64 bits vs 32 bits edition

[romansoft]

Hello,

Any URL or advice about pros&cons of using 64 bits OS, from a practical perspective?

- Would I notice a performance boost?
- Which kind of incompatibilities will I find?

The computer will be used for general purpose (at home) as well as more advanced tasks (virtual machines, etc).

Any feedback will be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.
-r

 

[dunklegend]

64 bits will need a 64 bit CPU.
64 bits will be able to access more than 4GB of RAM
64 bits doesn't have driver support as good as 32 bits

32 bits will work with a 64 bit CPU
32 bits will be able to access 4GB of total memory, so if you have 4GB you might see only 3GB of it.
32 bits has drivers for everything

 

[dunklegend]

About the performance boost, I think you will only see it in applications that are designed to take advantage of 64 bits.

Think of it as your PS3 playing a PS2 game, if the game is not designed to take advantage of the PS3 hardware the game will still look as if you had a PS2 instead.

 

[Dorfl]

Supposing all the needed drivers are there, what about a slowdown in games compiled for 32-bit when running WinXP's 64-bit version? Aren't most of them compiled for 32-bit? Or do most games come in both flavours? Or at least some of them? Particularly, what about BioShock and S.T.A.L.K.E.R?