourself upgrading to,  more expensively, later.

My Dark Souls single player sensibilities are protected by a +10 GfWL Firewall of Ineptitude

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Steerpike
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July 17, 2009 - 11:26 am
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A couple points to add to this discussion -

Many of us here might want to pony up for the Win7 Professional Edition, because only that level and up have a Windows XP emulator. While I have had almost zero application compatibility problems with Win7 64-bit RC1, being able to play in XP compatibility mode might be helpful, especially for older games.

Also, Yap, if you must first install XP and then do an upgrade to Win7 (I'm not sure if this is so, but I think it was the case with Vista that you couldn't just pop in an XP CD and get cleared to used the upgrade), one way to avoid future hassle would be to just image your system the instant Win7 finishes its install. I like Acronis TrueImage.

I think, strictly speaking, when you upgrade a license (like from WinXP to Win7) you are transferring the license and invalidating the old one. But I don't see why you couldn't use that invalidated XP on another machine provided you upgraded to a new license of 7.

I really like Windows 7. I was late upgrading to Vista (last Sept) and really never liked it; Windows 7's RC is more stable than Vista SP2, even using Vista drivers for some of my hardware. I will definitely be going to the final version as soon as it comes out, and I think I'll go 64-bit, if only to future-proof myself a little.

Life is the misery we endure between disappointments.

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Yapette
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July 17, 2009 - 12:03 pm
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Analysis Paralysis. I'm chronically infected.

You-all understand that I have no intention of ever running Vista, either 32 or 64-bit, right? It will be the basis for an upgrade, only. Thus my wondering if I'd need a 32 or 64 version of Vista or perhaps it makes no nevermind as I must wipe the hard drive to put on Win7.

Steerpike, thank you very much for muddying the water even further. [Image Can Not Be Found] I do not want to put Professional into the equation although your argument makes too much sense to ignore.

[Image Can Not Be Found]

The need to decide is based on Win7's release in October & unlikelihood of a vista + win7 $109 combo as time passes.

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Pokey
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July 17, 2009 - 12:52 pm
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Isn't the XP mode of Win 7 Pro for business purposes and wouldn't help with games? Actually, I don't think it would work with most games. You can use the same compatibility in Win 7 Home Premium that you use in XP.

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Toger
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July 17, 2009 - 1:22 pm
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Or you just do what I do and wait until every new game brings your rig to its knees and then upgrade! [Image Can Not Be Found]  So far, only one game has refused to run on my system - Trine demo - and I don't really care 'cause I know I'll eventually have a PS3 to play it or they'll release it for 360. Problem solved!

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Steerpike
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July 17, 2009 - 3:48 pm
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To be honest, as much of a pain as it may be, when going from OS to OS it's probably wise to do a full nuke-and-pave regardless of whether an upgrade path exists from your current installation. Win7 has a lot in common with Vista (except the sucking), but it always seems safer to start clean.

Pokey, I'm not sure about the XP emulator being useless for games. I based my suggestion on something mentioned in MaximumPC; they didn't go into specifics, just said Pro and up had an XP emulator and that it could be helpful with compatibility. Of course, Microsoft's usual predatory pricing and six bazillion versions to choose from make the decision somewhat difficult.

Life is the misery we endure between disappointments.

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