Usable RAM

New poster seeking a little clarification and advise.

I recently purchased a Toshiba Tecra - i7 - 8gig - 128 SSHD - Win 7 - running 32 bit.

The computer shows 8 gig - 2.86 usable.

Question 1:

If I convert to 64 bit will 8 gig be usable and is it worth the effort?

I process 21mp photos with Lightroom 3.

Question 2:

Will XP see 4 gig if I upgrade my Toshiba Satelight from 2 gig?

Thanks in advance.

 

Well, there is no point on having the 8GB of RAM if running 32-bit, as it can only address around 3GB. Your only wasting your RAM by using it. Upgrade to 64-bit so you can utilize it all.

Windows XP won't see 4GB, like above, it will see around 3GB, as you have to factor in other aspects of the system.

 

As you no already the 32 bit systems only support around 3gig. I have an XP Pro laptop with 4gig on a 32 bit system and use an aftermarket program called eboostr. It uses the hidden ram and other storage devices like memory cards and usb drives to store paging info. The flash memory and hidden ram are faster than the hard drive so there is an increased speed in the startup of many programs. My system is currently using the 1gig of hidden ram and an additional 8gig of flash to do this. On your comp with 7 I believe all the ram would be available if you go to 64 bit, but wait for confirmation from somebody else who has done this. For kicks try the trial of eboostr on your windows 7 computer and watch how fast programs load.

 

Thank you Joel, that is what I suspected.

Reb1:
The Solid State Hard Drive has almost zero wait time when loading programs and the Tecra in it's present state is extremely fast for my computing needs.

Is the a way to upgrade to 64bit without reloading the entire system?

 

Psychic1: Ram is faster than a solid state drive. I have not seen a solid state drive that works with XP properly yet either. So trying the eboostr on both systems is not a bad idea. If I was putting 64 bit on a computer I would do a clean install.

 

You can only do a clean install, you cannot upgrade from 32-bit, AFAIK.

 

Thanks Joel, after I finish my project I'll reinstall.
Thanks Reb, the SSHD is in the 17 / Win 7 box.

 

Indrek:
Windows 7 asks if you wish to run 32 or 64 bit on the initial startup.
My wife chose the default.

 

That's not possible. It is either installed as 32 or 64 bit, not both. They even require separate installation disks. If your laptop has the 32-bit OS, it came that way. No need to blame your wife.

 

I don't know, it is conceivable that the manufacturer has this laptop set up so that it boots into a custom installer on its first start, which could then ask what system to install. I have never heard of such a thing myself, but it is possible, I suppose. In any case, I would chalk this up to bad configuration of a manufacturer trying to save a few bucks. As has been said before, even offering a 32-bit option for a laptop that has 8GB of memory is inane, to say the least.

 

The Toshiba startup screen asks 32bit or 64bit.
That is what my wife told me and she does not know from 32 and 64.
She choose 32 because it was the default.

 

I believe it has something to do with the recovery partition and setup of the notebook. You can choose which one you want set up. Though it was a once off thing, yes? Your wife already selected 32-bit which ends our confusion of why the manufacturer would install a 32-bit OS on 8GB of RAM, they didn't. Your wife did. (Please, correct me if I'm wrong)

 

Joel:
You are correct, it is my wife's fault.
Would you like to tell her?

 

Uh, I wasn't saying it was your wife's fault. It's no one's fault, except Toshiba's for having a selection. It was more of a simple mistake.

You can download a 64-bit version of your OS for free from this thread, use your key, and now you can utilize your full 8GB of RAM.

 

Perhaps a factory restoration attempt will allow to chose the OS version a second time? At least I would try that.

Michael

 

I'll call Toshiba when I am ready to reinstall.
Thanks all.

 

You can download a Windows 7 x64 .iso completely free and legal from the links on this forum, and you can install it using the key on the bottom of your laptop (keys are not tied to 32-bit or 64-bit versions).

 

No, it is most emphatically not your wife's fault. It's Toshiba's fault. Your wife should not have to know esoteric crap like that in order to use a laptop she bought. If I was you I'd call them and give them an earful or, better yet, simply return the laptop and have them give you a new one, since the one they gave you "isn't working". Maybe that'll teach them a lesson.

 

And, no, a customer should not have to waste hours to fix stuff that the manufacturer (again, not the customer's wife!) of a device he bought had screwed up.

 

Actually, for me it is no-big-deal.
I recently reinstalled XP on my 3 year old Satellite and tailored everything to my needs, and as an older (60) person it is my way of keeping up with technology.
I will reinstall 7 upon completion of my project and have the fastest laptop at the AARP meeting.

 

I guess your photographs are from an EOS 5D MK II?

-> If you see any speed increase from 32Bit to 64Bit it will not be due to the increased amount of RAM available, but more due to the programming code which can handle larger amounts of data quicker working in 64Bit.

To be honest - I run a laptop on Vista with 4GB RAM and 21MP RAW files from an EOS 5D MK II process fine - I can't imagine it getting any quicker really...

 

Canon EOS 1DsIII professionally, so I wanted a machine to run batch for events from multiple photographers.

Presently there is zero wait time but I will probally move to 64 bit because it is the future.

Canon will probally be moving to 32mp with the 1DsIV and 5DIII sooner than later.

Something to look foward to

 

Expensive... worth the money for your shots? (aside from the fact that I couldn't afford one, it would have zero benefit for me, it's just a hobby though)

Now back on topic - batch processing you might see an speed increased, although I'd say your main gain was still the processor. (as opposed to say a normal dual core)