YES thank you.  You have answered my question.  That is exact
Hi Dean,

YES thank you.  You have answered my question.  That is exactly what I was wanting to know.

I am taking inventory on what software and hardware I use now with the 32 bit.  I was lucky when XP Pro came out, I was able to use all of my favorites.  But I think my luck is running out.  

So far for the following hardware and software, I cannot find information on whether they will work.  They are discontinued or too old of models. 

HP all in one Printer, the PSC 2410 
  
Brother Laser Printer, HL 5150HD 

A simple cheap photo editing program by Ulead called iPHOTO Plus 

Printmaster Platinum 16 

Microsoft Office 2007 not sure???

Do you per chance happen to have any suggestions on replacements?

I agree, that Studio 17 IS a nice machine.  And on sale for $699 and free upgrade to Windows 7.  

Thank you Dean and PC BUILD for always being here.  All of you have really helped me over the years.

tannis z TN



--- On Mon, 10/26/09, Dean Kukral <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> From: Dean Kukral <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Re: [PCBUILD] Dell Studio 17
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Date: Monday, October 26, 2009, 7:37 PM
> There is a little confusion here that
> I think that I can clear up.  A 64 bit system - "a 64
> bit architecture" - refers to the word 
> length internal to the cpu.  It generally represents
> the number of memory locations that can be addressed in one
> word, two to the 
> sixty-fourth power.  I believe that all home computer
> cpu's have had a  64 bit architecture for a good number
> of  years.
> 
> Now, what you are talking about below is the operating
> system, not the hardware, of the computer.  For some
> years now, XP, Vista, 
> and, now, Windows 7 have come in two versions: sixty-four
> bit and thirty-two bit.  This  has to do with how
> programs are written and 
> compiled to run on the computer.  If you  have a
> 32-bit version of Windows, the cpu still does its work
> internally in 64 bits, but 
> the 32-bit operating system translates between the cpu and
> the program.  It is probably much more complicated than
> this, but I think 
> that this conveys the gist of it.
> 
> The 64-bit versions of Windows are able to address more
> than 4GB of memory, the limitation of the 32-bit versions,
> and, in general, 
> run better than the 32-bit versions of Windows.  But,
> the 64-bit versions have been slow to catch on because
> people who write the 
> software to sell want the largest possible market for their
> programs, which is the more traditional 32-bit system. 
> And, it is extra 
> work (and a learning curve that they may not want to climb)
> to write software that will work with either operating
> system.
> 
> For example, I purchased a new HP laptop several years ago
> that had Windows Vista 64-bit version on it.  One of
> the reasons for the 
> laptop was to take it outside to run my telescope using
> "Starry Night" software.  However, the Starry Night
> would not run on the 
> 64-bit version.  I had to wait a half of a year and
> purchase an upgrade  ($150) of Starry Night that would
> work with the 64-bit 
> operating system.  Had I known this, I might have not
> purchased the 64-bit operating system computer!  So,
> you can see why it is 
> slow to catch on.
> 
> You do not need 3GB of memory to run Windows 7.  Your
> computer will  run better, however, if you have at
> least 2GB of memory.
> 
> I hope that this clears things up a bit, and we are here to
> help if needed.
> 
> Dean Kukral
> 
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: tannis zamora
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Sent: Wednesday, October 21, 2009 12:02 PM
> Subject: [PCBUILD] Dell Studio 17
> 
> 
> Good morning,
> 
> I have been looking at a Dell Studio 17 laptop.  When
> I was checking out the specs I see 64 bit.
> 
> I am not really that informed on 64 bit. It is my
> understanding that all computers are 32 bit unless duo core
> processor and later 
> then 2006.   But the programs I have now
> will not run on 64 bit and I am not sure I want 64 bit.
> 
> Are all computers 64 bit now?
> 
> And memory, do I need minimum of 3 gig memory to run
> Windows 7 plus having Microsoft Office and other programs?
> 
> I am so confused.  Could someone break it down for
> me?
> 
> tannis z TN
> 
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