operating system 34 bit 64 bit

What are the advantages of a 64 bit Vista operating system over a 34 bit one? Besides the fact that you can put 4gb RAM in your laptop.

I am curious because I just ordered a Lenovo Thinkpad T500 and I regret not upgrading it.

 

(From Wiki)

A common misconception is that 64-bit architectures are no better than 32-bit architectures unless the computer has more than 4 GB of memory. This is not entirely true:

* Some operating systems reserve portions of process address space for OS use, effectively reducing the total address space available for mapping memory for user programs. For instance, Windows XP DLLs and userland OS components are mapped into each process's address space, leaving only 2 to 3.8 GB (depending on the settings) address space available, even if the computer has 4 GB of RAM. This restriction is not present in 64-bit operating systems.

(This also applies to computers running Windows Vista with Service Pack 1 as it only shows the installed RAM not the usable.)

* Memory-mapped files are becoming more difficult to implement in 32-bit architectures, especially due to the introduction of relatively cheap recordable DVD technology. A 4 GB file is no longer uncommon, and such large files cannot be memory mapped easily to 32-bit architectures; only a region of the file can be mapped into the address space, and to access such a file by memory mapping, those regions will have to be mapped into and out of the address space as needed. This is a problem, as memory mapping remains one of the most efficient disk-to-memory methods, when properly implemented by the OS.
* Some programs such as data encryption software can benefit greatly from 64-bit registers (if the software is 64-bit compiled) and effectively execute 3 to 5 times faster on 64-bit than on 32-bit.

The main disadvantage of 64-bit architectures is that relative to 32-bit architectures the same data occupies more space in memory (due to swollen pointers and possibly other types and alignment padding). This increases the memory requirements of a given process and can have implications for efficient processor cache utilization. Maintaining a partial 32-bit model is one way to handle this and is in general reasonably effective. In fact, the highly performance-oriented z/OS operating system takes this approach currently, requiring program code to reside in any number of 32-bit address spaces while data objects can (optionally) reside in 64-bit regions.

 

For one, its 32, not 34
And basically 64 bit is the future.

 

The good news is, the keys are the same, so you can install 64-bit Vista and use your 32-bit Vista key to activate it. But... you have to obtain a 64-bit Vista disc to do this.

In the mean time, 32-bit right now offers better compatibility with existing hardware and software, so you may want to make sure everything you need can work with 64-bit before taking the plunge.

If you believe that you don't have any incompatibilities, and you have access to a 64-bit Vista disc, I recommend moving to 64-bit, since 64-bit Vista runs slightly smoother in my experience, and has some security advantages as well.

 

Hopefully Windows 7 will shed it's x86 (16bit) compatibility and go with 32 and 64 bit only.