Are Microsoft making a 32 bit version of Win7? ...Why would they? Discuss.

[Dizzious]

I doubt Windows Seven is going to use any less resources than Vista does... and it's been my experience that Vista is choked with any less than 2gb of ram - so, why would Microsoft even bother making a 32 bit version of Windows Seven? 4gb seems like a pretty low memory cap for next-gen machines.
I would love to see them drop 32bit entirely in Seven, and force developers to make everything 64bit. I still run across my share of apps that don't run properly in x64, even under compatibility mode.

[Comixion]

I doubt Windows Seven is going to use any less resources than Vista does... and it's been my experience that Vista is choked with any less than 2gb of ram - so, why would Microsoft even bother making a 32 bit version of Windows Seven? 4gb seems like a pretty low memory cap for next-gen machines.
I would love to see them drop 32bit entirely in Seven, and force developers to make everything 64bit. I still run across my share of apps that don't run properly in x64, even under compatibility mode.


I concur.
(ok, 10 chars dammit)

[dog2525]

Its because they are scared of change. I agree though, we need 64 bit only.

[jdrom17]

IIRC MS said Vista was the last 32bit OS but clearly not. They should really stick to their promises for once.

[Zefram]

Incase ya'll haven't noticed, 64-bit O/S would consume more RAM, due to the longer bits on the O/S files, etc

Vista x64 would roughly consume 12-15% (http://www.vistax64.com/797489-post34.html) more RAM than it's 32-bit counterpart (http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/vista-workshop,1775-5.html). Thus, if you're using 2GB of RAM, upgrading to 64-bit would actually drop the performances.

And, XP x64 & Vista x64 isn't what i would called 'pure 64-bit O/S'. They still relied heavily on WoW (Windows on Windows) emulator to run 32-bit applications. And hell, Microsoft recycles a lot of 32-bit applications to run on their 64-bit O/S. I guess this is what Microsoft would be doing with Windows 7.

Another reason is choice. I'm sure Microsoft would like to cover all of the market segment........ Letting windows 7 runs only on 64-bit doesn't make any business sense. A lot of organization doesn't need to mingled in 64-bit yet, and they don't want to waste time nor resources managing a 64-bit O/S (for people who never touches 64-bit O/S, troubleshooting it would be difficult)

Plus, a number of CPU out there doesn't support 64-bit. Namely, N and Z series Intel Atom. Those netbook is eating up portable computer market share....... i'm sure Microsoft would love to jump into that ;)

32-bit O/S will remain with us for a bit longer. There's just no advantage of moving to 64-bit O/S unless you would use more than 4GB RAM. :D

[Lavaandy]

Ok so keep 32bit and 64bit, but be damn sure the user can switch between them at any time for free.

[TechZeal]

Win7 supposedly does use a smaller footprint then Vista (at least). Some information here (http://www.dailytech.com/Windows+7+Features+Revealed/article13309.htm) with a little more about some features coming with the new version.

As far as the 32bit/64bit... Many (if not most) businesses have yet to go to Vista. Most large businesses paid a good deal of money for software created so long ago and are getting the most out of their money by not paying for a new version to be compatible for a new OS. There are some other reasons for this, but this sounded to be a fairly common response.

The last article I recall reading about this subject was several months ago. But it mentioned that Win7 was going to support 32bit and is now planned to be the last Windows OS to support it. General opinion was based on Vistas lack of business support/interest. These businesses will need a platform that they can use their existing (old) software on while update it to 64bit version. As apposed to paying someone to develop something new and pay to train all employees.

You should see the software we use for all money. It's almost 20 years old and based in DOS. IT is forced to make sure this will continue to work in all environments indefinitely. Thoughts of updating or replacing this software and the people that mention these thoughts are enthusiastically frowned upon.

[Lavaandy]

The last major software change around in my lab was from the original File Maker Pro to file maker pro 7. This was done because we needed new Mac to replace the Old Macs (as they are now called). The Mac's we use now are well over 10 years old, but still run OS X fairly well. There is a very apparent reason why almost every at this Research Center uses Macs... I dont have to worry about how many bits my OS supports. I just have to worry about whether or not the hardware runs 64 bits.

[Avid6eek]

Windows 7 will still offer 32/64bit varieties. Given that most gamers will have the 64bit version installed, I'd like to see more native 64bit games. Taking WoW out of the picture should increase performance some. With the Core i7 coming within the next few weeks and triple channel DDR3, most hardcore gamers will be running 6GB of RAM. Bring on the 64bit goodness :D.

[jdrom17]

Windows 7 Beta has already been leaked onto the 'tubes if you know where to look ;)