Should i use 64 bit software?

so i have windows xp home. can't afford vista right now and actually would like to see it first. can and should i use the 64 bit drivers and other aps with it?

What 64 bit software?

There isn't really much of it out there yet. We ran it at work on one of my machines and it was a waste. It really only caused problems in the long since their was not enough support. There are only a handful of software packages that us 64bit. If you use that software every day then it might be worth it. If not don't use XP 64, which is what I'm assuming you were talking about.

Stay with 32bit. 64bit is for posers.

he was talking about vista 64 bit.

for your information, Vista as an operating system is simply too immature right now and really shouldn't be bothered with for a while to come.

as for 64 bit, the headaches outweigh the benefits, so you really should stick with 32 bit until it is ready. just like you should wait for vista to be ready before moving onto it

i didn't think i could use the 64 bit drivers....but thought i would ask about it just in case...

For the 32-bit version of Vista you use the 32-bit drivers.
For the 64-bit version of Vista you use the 64-bit drivers.

The problem is that a for a lot of hardware drivers still do not exist for Vista. Too many companies have
no plans to create Vista drivers for anything but the latest and future hardware. The problem is bad enough
for the 32-bit version of Vista but is even worse for the 64-bit version of Vista.

Advantages of Vista 32-bit:
* Better software compatibility
* Better driver support

Advantages of Vista 64-bit:
* Software designed for 64-bit sometimes runs faster
* Can address a lot more memory

The problem with the advantages of the Vista 64-bit is that not much software exists yet that is 64-bit
and at the same time performs much better. That will certainly change in the next few years.

The memory advantage is not a big deal yet. In the next few years as memory prices drop, application
require it, and motherboards support a lot more memory that will make Vista 64-bit look a lot more attractive.

Some may say that if you buy the Vista 32-bit and later wish you had Vista 64-bit you will be paying
twice because to get Vista 64-bit you have to buy another copy of Vista. I say not to worry about that. In a
year or two when Vista 64-bit has enough support then you will probably want to buy another computer anyways
to take advantage of its virtues.

For example suppose that in two years it is reasonable to buy 16-GB of RAM. Your present motherboard
probably will not support that much memory. Even if it did then the type of memory available then might not
even work in your motherboard.

Even Vista 32-bit is still too new (buggy) to worry about right now. Of course if you are buying a new computer
then you have no choice but to get Vista. Just make sure the harware is good enough to really support Vista well.
In 6-12 months it will look a lot better for Vista 32-bit as the support gets better. Also by that time you will
be in a better position to decide whether Vista 64-bit has gained enough support to make it worthwhile.

i have to admit its a shame to have the hardware and theres no software for it to speak of. i went through hell to get this cpu and can't use its features. like u said though in time i should get to see the capabilities of it

Since the Athlon 64 (64-bits!) has been out 3-1/2 years now we have already been waiting quite a while. Even Intel has had 64-bit CPUs two years now. Most if not all AMD and Intel CPUs are probably 64-bit now. Even though they run fine on 32-bit OSs their full 64-bit power is wasted.

Also consider that Vista 64-bit has only been out a month now. Even though Windows XP 64-bit blazed the way it was never fully supported. You just have to be patient a while longer. I see the the thing that will push things forward is memory. As more and more people max out on 4 GB with Vista 32-bit, memory prices keep dropping and software grows in size there will a desire to move to 64-bits just to be able to use more memory. Have you noticed how software tends to grow in size every year?

I think that Microsoft could help things along in a year or so when Vista 64-bit has enough support and memory is cheap enough. They could do so by offeringing Vista 64-bit at a big discount.

Even though I place a lot of blame on Microsoft for taking so long to come out with a 64-bit version of Windows I place even more blame on the hardware companies for not supporting all the old hardware out there. There are probably millions of existing PCs out there with 64-bit CPUs but most people are holding back on any version of Vista because of the lack of drivers for older hardware.

i have no choice since i'm broke right now. i have noticed 64 bit drivers for just about everything i have in my pc. so i guess we will all have to wait and see what microsoft does. until then lets get a 30 pack.

Let we see ... you want 64 bit software and 64 bit OS ? And you dont have money ?

BINGO !!! I have sollution for you: Linux.

It runs with 64bit kernel for years, it is stable and it is free.

is there going to be much difference with windows......are there 64 bit drivers for it, and where do i get it

its becoming more of an operating system issue. if anyone knows how i could overclock this cpu that would be a help though

read the overclocking section's stickies

here is the overclocking section:
http://www.devhardware.com/forums/cpu-overclocking-19/

i donload the dashboard from amd and windows no longer worked after the reboot.....it wouldn't even let me into safe mode. so since i had to redo windows i put the xp pro 64 bit trial in. installed all the 64 bit drivers. it seems to run great. 3dmark05 even gives me 200 more points with it. i have seen it for sale for 40 bucks. i am thinking i'm gonna buy it. i am going to give it more time first. but so far everything runs great.

I am resurrecting this thread to include some information I was unaware of...

Windows Vista Ultimate comes with both 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64) versions in the box, on separate DVDs; purhcasers of other retail 32-bit Vista versions can order the 64-bit version from Microsoft for a nominal fee.

Order 64-bit Vista DVDs here