Yay computer upgrade - How's Win 7 64-bit?

[Smidge204]

After realizing that my current PC is a whopping 4 years old, I decided it was time to splurge on some new kit! Hope to be putting it together over the next few days.

I think with this machine I'm finally ready to upgrade to a 64-bit OS (I've stuck with WinXP Pro as long as I could!). Let me be clear that Linux is NOT an option, since I require the use of AutoCAD and SolidWorks for professional reasons. I've done the dual boot/emulator thing and it's simply not satisfactory for my needs.

XP is really the last OS I've really dug deep into and learned so the 64-bit world is new territory for me. I'm thinking Windows 7 64-bit. Any thoughts or opinions?

=Smidge=

[The Destroyer]

Win7 64 bit works great for me.

[TwoHedWlf]

XP is really the last OS I've really dug deep into and learned so the 64-bit world is new territory for me. I'm thinking Windows 7 64-bit. Any thoughts or opinions?

=Smidge=

It's really the best option, imo. I'm pretty suspicious of 8 but most of the people I know that have used it for long enough to get used to it don't think it's as horrible as it seems at first.

And of course, 64bit, there is no reason to go with 32 bit.

[BigD145]

Dual boot all the way. There's lots of software that won't run on 64 bit.

[Nuke]

win7 x64 is the best thing since win xp. when i used xp i used the professional x64 version, i haven't used a 32 bit os (on a 64-bit cpu) for ~8 years. i always find it discouraging when people keep beating that dead 32-bit horse.

[TwoHedWlf]

Dual boot all the way. There's lots of software that won't run on 64 bit.

There isn't really. Used to be the case, but hasn't been true for the last 5-6 years. A few exceptions maybe, but you have to go looking for them.

[nhnifong]

It comes into play for applications that gobble up memory and are designed to use 64 bit architectures in order to handle more than 4GB of memory in a single process. This is why the whole industry switched to 64 bit, where the maximum addressable memory in a single process is 8TB.

Win 7 is a fine OS. Avoid Win 8. As the old saying goes, every other version of windows blows ass.

[Nuke]

ive seen a few gamers in their 30s who have massive games collections that they cant run. which i think is about the only case you need an older os. i have a few games that wont work on anything but windows 98. some will work in xp and some grudgingly work in win7. i can slap together a nostalgia rig if im desperate for some old games. but im not going to drag everything else through the mud for that kind of capability. vm if you can, dual boot if neccisary, but dont slow your 64 bit hardware down (it's not just ram, its all the architecture improvements which end up not getting used) by running a 32 bit os.

[Smidge204]

ive seen a few gamers in their 30s who have massive games collections that they cant run.

That's been a problem for way longer than 64-bit has been around. Luckily, games that old usually run pretty well in emulators and virtual machines. Maybe I'll dig out some of the classics and see how they run.

Thanks for the feedback, everyone. Gives me plenty of confidence.

=Smidge=

[Mmmmyum]

I personally recommend Windows 8. I haven't had one crash since I got this laptop (compared to 7 which just didn't boot up eventually, but that may have been a failing HDD). Also the recovery options are useful

[pxi]

ive seen a few gamers in their 30s who have massive games collections that they cant run. which i think is about the only case you need an older os. i have a few games that wont work on anything but windows 98. some will work in xp and some grudgingly work in win7. i can slap together a nostalgia rig if im desperate for some old games. but im not going to drag everything else through the mud for that kind of capability. vm if you can, dual boot if neccisary, but dont slow your 64 bit hardware down (it's not just ram, its all the architecture improvements which end up not getting used) by running a 32 bit os.

I'm one of those. In my experience it's really only old 16-bit process stuff that flat-out hasn't worked natively for me, they dropped all support for that in the 64-bit OS. In fact that's been more of an issue on the corporate end, where I've had a few clients that still use software they bought in the 80's. (I've a couple of clients that still use SCO UNIX, if you can believe that.) Generally it depends on how many hoops you're willing to jump through to get it to run.

It's probably worth mentioning DOSBOX and SCUMMVM for anyone that isn't aware of them. If you get a Pro version or above of Windows, you have access to XP through virtualization. Strictly speaking, your original copy of XP probably isn't licenced for use in a VM, but your mileage may vary on that one.

Dual-boot if you need to, I've always installed to a new hard disk when I upgrade the OS, but I've never really needed to go back, still it's nice having the option - my data always resides on a much larger disk than the one I use for the OS, and 500GB disks can be bought for peanuts these days.

All this to say, the 64-bit version of 7 is fine in my experience.

Edited November 20, 2013 by pxi

[Nuke]

dosbox has really solved issues with old dos games for me. most of them run. the biggest problem is with games build on directx versions prior to 8. they just dont like modern windows. which is sad because a lot of early opengl games (and even a few that use glide through a wrapper) work perfectly fine.

I personally recommend Windows 8. I haven't had one crash since I got this laptop (compared to 7 which just didn't boot up eventually, but that may have been a failing HDD). Also the recovery options are useful

any operating system works fine when properly configured. be it windows, linux, osx, dos, whatever. when you buy from an oem thats what you get (at least until you start uninstalling all the demo ware they put on there and accidentally break something, i hate oems). if you get crashes, something is wrong. in my experience reinstalling everything is a fix all assuming you know how (i was a system builder back in the pentium 4 era and this is how we did support).

[lajoswinkler]

It's ok, better than 32-bit version. I use it and the only downside is that navigating between the folders is often laggy. It appears as the OS is constantly checking something. I keep my PC clean and up to date and I've never did a reinstallation of Windows 7. It's my best operating system since Windows XP.

[Floule]

I would recommend Windows 7 and 64-Bit!

Only two things:

Older games won't work. For example I wanted to play Rayman2 and it didn't work. Not even on a virtual windows 98

And the Administrator system. When I switched from XP to 7, I was a bit annoyed by the admin-stuff. Not being able to edit some registry entries, even with full admin permissions . But I think most of this issues are solved now.

Now, after some years with windows 7, i really love it. A really stable and useful OS!

[briansun1]

I would go with win 8.1 because there is no reason to go with win 7 on a fresh install (just download classic shell or similar freeware if you really really hate metro also if you ever need part choosing help go here(oh and just because the Os is 64 bit dose not mean it can't run 32 bit programs)

[Mmmmyum]

dosbox has really solved issues with old dos games for me. most of them run. the biggest problem is with games build on directx versions prior to 8. they just dont like modern windows. which is sad because a lot of early opengl games (and even a few that use glide through a wrapper) work perfectly fine.

any operating system works fine when properly configured. be it windows, linux, osx, dos, whatever. when you buy from an oem thats what you get (at least until you start uninstalling all the demo ware they put on there and accidentally break something, i hate oems). if you get crashes, something is wrong. in my experience reinstalling everything is a fix all assuming you know how (i was a system builder back in the pentium 4 era and this is how we did support).

Reinstalling Windows does tend to be effective lol, with my old desktop did that a few times. I just find that Windows 8 is a lot more user friendly, is a lot harder to break as a whole, and is good for those who know how to use it. Windows 8's powershell is a million times better than Windows 7's, for instance. I do think that Microsoft could have done a way better job with the UI change though, that did turn a lot of people off. I honestly believe it's better for the average user though, and everything else is available quite quickly through a Windows Key+R *enter command/folder here*

I would recommend Windows 7 and 64-Bit!

Only two things:

Older games won't work. For example I wanted to play Rayman2 and it didn't work. Not even on a virtual windows 98

And the Administrator system. When I switched from XP to 7, I was a bit annoyed by the admin-stuff. Not being able to edit some registry entries, even with full admin permissions . But I think most of this issues are solved now.

Now, after some years with windows 7, i really love it. A really stable and useful OS!

(not a proper quote soz)

No user should touch the registry. It's bad news all round, and the problem with having full admin privileges is that if a virus is making use of your account then it can do whatever it wants with your system. I don't mind having some access restrictions, as it keeps my relatively pricey laptop working well. And whatever restrictions there are can be overridden for a short while if needed

Edited November 20, 2013 by Mmmmyum

[Hodo]

ive seen a few gamers in their 30s who have massive games collections that they cant run. which i think is about the only case you need an older os. i have a few games that wont work on anything but windows 98. some will work in xp and some grudgingly work in win7. i can slap together a nostalgia rig if im desperate for some old games. but im not going to drag everything else through the mud for that kind of capability. vm if you can, dual boot if neccisary, but dont slow your 64 bit hardware down (it's not just ram, its all the architecture improvements which end up not getting used) by running a 32 bit os.

I still run the original X-Com:Enemy Unknown and Terror From the Deep on my Windows 7/64 system. No need for dual boots or a 32 bit OS. Just some work with this wonderful tool called "Google". I even managed to find a Mechwarrior (the first one not Mechwarrior 2) that works, and works with 7/64.

As for Windows 8, I can't stand it. It is a tablet OS forced on a PC. If I wanted that I would jailbreak my Kindle Fire and use it to run KSP.

[Nuke]

mechwarrior 2 is actually an epic success story. not only can i run the glide version through a 3rd party patch, i can do it with my modern joystick, and my trackir through ppjoy+tir2joy. its quite amazing.

Edited November 22, 2013 by Nuke

[Mr. Entropy]

I've never had any issues with it.