Jump to content

Vista X64...........Worth Moving To?


adrian2055

Recommended Posts

I got a little question. Is there any other reason besides memory limitation to use 64bit Vista? I mean, vast majority of software is still only available in 32bit versions and there are even no intentions to release in 64bit. Why is that? Under such conditions, what's the advantage of 64bit OS?
I would say there are 2 big reasons, and one smaller one.

The first big reason is, of course, utilizing memory above the 4GB boundary - RAM has gotten so cheap (relative to the rest of the machine's components) that having 8GB of RAM or more is affordable for most people building or buying a new machine. That means far more apps open/running at any time, less swapping, and much better performance overall (especially for memory-hungry apps, like photoshop for example).

The next big reason would be utilizing your CPU(s) to the fullest. 32bit Windows running on a 64bit CPU only has access to the first 32 registers on the x64 CPU. Using an x64 OS, you get access to the other 32 registers as well, and this is the main reason most people find Windows and apps to "feel faster" (if only marginally) on an x64 system with x64 Windows vs x86 Windows. Things *do* execute faster, again if only marginally, when the CPU can be fully utilized. With 64bit apps starting to come down the line, having an x64 CPU and 8GB (or more) of RAM really does a good bit to "future-proof" your computer investment as well. You can run almost all x86 apps in WOW64 emulation, and of course you get the benefit of running x64 apps as they come down.

The small reason I mention is upgrades. Win7 is going to be the last version of Windows that will ship with a 32bit client (Win7 server, aka Server 2008 R2, is already x64-only), meaning that if you like to upgrade your version of Windows you will need the x64 Vista or Win7 if you wish to upgrade to Win8 (whatever that will be named). Like I said it is a *small* reason, but it is something to consider.

There are probably other reasons that may be important, but I wanted to address specifically the *hardware* reasons (and the small OS issue) that you would consider in an x86 vs x64 comparison.

Link to comment
Share on other sites


"future-proof"

+1

Anyway:

I got a little question. Is there any other reason besides memory limitation to use 64bit Vista? I mean, vast majority of software is still only available in 32bit versions and there are even no intentions to release in 64bit. Why is that? Under such conditions, what's the advantage of 64bit OS?

I'm not going to say that all 32bit software works in 64bit, but I've never ran across any that didn't except for apps that required drivers to work. All drivers have to be 64bit.

You also get the added benefit of the 16bit subsystem being totally removed, which also gets rid of the bugs and compatability issues that were present in it.

Edited by MrCobra
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...