Should I install vista 32 or 64 on new computer?

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Kryogen

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I have an old comp with vista home premium 32 bit right now.

I JUST BOUGHT a new computer with Q6600 and 4 GB DDR2 and Geforce 260, and just ordered my 64 bit version from MS for 15$.

Should I install vista 64 bit on new comp, or should I stay with 32 bit? Are there still alot of compatibility issues, or it's just fine, and it will run faster, and ill be able to play WoW anyway?

Thx
 
Vista x64 is really meant for systems with 4GB or more of RAM. XP x64 runs fine on 1GB, but Vista's architecture is such that there's no real utility (that I'm aware of) to installing it on less than 4GB of RAM. What else is in this "old" machine of yours?
 
Sovereign said:
Vista x64 is really meant for systems with 4GB or more of RAM. XP x64 runs fine on 1GB, but Vista's architecture is such that there's no real utility (that I'm aware of) to installing it on less than 4GB of RAM. What else is in this "old" machine of yours?
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No real utility to what? What kind of psychobabble talk is that? :D It works with 1GB just fine, not GREAT, not FANTASTIC, not SPECTACULARLY AWESOMELY WELL, but it works. And yes, I realize you're referring to Vista x64 with that tagline added there...

Vista x64 works fine with 1GB - it depends on what the user is doing with the machine that matters. If it's your typical average Joe (not me, I assure you) or average Mary, they'll typically only run one application at a time, most likely their browser, or perhaps a browser and a word processor, perhaps those two and a media player for some background music. Those three apps won't cause significant hits to performance even on a 1GB machine with Vista x64 installed.

If the user decides to play a game, they'll most likely shut every other application down and give the game exclusive use of the whole power of the PC, and again, with 1GB of RAM, Vista x64 should work just fine for most games - I say "most" because there are only a small handful of games out there that truly require monster horsepower to get the absolute best experience from them. WoW ain't one of 'em... unless you're trying to play it at 2560x1600 resolution on a 30" LCD, of course. :D

I don't know where the 1GB amount even came into this from anyway: the OP didn't mention RAM, and he doesn't have hardware info in his sig...

Vista x64 = works fine with 1GB, works great with 2GB, is outstanding with 4GB or more. That's about as simple as it needs to be.
 
I thought the only reason to put Vista x64 on a computer was because of 4GB RAM or more. I only mentioned 1GB as a reference point because of my prior belief about 1GB != "needing" x64 (in terms of the memory limit).
 
There's a big misconception that just because someone chooses to run a 64 bit OS they automagically should double or quadruple their RAM. 64 bit code doesn't necessarily require twice as much RAM as a 32 bit version of the same code does, nor does the 64 bit code sitting on the hard drive automagically require twice as much space to store it.

So, that leads to the conclusion that 64 bit - while working better with more RAM - does not specifically require it. I can run XP Pro x64 on a machine with 1GB of RAM and, at the Desktop it'll take about 190MB of RAM - precisely what XP Pro x86 does on the exact same machine. I've done that test many times, and by default, the two OSes consume roughly the same amount of RAM to get to the Desktop, and during regular usage of the machine.

Where RAM is concerned, more is better. Aside from straight up CPU speed/power, not much else in the PC can always say that. :D More hard drive space isn't necessarily better if it craps out and you lose all of it; video cards going faster are nice but the power requirements and heat production can kill 'em, just like CPUs... but RAM... never can you have enough of it. :D
 
To answer the OP - to future proof, you can't go wrong with a 64bit one.
 
64bit has the better memory management and blah blah blah, just put it on the system. You probably wouldn't notice a difference one way or another, but if you ever decide for more ram, and with ram as cheap as it is for DDR2, your already safe from having to format.
 
Sorry I wasnt clear. Vista 64 is for my NEW comp with Q6600 and 4 gb DDR2.

Are there alot of compatibility issues with 64 bit or it's a no brainer and just go 64 bit?

Thx
 
Kryogen said:
Sorry I wasnt clear. Vista 64 is for my NEW comp with Q6600 and 4 gb DDR2.

Are there alot of compatibility issues with 64 bit or it's a no brainer and just go 64 bit?

Thx
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It's a no-brainer. Go for it. Unless you happen to run 10 year old+ programs with 16bit installers or anything. And if you do, run them in a XP VM session.
 
x64

Works great on newer machines and is a joy to use. I notice the speed difference in some things over 32bit even on 2gb of RAM. (laptop and desktop)
 
Personally, 32-bit Vista makes no sense to me. XP is for 32-bit. If you're going to upgrade to a new computer (and considering how dirt cheap RAM is), then you might as well go full tilt and upgrade to 64-bit at the same time.

I would guess that most 32-bit software that works well in Vista32 will work well in Vista64, and software will increasingly be written for 64-bit moving forward.
 
The only reason to stay with 32-bit is if you are using Vista Media Center, as it seems to have issues with codec's and playback.
If you just use WMP or MPC-HC then you are fine, but sometime VMC acts up with x64.
 
I'm surprised we still have this question. It's a new system with 4 GB of memory. Vista x64 it is.
 
It isn't going to hurt to add more memory, and if you know you want be doing any full system upgrades for a while, you can get an extra 2 or 4 GB kit for cheap now.
 
You cant have too much memory.....it can always be use for something

As cheap as memory is max out the board and make a RAMDisk and install your games to ram.

I run a 14gb ramdisk with development apps on it....starting Adobe premier, dreamweaver, Visual studio in a matter of seconds is pretty sweet.
 
Kryogen said:
Sorry I wasnt clear. Vista 64 is for my NEW comp with Q6600 and 4 gb DDR2.

Are there alot of compatibility issues with 64 bit or it's a no brainer and just go 64 bit?

Thx
Click to expand...

Its a no brainer, i run it on my PC now, and loaded it on my Boss's new PC. I don't run it on my work pc because i use Cisco VPN A LOT. . . . .and they don't have a 64 bit client, and may never have one who knows.

So, if you don't use any cisco VPN clients, then 64 bit is the way to go
 
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