If anyone could oblige, and give a quick and clean, point for point rundown of the pros and cons of having a 64-bit system over a 32-bit system, I would greatly appreciate it.

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Adam J. Myer
Slated for the Jan. 10th Chaplains Basic Officer Leadership Course
Estacada Christian Church
Sandy, Oregon

Soli Deo Gloria

That question is very hard to answer unless you describe what it is you want your system to do. Your intended purpose will help figure out whether it's advantageous for you to go to 64 bit (which really in my opinion has NO negatives - it's only the cost difference that might make you prefer a 32-bit architecture instead).

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Todd K. Pedlar
member, First Congregational Church, (CCCC) Cresco, IA
http://inprincipiodeus.solideogloria.com
http://puritanwisdom.blogspot.com

"As God did not at first choose you because you were high, He will not now forsake you because you are low."
John Flavel in Keeping the Heart



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You get a 64bit. You don't get a 32 bit if you have a choice of 64.

Simple enough?

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Fred Greco
Senior Pastor, Christ Church PCA (Katy, TX)
Christ Church Blog

"The heart is the main thing in true religion...It is the hinge and turning-point in the condition of man's soul. If the heart is alive to God and quickened by the Spirit, the man is a living Christian. If the heart is dead and has not the Spirit, the man is dead before God." (J.C. Ryle)

Well, well, Mr. Snappy-Answer (sounds like a Bunyan character)

I was going to say that "well, 64 is twice as much as 32, so it is twice as good". That's my technical answer. My less technical answer consists of an open-mouthed stare.

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Kevin, husband of a truly angelic woman, and father to ten.
Zion United Reformed Church of Sheffield
Ontario, Canada

Is it true that software written for a 32-bit OS won't run on a 64-bit system?

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Norm
IA PCA

In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will. Ephesians 1:4-5

32-bit software runs in 32-bit mode on a 64-bit system.

It might be true that there is some piece of software that won't run, but I am not aware of any major software that won't.

The occasion is that I will most likely be picking up a new laptop this week. The one I currently use is 32 bit system. The one I am looking at is only offered in 64 bit. I use my laptops for basic computing and word processing, but also for watching movies with my wife, and for some gaming with my boys.

What does it affect, and are there changes in software, etc, that have to be made between the two specs?

Btw, I can't believe how quickly computer sales change over the course of just 18mos. Everything that was a higher-end option (such as a BluRay slot drive, better processor, etc, etc) now comes standard on a similarly priced model. The baseline laptop even comes with a silly little facial security scan built in. Insane.

Seriously, Adam. Get the 64 bit. The newer programs will all eventually be 64 bit versions. The biggest immediate change is that 32-bit systems have a limitation of 3GB RAM. Even if you put in more, it really does not recognize or utilize it properly. 64-bit systems can.

You will be able to run 32-bit programs (I'm typing this on 32-bit Firefox on a 64bit system, and I use MS Office 2007 every day, which is also 32-bit), and won't be limited when newer programs come out only in 64-bit (which is still likely 2-3 years away at least). MS Office 2010, for example, has both 32 and 64 bit versions.

It's really very simple - 32 bit can only access 4GB of RAM. Systems with 4GB of ram are readily available these days and so one would think that in a couple of years it will be on the low end of the scale. Particularly if you want to play games, you will need more than 4GB.

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Paul
No denomination, affiliated with FIEC
"Deliver me from worldly dispositions, for I am born from above and destined for glory" - Valley of Vision
"They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation" - Peter

This system is upgradeable to 8GB of RAM, but for my purposes I think that is probably a bit overkill (as well as pricey).

64-bit architecture can handle a lot more RAM than 32-bit architecture. The downside is, drivers and such have to be rewritten to accommodate the 64-bit architecture, which means that 64-bit operating systems are often undersupported when it comes to drivers. Windows XP 64-bit was notorious for not having enough 64-bit drivers.

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Jonathan
Audio Engineer
Reformed Anabaptist
Ohio

Moroni's magical glasses of proper interpretation:

It's nice to know we have plenty of computer Geeks around here.

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Jim
1689 LBCF
Independent Bible Church
North Texas, USA

According to some Mac oriented sites information about the new Mac OS (Snow Leoplard) indicate that there is a performance issue with Intel's 32-bit implementation that is fixed by 64-bits.

"Snow Leopard's upgrade to 64-bit system apps provides an overall speed boost due to limitations in the original design of Intel's 32-bit chips; the move to the new 64-bit x64 processor model, originally developed by AMD, solves these issues. " (Apple Insider)

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Soli Deo Gloria

John Schultz
Member, Riveroaks Reformed Presbyterian Church (PCA)
Germantown, TN

"The reason why we worship God in a slight way is because we do not see God in His glory"
Jeremiah Burroughs

This is one of the reasons why Dos-Box was one of the greatest inventions ever.

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Benjamin P. Glaser, M. Div, Licentiate, Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church
Member Fairmount ARP Church
Pittsburgh, PA

Deo Vindice

toddpeddler's first answer nailed it. 32 bit is efficient, 64 bit is upgradeable. For what you said you'd be using it for, either one will be fine. I have one computer that's 32 bit that, if I ever fixed, that would be for gaming, but me and games have a bad history...The other one is 64 bit that I use for documentation, video, the like. No "real" reason other than personal preference that I have that setup.

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Zach Whitson
Clarksburg Baptist
Tipton, MO

My reco: Go with 64-bit architecture and OS. I have three systems presently 64-bit, two Intel and one AMD. Mix of Windows Vista and Ubuntu 64-bit OSes. Never had a problem getting an app to run. Never had an issue with driver support.

32-bit is so '90s.

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Tom Albrecht
Elder, Covenant URCNA, New Holland, PA.

"When I find the time, I'm going to write the social history of bourbon."

I agree with the recommendation to go to 64-bit for more RAM. If you're running Logos and a lot of other apps concurrently during research you might find it beneficial to have more RAM. RAM is so cheap today compared to what it used to be.

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Rich
PCA, Northern VA
Student, New Geneva Theological Seminary

WebsiteMaven - Web Hosting Reviews, Guides, and Advice to build and promote your web site.
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Well, I picked up the 64bit system with 4GB RAM. The upgrade from 3 to 4 was only about 56 bucks or so, but when you went from there up to 6 and subsequently 8 GB it jumped to 188.00 and then 332.00 or thereabouts. That's got to be some spiffy stuff.

Yeah. I remember paying $300 for 32K (yes, kilobytes) of extra memory in my original TRS-80.

Huh?

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Curt Lovelace
Pastor, Covenant Baptist Church (CBA)
Acton, Maine
Director, Lifework Forum
Sermons at SermonAudio.com/CBCActon
Blogging at Coffee with Curt

[quote=tcalbrecht;683978]I remember paying 25 cents for a loaf of bread.

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Sandra, Lady of the Lake
CBA, Acton ME
http://www.viewsfromthedeck.blogspot.com

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Hebrews 4:16