Windows Vista 64-bit Today

There appears to be a shift taking place in the PC industry: the move from 32-bit to 64-bit PCs.

We've been tracking the change by looking at the percentage of 64-bit PCs connecting to Windows Update, and have seen a dramatic increase in recent months. The installed base of 64-bit Windows Vista PCs, as a percentage of all Windows Vista systems, has more than tripled in the U.S. in the last three months, while worldwide adoption has more than doubled during the same period. Another view shows that 20% of new Windows Vista PCs in the U.S. connecting to Windows Update in June were 64-bit PCs, up from just 3% in March. Put more simply, usage of 64-bit Windows Vista is growing much more rapidly than 32-bit. Based on current trends, this growth will accelerate as the retail channel shifts to supplying a rapidly increasing assortment of 64-bit desktops and laptops.

64-bit PCs running 64-bit editions of Windows Vista typically have 4GB of memory or more. Compared to 32-bit systems, which top out at around 3GB of memory, 64-bit PCs can offer added responsiveness when running a lot of applications at the same time and have the potential for greater performance and new experiences as next-generations applications are written to take advantage of this new platform.
What started out as a gradual (some would say "glacial") movement toward 64-bit PCs, driven primarily by technology enthusiasts, seems to have turned into a swift transition, likely fueled by the falling cost of memory and consumers' desire to get the most out of their PCs.

This change begs a few questions:

Is the 64 bit market ready to go mainstream?

Will consumers realize the benefits from larger chips and 4GB or more of memory?

The answer to both of these questions is yes - but a qualified yes.

Preconfigured 64-bit PCs obtained from retailers or PC manufacturers should work quite well. This is in stark contrast to the experience of many technology enthusiasts who built their 64-bit PC from scratch and may have had to scour the Web looking for drivers. So, unless you really love to tinker with your PC, we suggest you buy a pre-built 64-bit PC at retail or directly from a PC manufacturer.

Beyond the box, you also need to consider the hardware peripherals and software programs you plan on using with your new PC. Any hardware or software product displaying the ‘Works with Windows Vista' or ‘Certified for Windows Vista' logo must be compatible with both the 32-bit and 64-bit editions of Windows Vista in order to warrant the use of the logo. If you don't see the logo, visit the Windows Vista Compatibility Center and check the 64-bit compatibility status. Hardware and software vendors continue to test and improve their products. Please note that the Windows Vista Compatibility Center is currently in beta. In some cases it is possible that a device may be marked as not compatible when in fact it is. I recommend that you also check with the device manufacturer to see if the compatibility status of your desired device has changed.

On the performance front, 64-bit PCs can provide a more responsive experience when running many applications simultaneously. Websites such as Bit.Tech.Net and Tom's Hardware have published performance benchmarks detailing some of the improvements realized from running the 64-bit PCs. In addition, PC Accelerators built into Windows Vista, such as Windows SuperFetch, improve performance by keeping commonly used programs in memory, even when the program is closed. More memory capacity on 64-bit PCs allows SuperFetch to do its job more efficiently.

But if you only use your PC for a few tasks, and rarely do them at the same time, then you're unlikely to realize a measurable performance benefit today. Of course, buying extra capacity for your future, unplanned needs is always worth considering.

In the future, we expect both compatibility and performance of 64-bit PCs to continue to improve. Most hardware devices have 64-bit drivers today and most software products work unmodified because of the 32-bit emulation technology in 64-bit Windows Vista (called WOW64). But there are some gaps, especially in the long tail of the market, but we expect rapid improvement now that 64-bit PCs are getting so popular.

Over time we'll see more 64-bit-optimized programs hit the market, which promise dramatic performance and experience improvements. A few key ones, like Adobe Lightroom & Photoshop and Sony Vegas Pro video editing software, are due to be released this fall. If you're a software or hardware developer, visit our 64-bit readiness page to learn more about 64-bit compatibility and optimization.

Source:- Windows Vista Team Blog : Windows Vista 64-bit Today

 

[Art]

This should explain....
Don't go from XP to Vista unless you go 64-bit

By Stuart J. Johnston

Early indications are that Windows 7 won't be a major upgrade from Vista.

But the real choice isn't between Vista and Windows 7; it's between moving to a 64-bit version of Windows now or later.

The bottom line is that if you're using XP, there's no point in upgrading to 32-bit Vista. It doesn't make sense to upgrade your operating system without upgrading to 64-bit hardware and software in order to get the most out of both. Allow me to explain.

Despite Microsoft's best attempts to keep a lid on the next version of Windows — code-named Windows 7 — details about the new OS's features are slipping out. The early word is that the successor to Vista, which is due to ship in early 2010, won't be much different from Vista Service Pack 1.

To date, Microsoft has said only that the next version of Windows will launch within three years after the consumer release of Vista, which debuted officially in January 2007. A recent report by InternetNews.com pegs Microsoft's current schedule as having the OS ready for PC manufacturers in June 2009, substantially earlier than advertised.

Microsoft executives have kept mum not only about the when of Windows 7 but also the what: specifically, what features will and won't be in the next release. Significantly more information regarding Windows 7 will be available in late October at the company's Professional Developers Conference (PDC) and in early November at its Windows Hardware Engineering Conference. Late word is that PDC attendees will receive a pre-beta of Windows 7 on a 160GB external USB hard drive.

Early testers of the new release indicated recently to All About Microsoft blogger Mary Jo Foley that a public beta of Windows 7 is due around mid-December 2008. Microsoft has said it will sign up beta testers via its Connect site.

That would be the right time frame for Microsoft to get the final release to PC makers in time for the 2009 Christmas sales season — a critical mistake Microsoft made with Vista in 2006, say analysts.

Windows 7 emphasizes performance, stability

Testers of early preview releases indicate that Windows 7 will provide greater stability, reliability, and performance than Vista. The most recent of the three prebeta releases reportedly delivered all three of the promised benefits.

One of the three biggest complaints about Vista — or more specifically, the 32-bit version of Vista — is performance. (The other two big Vista problems, application incompatibilities and the lack of device drivers, have been solved over the past year and a half, with a few noteworthy exceptions.)

The 32-bit edition of Vista supports only 3GB of memory, a limitation that the 64-bit edition doesn't have. How much memory can 64-bit Vista address? The range is from 8GB for Vista Home Basic to 128GB for the Ultimate, Enterprise, and Business editions.

All 32-bit operating systems, not just Vista, have greater memory restrictions than their 64-bit versions. At this point, if you're considering buying new systems, you should be looking at setups that use 64-bit hardware and software. After all, what good are all those lightning-fast processor cores if the system runs low on memory to support them?

While there will be a 32-bit edition of Windows 7, the writing is on the wall: the future of desktop computing is 64-bit.

"The 64-bit editions support more than 3GB of RAM, which removes the headroom limit that 32-bit editions have," principal anaylst Rob Enderle of the Enderle Group told Windows Secrets.

Some users echo that sentiment.

"I installed a full 64-bit copy of Vista six months after release and it runs great," said a user who goes by the screen name Darkest Daze on one user forum.

"I love my Vista 64. I would never go back to XP," said a posting by another user who goes by the screen name Ike_Skelton.

While there is a 64-bit release of XP, Microsoft plans to end free support for XP on April 14, 2009, although the company will continue to issue critical bug fixes. After that date, you'll have to pay per incident for support from Microsoft.

One big reason why Microsoft should have no problem meeting its shipping deadlines for Windows 7 is that the OS will not be much different from Vista Service Pack 1, which shipped last spring. For instance, screen shots of the latest pre-beta that were briefly posted to the Web last week (until Microsoft's legal department got involved) showed a user interface that is suspiciously like Vista's aero look.