32bit vs 64bit Vista

What are the differences between the two? Which one is better for gaming? I am planning on getting vista ultimate once the M570RU comes out and I don't know which one to go with. I have heard of dual booting, is it an easy process? as I have not done it before. Lastly, does dual booting slow down the system?

 

For gaming, stick with Windows XP 32-bit for the near future.

 

Not much reason to dual-boot the two really. Dual-booting is better for keeping a copy of XP installed for those few apps/games that don't work right under Vista (either version). And dual-booting won't effect speed, only delay start-up by a couple of seconds while you select the OS you want. It's easy enough to do, though it's best to install XP first, then Vista.

For gaming, there's not much difference, yet, between 32-bt and 64-bit systems, although a few games (Source-engine games, FarCry) that have 64-bit enhanced versions. With the release of the upcoming Crysis and Unreal 3 engines, many more games will be enhanced in some way for 64-bit systems. The improvements in most cases are pretty small. The biggest advantage of a 64-bit OS, is support for more than 4 GB of RAM, so that's not likely to make much of a difference on most systems.

I recommend Vista-64, for the most part, just because there will be more and more 64-bit "enhanced" apps that come out over time. The major condition, though, is that you'll need to make sure all of your hardware has 64-bit drivers available. If not, then don't waste your time. For most apps (which are 32-bit), any difference in speed between running them on a 32-bit OS vs. a 64-bit OS, is trivial to nonexistant. All my systems, from notebook, to media PC, to gaming PC/workstation, are running Vista-64 very nicely -- with no real compatibility issues.

Hope that helps.

 

As a side note, many hardware vendors have 64bit Vista drivers. Together with Windows Update, you should have little or no problem transitioning to 64bit.

64bit sounds cool isn't it?

 

I can also vouch for Vista x64, works like a charm on my desktop. No hardware compatibility issues at all. Only a sound driver issue that was my fault (needed to switch two mic wires).

 

Guys, I got a 32bit version of Vista express upgrade for my Lenovo T60.

Is it possible to buy a 64bit version of Vista from Lenovo by paying just an extra 20 dollars or something? (or do I have to pay the full amount?)