Should I install Win7 x64?

I can't notice a real difference tbh. BUT, why not switch to 64. some things run only on x86, but when u find something that is supposed to run on the 64bit u might notice a difference.

 

IMO it's worth the upgrade. However you aren't going to notice a night-day speed difference. You will just be able to have more junk open.

 

I'm using Win7 x64, runs smoothly, no crashes, nice UI. I'd recommend it for a stable, usable and visually appealing OS.

 

32bit only supports 3.3gb realistically.
You get all 4gb with 64, of which u may know already.
DO IT!

 

Do it. I am running 64-bit too and have had zero problems since day one. Unless you plan to use some really old accessories, drivers should not be an issue. Also good if you decide to add some extra ram later on.

 

xp ftw

 

I only lost .5GB on my old AMD system. You get a speed benefit only on programs that are designed to take advantage of it, like Photoshop. If you don't have a need to upgrade to x64, then don't. the .5-1gb loss isn't even noticeable anyways, unless you like to have 40 browser tabs and 10 programs open anyways. Crysis doesn't even use hardly more than a gig.

 

Well it depends on what you're doing. If you use Photoshop & emulators, game a lot, and unzip a lot of files, there will be a speed improvement. But there's not much of a noticeable difference if all you mainly use your PC for is day-to-day tasks.

Honestly, the best reason IMO to upgrade is so that you can get that extra GB of RAM, like you said. It's worth it alone just for that.

 

or get a sick ass video card

 

This.

The short story is, you can't use "all 4 GB" in 32-bit Windows. The amount you can use, though, differs from computer to computer.

The long story (and the reason for the "differing") is that devices such as your video card and hard drive controller, use "device space" of memory, which is address space (addresses) of memory that are outside of the memory you physically have installed. When the computer processes a "read" or "write" to one of these addresses, it passes it off to the device instead; this is called "direct memory access" (if I have my terminology correct). It allows the system to work with these devices much faster. However, in 32-bit Windows (or any 32-bit OS), the memory space is limited to the highest address of "FFFFFFFF" (32 "1" digits in binary - 32 bits - or 4,294,967,295 in hexadecimal). You might notice that number in decimal is equivalent to 4.0 GB. So the highest addressable memory space is exactly 4.0gb. The computer needs to reduce the amount of available memory in order to make room to address devices! But in 64-bit Windows, the highest space is "FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF", or... well, I'm even having trouble computing the number. *googles* 18,446,744,073,709,551,615. Yes, that's a large number, equivilant to... *thinks*... well, about 18 million terabytes. We'll never come near that number. So the computer has LOTS of room for device space and physical memory space.

It's all about memory capability... that's the ONLY reason to go 64-bit. 64-bit apps also have the benefit of improved memory management, allowing them to use more of your available memory (Photoshop, CAD, games, etc). But they must be 64-bit programs, and most games are not. So it's really about just being able to have more memory installed and usable. If you have 4gb, it's a good idea to go 64-bit so you can use those extra 512-1gb of installed RAM

 

Oh, when you do the migration, use Windows' built-in "Easy Transfer" utility. It'll save all your documents and personal files, and a lot of settings you wouldn't otherwise have access to. Also, it would be a good idea to go Start->Run, enter "%appdata%", hit OK, and browse through those folders for any programs (or program vendors, like Google for Google Chrome) you recognize and want to back up their settings. Copy them off somewhere and restore them to your new install's %appdata% folder when you get it set up, then reinstall the program (only reinstall after copying!, otherwise you might end up with a mix of junk files). That'll save you a lot of hassle. Saved games should (for some?) be stored in Documents, and would be restored when you copy that appdata folder back. For Steam, to avoid re-downloading all your games, just go to C:\Program Files\Steam, and back up the "steamapps" folder. When you reinstall Steam, do that first ".msi" install you download from the Steam site, then cancel the "Updating steam platform" dialog (the first brown-greenish Steam window you see after installing), then go to your "Program Files (x86)\Steam" folder and copy the backed-up folder back into there where you found it. Then, you can just "Install..." the games you had before, and it might even remember your saved games and stuff.

Sheez, I think I'm in just a too helpful mood today.

 

I just recently installed win7 64 because i wanted to be able to use all 8gb of RAM... gotta say, its worth it!

 

If Moore's Law stays the same. We will have 16 million terabytes by 2063.
I don't expect it to stay the same, but neither did people 30 years ago, so hmm..

Thanks for teaching me something new though(the 4.0gb minus device space thingy)

 

Congrats.

 

Grats! Enjoy your ram