Any point in Windows XP Pro 64 bit?

A

Andrew_Carr

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Right now I've got the option of going for either Windows XP Pro or Windows XP Pro x64. Last I heard about the 64 bit version, there were quite a few compatibility issues and getting drivers was a pain. Will I see any worthwhile advantage by using the 64 bit version? I'm going to be gaming mostly, and from what I've seen, it'll have little to no effect either way on that.
 
I run XP64 on my "gaming rig" which I use mostly for Final Fantasy XI but I occasionally play other, older titles.

"Basic" gaming-wise, XP64's drivers are going to depend on your hardware. I have an nVidia 7950GT video card, which has the exact same version drivers as 32-bit XP. I have a Creative Labs X-Fi, which has the exact same version drivers as 32-bit XP. I know ATI is the same way.

Where people tend to get the "64-bit drivers suck LOL" idea is when the hardware starts getting more varied. Printers are completely hit or miss, though I have seen some reports of Vista64 printer drivers installing in XP64 without issue, and more Vista64 drivers are coming all the time. The older the printer, the less likely the manufacturer is going to bother with 64-bit drivers, instead just pointing you to their newer printers. For any "vertical" hardware (ie. keyboards that require special drivers to work) and older hardware, it's going to require some investigation to determine if XP64 drivers exist.

As far as games themselves, when I'm not in FFXI I typically screw around with some older games, like UT2004 (64-bit Edition), Tribes2, Age of Empires III.. I have a few other old titles, and they all work perfectly in XP64. I also fool with emulators, which don't have any problems specific to running on XP64. The latest Gamecube emulator release is 64-bit only. Again, checking beforehand is a must.

Benefits of XP64? Hmm.. Well, there's that 4GB+ memory support, and the ability to run 64-bit versions of apps and games if they exist. Not that there's much benefit, but you never know. I wouldn't necessarily say XP64 is more stable or faster than XP32 under most conditions.

I run XP64 because (a) I got it free, (b) FFXI doesn't really like Vista, and (c) curiosity. I probably would not have purchased it, but now that I have it I have no desire to go back to XP32. In fact with XP64 on my gaming rig and Vista64 on my laptop, I have no need for 32-bit OSs at all. Woohoo!
 
As long as you verify ahead of time that you can get available, working drivers for all your hardware, go for it. That being said, if this is a gaming PC, and you want to take advantage of XP64's memory handling, you really should upgrade your system memory. It's dirt cheap now, so there's no time like the present. I don't like telling people to spend money, but if there's one single thing you could do to see the greatest benefit, add memory.
 
Yeah, the system in my sig is now a surfing rig for my parents(I couldn't afford a second stick of ram at the time). I just built a new one with 2GB of RAM, so I think I'll be alright for a bit.
 
Yeah, 2 GB would be fine for a gaming system. Just as a side thought...if you're asking about a system other than the one in your sig, mention it's specs, as it would help people to give a better answer. If not, we will assume you mean the one listed in your sig.
 
in the last year or so, I've spent serious amounts of time running xp pro, xp pro x64, vista home premium, and vista ultimate x64.

I have come to the conclusion that xp pro x64 is the best way to go, right now. based on the factors of driver support, reliability, responsiveness, and performance. Perhaps i'm crazy, :eek:but I liked it the best. I have had the least amount of problems with it, other than finding x64 applications to replace the x86 ones. (but hey; do I really need a 64-bit media player? nah... I will survive.):D
 
n3g471v3 d3c1b3l said:
\(but hey; do I really need a 64-bit media player? nah... I will survive.):D
Click to expand...
Are you kidding? XP64 (and Vista64) comes with a 64-bit version of notepad. For those times you need to view text files over 2GB in size!

We need 64-bit versions of everything! You NEVER KNOW!
 
Why lol?

A fellow I was chatting to a few minutes ago was, at the time, busy fiddling with a 1.7Gb SQL file he had loaded into Notepad ;)
 
Catweazle said:
Why lol?
Click to expand...
I'll even add another point to this. We won't truly see the full benefits of a 64 bit OS until all apps are written to take advantage of it. As long as people cling to the old x86 OSes, drum roll please, developers won't feel there's a need to change their code. If more and more people use x64 OSes, that will spur the developers to write for them as well. Given that there's no downside to running x64, especially in the Vista arena, why not?
 
Gah, so I installed it last night, but quite a bit of the files couldn't be read from the disc so I skipped over them. Now I have a useless OS. Unfortunately, my keyboards for just long enough for me to BIOS, but not long enough for me to hit any key to boot from my OS disc. Then they go back to working when the OS finally loads. It's really weird.
 
Andrew_Carr said:
Gah, so I installed it last night, but quite a bit of the files couldn't be read from the disc so I skipped over them. Now I have a useless OS. .
Click to expand...
Newegg.com has the OEM legit version for sale, if you'd like to put the torrents away for the night.
 
If I even attempt to download torrents then Ft. Huachuca finds out and my computer gets wiped. I am also fortunate enough to go to a school where most the software I need, like Windows, is bought for me. Thanks for looking out for my well being though :rolleyes:
 
Been using XP-64 on one of my computers for over a year. A couple other considerations:

- It wouldn't recognize my MB Raid controller (even though it's supposed to be 64-bit)
- Only recently have anti-virus apps for 64-bit been available. I've been using Avast.
- Still haven't found 64-bit anti-spam software.
- Printer drivers missing (as mentioned).
- Some game's installers don't work.

I'm using it because it was free too. Don't know that I'd pay more than 32-bit XP Pro, but if it's cheaper I'd consider it. I'm starting a transition to Vista Home 64-bit and drivers seem more available. For example, my Canon printer that wouldn't work with the 64-bit patch in XP works fine again in Vista 64.
 
If moving from the 32-bit Windows environment to the 64-bit Windows environment is desired, then moving to 64-bit Vista is a better choice to make, for sure.
 
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