Does XP 64 make a big difference?

[mikejam8]

Hi all,

Have xp home on my mac pro at the mo, was wanting to get a 64 bit os for games and not really go into vista... will i need a full copy of xp 64 or an upgrade (can i just upgrade my current 32 bit home edition inside windows?)

Some of you may wonder y im playing games on a mac pro lol! I'm still waiting (like thousands of others!) for the Leopard update to Pro Tools LE! It works... but only just... not really usable.

Thnx

 

[nick9191]

XP is better than Vista except in this circumstance. XP 64bit blows absolute balls whereas Vista 64bit is quite good (I'd say it was the best version of Windows actually except XP 32).

 

[richardson.hila]

Not sure what you're using to run Windows on your Mac, but just for future reference, BootCamp doesn't support 64 bit OS

 

[TBi]

Not sure what you're using to run Windows on your Mac, but just for future reference, BootCamp doesn't support 64 bit OS

Yes but the hardware does... so there is no issue installing it. The only problem may be driver support but most of the hardware in 64-bit Intel Mac's has compatible drivers out in the wild, even if apple doesn't support them.

To the OP though, get Vista 64. It has much better support than XP-64.

 

[nick9191]

Not sure what you're using to run Windows on your Mac, but just for future reference, BootCamp doesn't support 64 bit OS

From what I've heard with the lastest macs, the version of bootcamp does have 64bit drivers.

 

[mikejam8]

sorry should have said early, yea i am running Boot Camp... latest version i think...2.0...

So will i get the benefits from the 64 bit version of xp? (8-core and 2+ gigs ram etc...)

Also, can i simply upgrade from my current xp in boot camp... or do i need to do the full install etc again?

 

[Neil321]

yea i am running Boot Camp... latest version i think...2.0...

It's 2.1 now

 

[TBi]

sorry should have said early, yea i am running Boot Camp... latest version i think...2.0...

So will i get the benefits from the 64 bit version of xp? (8-core and 2+ gigs ram etc...)

Also, can i simply upgrade from my current xp in boot camp... or do i need to do the full install etc again?

You don't need 64bit to see 8 processors. You just need it to see over ~3GB RAM.

You'll need to do a full install, you can't just upgrade from 32bit to 64bit.

 

[ayeying]

Theres virtually no difference if you use a 64-bit OS with 32-bit programs.. but I noticed for 64-bit programs/games.. a 64-bit OS will make it run faster. Currently, 32-bit is better for compatablilty. 64-bit if you don't mind doing a little config to make it run properly.

 

[operator207]

My wife runs 64bit Vista Ultimate. If you use iTunes, and burn using iTunes, you may not be happy. It does not burn. Some problem with the drivers last I looked. Its not a big deal for my wife, but it might be for you. You also might try looking at google for "64bit XP incompatibilities" or something like that. See if there are other apps you might use that will not work correctly in XP/Vista 64bit.