32 bit vs 64 bit OS

[Iggy]

Aight.... I jumped on a Circuit City deal, and installed 8GB of RAM in my system(bought the memory sticks and installed them myself).

I didn't notice when I first looked up the specs on the computer, that it'll only recognize 8GB with 64bit OS.

It'll only recognize 4GB with 32bit OS, which I'm assuming I'm running, since it is only showing the system as having 3.25GB....

Computer specs

I am running Winblows Vista Home(auto-updates on), because it came installed.

What are the options(preferably that don't cost money) to get that extra 4GB to recognize?

[mervaka]

afaict, 32bit addresses just dont work past that threshold. sorry.

[Iggy]

How about upgrading the OS? Costly procedure, I'm thinking.

[mervaka]

ubuntu 64bit? free

[Innoc]

Originally Posted by mervaka

afaict, 32bit addresses just dont work past that threshold. sorry.

Yes, 4gb is an absolute limit of 32 bit addressing.

Iggy, you'll have to reformat and reinstall a 64 bit OS if that's what you want.

[Mooga]

8gb of ram is a HARDWARE limitation, not software.
The mobo will only take up to 8.
Even my high-end board with 4 Ram slots only takes up to 8.

If you want to go up to 8 gigs of ram, 64-bit Vista or 64-bit *nix.
Hardware suport for *nix can sometimes be iffy.
You can game via Wine.

I would stay away from 64-bit XP (it's down right shady).

I would also run a VM of 32-bit XP in case you ever need it. I have yet to test graph abilities under VM though.

Remember, you can't run 16-bit software on a 64-bit OS. (At least with windows)

[noeffeks]

You paid 1300 for that rig?

Lolz.

[mervaka]

Originally Posted by Mooga

8gb of ram is a HARDWARE limitation, not software.
The mobo will only take up to 8.
Even my high-end board with 4 Ram slots only takes up to 8.

read his post again. his limitation is getting past 4GB, not 8. thats a software addressing problem.

Originally Posted by Mooga

You can game via Wine.

let me know any results. as much as i'd love to, i still have big performance issues.

[mervaka]

Originally Posted by Mooga

8gb of ram is a HARDWARE limitation, not software.
The mobo will only take up to 8.
Even my high-end board with 4 Ram slots only takes up to 8.

read his post again. his limitation is getting past 4GB, not 8. thats a software addressing problem.

Originally Posted by Mooga

You can game via Wine.

let me know any results. as much as i'd love to, i still have big performance issues.

just out of interest iggy, what the hell are you running that needs 8gb of ram? i have 2GB and only ever use it when in a heavy protools session or something.

[Iggy]

Originally Posted by noeffeks

You paid 1300 for that rig?

Lolz.

No, that was it's debut price. I paid $1000 for it last Dec.

Ok, so there is a 64bit version of Vista.... and a 64bit version of XP(so I'm guessing from the replies)...

Someone said to stay away from the XP version, so that's out.

I made the install disks when I got the machine... does it include both versions(I'm betting not)? I am not afraid to reformat/reinstall, as I've done it with every computer I've ever had(Yes, even my old C=64/12.

Worst comes to worst, I'll pull 4gigs and put them in my XP machine.

Edit: Nope, won't be doing that. DDR sockets won't handle DDR2.

[Mooga]

You would need to get a copy of 64-bit Vista.

And yes, there is a 64-bit XP. But it has issues. Also, XP really doesn't need 8GB of ram, lol.
The main issues with 64-bit XP are drivers and compatibility.
Even if you can find XP64 drivers for all your hardware, XP has issues. Also, some software simply has not been ported over to XP64. For example, there is a 64-bit version of iTunes for Vista, but NOT XP. This makes using iTunes with XP64 a real pain in the ass because stuff just doesn't work. I also had video drive issues. I couldn't get any version of Media Player Classic to run stable.

[Mulchman MM]

I'm on 64 bit win xp pro and have yet to have a problem running any software. the only hardware issue i've had is a really old webcam not working.

i got the os from newegg (oem version for cheap)

[Credge]

Just some FYI, you can make Vista just as light as XP.

[StinkyTaco]

Avoid 64 bit vista like the plague!!!

There are still people around selling OEM version's of X64, try as hard as you can to get it before it is too late.

One other safe option is to use the Wubi installer for Ubuntu. It makes a fake partition in your windows install .
After installing you will have a full blown Dual boot system, and you wont need to re-partition your hard disk

The applications that will allow you to use more than 4 gigs of ram:
Blender 3D
POV ray
Hydrogen
Cinelerra

There are some 64 bit Linux games out there too:
All Valve Half life 2 or orange box games
Quake wars
Unreal 3 and 2004
Red orchestra

The Ubuntu 64 bit desktop is much faster than the 32bit one, but it is also buggy as hell. It is no big deal. If you ever had to deal with a pre-windows DOS system, you will be right at home.Just hit the forums, and cut and past in the terminal to fix most common problems

Some things are far beyond windows, and other things are in the phukking stone age .

But what the hell, it is free, and you can get a jolly from all your new ram and actually use your 64 bit processor. There are even a couple modern games you can play to impress you friends

[Innoc]

Originally Posted by Iggy

No, that was it's debut price. I paid $1000 for it last Dec.

Ok, so there is a 64bit version of Vista.... and a 64bit version of XP(so I'm guessing from the replies)...

Someone said to stay away from the XP version, so that's out.

I made the install disks when I got the machine... does it include both versions(I'm betting not)? I am not afraid to reformat/reinstall, as I've done it with every computer I've ever had(Yes, even my old C=64/12.

Worst comes to worst, I'll pull 4gigs and put them in my XP machine.

Edit: Nope, won't be doing that. DDR sockets won't handle DDR2.

The only version of Vista that includes both 32 bit and 64 bit versions is Vista Ultimate. I know a number of people that run Vista 64 with little trouble. The issue always is drivers. If you have older hardware that you like it may very well be that drivers do not exist. It's worth researching in advance as you will have to replace any hardware that has no drivers with newer stuff that does have drivers....this includes printers and other peripherals as well.

[Iggy]

Well, all of my external hardware was left on my old system for that very reason. No drivers in Vista. Even the "recommended substitute" drivers didn't work. So, the only hardware attached to this computer, is what came with it, except the modem and monitor(which is a newer flatscreen, and shouldn't have a problem).

Now, my machine IS a Media-Center box, complete with HD capable tv tuner card. This concerns me, because I'm not sure if I can just install THAT from the recovery disks if I upgrade(heh, shut up) to 64bit Vista, or if I'll have to drop more for the MC version of 64bit Vista.

[Innoc]

Originally Posted by Iggy

Well, all of my external hardware was left on my old system for that very reason. No drivers in Vista. Even the "recommended substitute" drivers didn't work. So, the only hardware attached to this computer, is what came with it, except the modem and monitor(which is a newer flatscreen, and shouldn't have a problem).

Now, my machine IS a Media-Center box, complete with HD capable tv tuner card. This concerns me, because I'm not sure if I can just install THAT from the recovery disks if I upgrade(heh, shut up) to 64bit Vista, or if I'll have to drop more for the MC version of 64bit Vista.

If it is a Media Center machine then you may want to give Vista Ultimate a look as it has a few extras's targeted at that use. It is, however, pricey. I have a Sister in law that works for Microsoft so I'm able to get it at a fraction of it's cost. You might look around your sphere of influence and see if anyone you know works for them.

[Scuzzy]

I'm running Vista Ultimate 64 bit on my tablet and it freaking rocks, no problems with 64 or 32 bit programs, they both work great. Only thing I don't like is that there isn't a 64 bit driver for my old camcorder, so I have to rip video on my older xp machine and transfer them here for editting.

Scuzzy

[Iggy]

^^ That's not too bad of a step, if you have the computers networked together.

Thanks for all the info, everyone! I think I'll have to save up some capitol and get a more advanced OS. Unfortunately, I have to stick with Winblows, because of the programs I use.

[Innoc]

Originally Posted by Iggy

^^ That's not too bad of a step, if you have the computers networked together.

Thanks for all the info, everyone! I think I'll have to save up some capitol and get a more advanced OS. Unfortunately, I have to stick with Winblows, because of the programs I use.

Not that it may impact your decision but the successor to Vista is supposed to release next year...