Hi all, I bought a laptop for my daughter who I am not with at the moment. I asked her if its a 32 or 64 bit operating system being used. She said its using windows 7 64bit. If I want to install linux do I have to install 64 bit also?

tx

You can install 32 or 64bit OS for use with a 64bit processor. Just keep in mind that a 32bit OS can only physically address up to 4GB of RAM, even if the system physically has more installed.

I just read an issue where someone had a 32bit OS installed, with 4GB RAM with dual 1GB Video Cards, so the OS only let them access 2.2GB of their 4GB of RAM. Overlapping memory addressing is a bitch. Most people don't have this issue and their systems run very well with 3GB of RAM.

I'd suggest running whatever bit OS that is needed for the applications you're going to run. If you're running a video or photo application then having a 64bit OS that can access more system RAM would be beneficial. Note: If you run a 64bit OS, you'll also need working 64bit device drivers.

So if the architecture of the laptop is 64 bit, its best to stick with that?

It's up to you. How much RAM is installed?

The simple answer is yes, use a 64bit OS on any modern 64bit machine.

It's up to you. How much RAM is installed?

4 gig

er ...4 mg I mean

it's 4GB. The simple answer is that you don't have to use a 64 bit OS. The choice is yours.

You will install linux with this level of computer knowledge? I recommend not!

You will install linux with this level of computer knowledge? I recommend not!

Not interested in your opinion sweetheart, just an answer to the question, that's all.

Why are you wanting to install a version of Linux if there is an existing operating system?

You can install either

For my money I would go with 64bit however it does use more RAM and I think 4GB RAM is a minimum for a 64bit OS thus in my opinion your machine is borderline. In your place I would go 64bit and later splash out for more memory if you feel you need it.

A previous post saying that 32bit OS would not benefit from more RAM is true of windows but not necessarily of Linux as the later versions include extensions that overcome this limitation

sent from my Internet aware non fruity mobile device

32-bit and 64-bit Windows: frequently asked questions

To install a 64-bit version of Windows 7, you need a CPU that's capable of running a 64-bit version of Windows. The benefits of using a 64-bit operating system are most apparent when you have a large amount of random access memory (RAM) installed on your computer, typically 4 GB of RAM or more. In such cases, because a 64-bit operating system can handle large amounts of memory more efficiently than a 32-bit operating system, a 64-bit system can be more responsive when running several programs at the same time and switching between them frequently.

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Edit

Why can't 32-bit Windows access 4GB of RAM?

Should you choose 32-bit or 64-bit Linux?

By default a 32bit OS does not have the capability to address more than just over 3GB of RAM

However Linux 32 bit kernels often include what is called a PAE extension to overcome this limitation. This is not available for windows and not as good as a pure 64bit OS

A 64bit OS requires more base RAM than a 32 bit one and I believe each program also uses a little more RAM than its 32bit equivalent.

Thus if you intend to he running many programs or are using programs that can use a lot of RAM a 64 OS gives them more room to play, however to get the advantage of q 64bit OS ideally you should have more memory. As memory is now quite cheap I would advise any serious user to go 64 bit and get more than 4GB of RAM but if you are just using Farcebook and checking emails there is no advantage and some possible disadvantage if you only have 4GB RAM

sent from my Internet aware non fruity mobile device

You will install linux with this level of computer knowledge? I recommend not!

Not interested in your opinion sweetheart, just an answer to the question, that's all.

That kind of attitude will not help you with your future linux troubles on internet.

You will install linux with this level of computer knowledge? I recommend not!

Not interested in your opinion sweetheart, just an answer to the question, that's all.

That kind of attitude will not help you with your future linux troubles on internet.

Except that the comment is directed at you and only you. Others are welcome to post with information addressing the issue at hand.

You will install linux with this level of computer knowledge? I recommend not!

Not interested in your opinion sweetheart, just an answer to the question, that's all.

This guy is aptly named 'deserted' -

More 'n more linux distros are coming out as 64bit only. Recommend you get the .iso file for Lubuntu 13.10 (via distrowatch.com),

put it on a usb stick (using unetbootin, from sourceforge.com), play with it for a while before installing on the computer hard drive. AA