32 bit vs 64 bit, in new computer?

[MikeThorne]

Hi

Ok I'm going to get a new computer, and I don't really know how I should go on the 64 vs 32 bit thing.

The programs that I use every day are Adobe Photoshop CS2, Adobe Illustrator CS3, Adobe Indesign CS2, Adobe Premier Elements 4 etc.

I also have voice software from NextUp and many games WOW, Tomb Raider etc.

I have external hard drive, with all my Ghost backups and data.

How will switching to 64 bit effect all this stuff?
Will my old Ghost backup be effected, etc.

As I said in another post I would like to run both Vista and XP Pro, on two seperate drives.

I have a unused install disks for both 32 and 64 bit XP.
So I can go either way on that.

I have an expensive Epson scanner, and a Cannon photo printer, any driver problems?

Any help would be appreciated

Mike

 

[SimonDavies]

Go for 64bit Vista, as far as 64bit XP goes it doesn't have the same driver support that 32bit XP does whereas 64bit Vista does.

As far as most of your programs are concerned they will run just fine, you may be able to find 64bit versions of them which will obviously run better with the greater amount of ram you will be able to run.

As far as games goes, WOW has no issues with it what so ever (I play.. alot).

I am not soo sure on the whole Ghost thing, it's been a while since I played with it.

With regards to your scanner and printer it will depend on whether there are drivers out there to support them and how old they are. I did plug in a HP Photo printer that required me to install drivers under XP but didn't under Vista.

Now further to your AMD\Intel thing, now knowing that you will be running Adobe software I would strongly suggest the i7 because of it's processing power over the AMD. Had you been just doing the odd Office\ Desktop Design thing then I would have said AMD but as you're also gaming and using heavy processor based programs the i7 will be the one best suited for your needs.

Simon

The real world is not about exam scores, it's about ability.

 

[MikeThorne]

Hi

Thanks: I think I'm finally getting a handle on this.
It's been a while since I bough a new computer and things have changed.

Mike

 

[kmcferrin]

The only difference in between 32-bit and 64-bit Windows is the amount of RAM it can use. The 32-bit Windows versions can only see 4GB of RAM (and only show around 3.5GB available because of some memory remmapping business that it does). The 64-bit Windows versions will support as much RAM as you can jam into your PC these days, and then some. It will be years before we hit the 64-bit memory limit.

Now the only downside is in software compatibility. If you run a 64-bit Windows version, 32-bit versions of Windows apps should run just fine, but 16-bit Windows apps will not run at all. Those are fairly few and far between these days, but it's worth mentioning. The other point is driver software. As someone else mentioned, it's much easier to find 64-bit Vista drivers than it is to find 64-bit XP drivers, but there are still some vendors who do not provide them. So always make sure that your hardware is supported before you buy it.

________________________________________
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MCTS:Hyper-V
MCTS:System Center Virtual Machine Manager
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[Nelviticus]

You're intending to dual-boot anyway so go for 32-bit XP and 64-bit Vista. You get the best of both worlds then.

I have an old-ish Canon scanner for which there are no Vista (nor Windows 7) drivers and never will be, so I have to keep XP or buy a new scanner. You can check on the Epson and Canon web sites to see whether there are 64-bit Vista drivers for your scanner and printer. If not, you'll only be able to use them when you boot XP.

Regards

Nelviticus

 

[manhunter2826]

Does the MS Office related software (versions 2003 and after) count as 32 or 16 bit? Thanks. (I am thinking the former?).

 

[Nelviticus]

32-bit.

Nelviticus

 

[manhunter2826]

Thanks Nel.

 

[kmcferrin]

Office is currently 32-bit, but there are 64-bit versions of Office 2010 in the works.

________________________________________
CompTIA A+, Network+, Server+, Security+
MCTS:Hyper-V
MCTS:System Center Virtual Machine Manager
MCSE:Security 2003
MCITP:Enterprise Administrator

 

[BadBigBen]

Note: The 2007 Microsoft Office system programs client is a 32-bit application and can run on a Windows 64-bit platform (Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Vista) but there may be some feature limitations as noted in the system requirements below.

Source: 2007 Microsoft Office system requirements

Ben

"If it works don't fix it! If it doesn't use a sledgehammer..."

How to ask a question, when posting them to a professional forum.

 

[xwb]

It is all to do with addressing. A 486 from n years ago could address 4Gb in flat addressing mode and 4Tb in segmented addressing. The latest pentiums are no different. Only problem is that nobody has adopted the segmented addressing mode so you are limited to 4Gb on 32-bit flat addressing. If the vendors keep with flat addressing then we have to go to 64 bits to access more memory.

Alternatively, they could stick with 32 bits and bank switch but after the problems that lots of people had with bank switching in the 80s and early 90s, nobody wants to go there anymore.

It is a repeat of what happened on the 286: the 286 could address 16Mb in protected mode. Some OSs like RMX used it but the rest of the world, thanks to IBM & MS, used it as a go faster 8086.