64-bit processors

[Edify]

what is all the hoopla about 64-bit processors and being compatible with windows and all that stuff? do i need to know this if i'm buying a new desktop?

[NaiLed]

Tech Support

[Fallen Angel]

what is all the hoopla about 64-bit processors and being compatible with windows and all that stuff? do i need to know this if i'm buying a new desktop?

I assume you are talking about the Athlon 64 CPU line?
AMD didn't develop an entirely new architecture from scratch. Instead they developed a 64-bit extension to the 32 bit x86 architecture: behold the x86-64. All x86-64 CPU's are therefore fully compatible with both 32-bit and 64-bit software, so there's no need to worry about incompatibility issues.

[Edify]

I assume you are talking about the Athlon 64 CPU line?
AMD didn't develop an entirely new architecture from scratch. Instead they developed a 64-bit extension to the 32 bit x86 architecture: behold the x86-64. All x86-64 CPU's are therefore fully compatible with both 32-bit and 64-bit software, so there's no need to worry about incompatibility issues.

lol i'll probably buy a pentium 4 anyways.

[Arikel]

There is also a 64 bit processor called Itanium it's manufactured by Intel but unlike the one from AMD it is not retrocompatible this means that you cannot run programs constructed for a 32 bit arquitecture on a Itanium... A 64 bit processor is basically a processor that uses "instructions" codded in with 64 bits instead of 32 wich makes them much faster compared to a 32 bit processor running at the same frequency!! It might be still a bit soon to buy a 64 bit processor but sooner or later you will need to get one...

[50% Packetloss]

64-bit processors are not faster, and 64-bit instructions have nothing to do with thier speed. The "64-bit" nametag refers to the processors register size and its bus sizes. So instead of having 32 bits (which the highest number you can have in a single register is 4294967295) you have 64 (18446744073709551615). So the processor can handle more memory and maybe the possiblity for a more efficient bus transfers.

http://www.intel.com/business/bss/pr...server/64-bit/
Scroll and click on "About 64-bit computing"

[Arikel]

sry -_- double post hit the button twice

[Arikel]

Hum... let me just try to explain u in wich manner am i telling u that a 64 bit processor is faster than a 32 bit one... i mean if u have a 64 bit instruction you can code much more information then in a 32 bit one... so that you would probably need to process 3 or 4 32 bit instructions in order to produce the same result than a 64 bit one produces... that way a 64 bit processor running at the same frequency than a 32 bit one processes much more information in the same amount of time. Im not talking about frequency... im talking about the final result! 64 bit processor store much more information in a single instruction since it is 64 bits and not 32... if you manage to have a processor that processes them at the same speed then a 32 bit one you will end up with a much faster computer although normally a 32 bit processor has a much higher frequency then one with 64 bit.

[50% Packetloss]

Um... no. Do you even know ASM?

[Mr. Peanuts]

I was actually chatting on MSN when our ICT teacher was teaching the difference between them in out Systems Inst class.

[Arikel]

Um... no. Do you even know ASM?

:greedy:

ASM is a bytecode manipulation framework for JAVA, it is a code manipulation tool to implement adaptable systems i can't see what it has to do with this... ok this was the jking part ^-^

what's wrongh is that a probably didn't explained myself well bah forget about it english sucks.

[leroy]

The issue with the AMD-64 range (as opposed to the bastardised P4 EMT64) is that the memory controller is on the processor instead of being on a separate chip (usually the north bridge). With it being integrated the bandwidth and speed between RAM and processor is much higher meaning that data can be manipulated faster.

When the dual core chips start coming out (having effectively two processors on the one chip), the AMD64's are gunna blow everything out of the water since the integrated memory controller on both cores means dedicated bandwidth between each core. In contrast, the dual core Pentiums will still rely on having the processor communicate with the north bridge to allow access to RAM.

[Existenz87]

windows 64 bit version came out i think or it is coming soon. at this point there arent very many programs that benefeit from having a 64 bit processor but in the future there will be. your choice really depending on when you buy your next computer after this one or how fast programs specifically designed for 64 bit are produced.

[Tibro]

i heard desktop PCs are soon to be a thing of that past anyway.. apaprently a new style of computers are to be released where you buy what u need seperately rather than in a package.

i have no idea how its working, but someone i know in the computer industry told me not to buy a PC for a year or so to see what happens..

thats just what i heard anyway

[Edify]

i heard desktop PCs are soon to be a thing of that past anyway.. apaprently a new style of computers are to be released where you buy what u need seperately rather than in a package.

i have no idea how its working, but someone i know in the computer industry told me not to buy a PC for a year or so to see what happens..

thats just what i heard anyway

wtf i need a new pc for college. screw whatever ur friend says lol.