Which to use?

[sylvermane]

I had recently tried kubuntu 9.04 with the i386 iso and it was ok. I've decided to make a semi full switch over and leave winblows dualboot on a small partition simply if i have serious problems and need advice from the nix gurus. I just downloaded and now have the dvd version of both the i386 and the amd64 versions. I'm not sure which to use or what to expect. Will list system below, its a few years old and figured Id goto full nix to get some practice while I wait for my new system to come in.

Athlon 64 3400 @ 2.4ghz S754
Chaintech ZNF3-250 MB
2gb Ultra PC3200 DDR (1x1gb, 2x512mb)
Ati Radeon x1950 pro AGP
80gb seagate IDE, 160gb seagate IDE

Main question is would the AMD64 version be better suited for max performance? I just can't find any documentation on the varierties and don't really know the difference.

[slush1000]

Re: Which to use?

Less then 4GB RAM. I'd stick with 32bit.

[quadmo]

Re: Which to use?

The 64Bit Version is better suited for max performance (and it supports more than 3GB RAM).

Otherwise you'll find more running software / drivers / support ... for the 32Bit version.

I have tried both and finally switched to the 32Bit version because it came along with a driver for my graphic card, which in turn was needed to get hibernate to work.

I couldn't experience any performance differences. Linux is extremely fast, so for me i didn't matter. In addition, the memory management in Linux is so efficient, that i haven't needed more than 2GB yet!

[dibl]

Re: Which to use?

#18 on the FAQs in my signature has a useful link on the topic.

[GreyGeek]

Re: Which to use?

A year ago I purchased my first 64bit laptop, a Sony VAIO VGN-FW140E/H, a dual core "Centrino 2". I had heard that the 64b distros weren't up to par so I loaded the 32 bit version of Kubuntu on it when I switched to Kubuntu last February.

When Karmic Alpha4 was released I decided to try the 64b version in a second 40GB partition. The improvement in performance of my notebook has been dramatic! Over all, I'd estimate a 15-20% improvement, or more. My accelerated video is at least 2X faster, and on occasions 3X. In SecondLife I could not get more than 5.6fps under the 32b version. Under the 64b version I get 20-30fps and more. The Lemans road racing game, TORCS, would barely run, giving a very jerky behavior, and it would eventually hang. Under 64b it is as smooth as silk.

As far as the availability of apps is concerned, I installed the ia32 libraries (which get automatically included as a dependency when you install your first 32bit app) and I have had ZERO problems running any 32bit app. In fact, my 64b Karmic is running so smoothly with about every app I really can't tell which is 32b and which is 64bit. My only assumption is that when an app runs faster than I recall it running under the 32b ISO I assume it is a 64bit app.

From now on I will be using the 64bit version of Kubuntu.

[qjqqyy]

Re: Which to use?

correct
x86_64 is faster because it supports 64 bit memory addresses unlike x86 which supports 32 bit addresses, however, i stick with x86 because game hacks seldom work in x64 or x86_64

[GreyGeek]

Re: Which to use?

Game hacks?


I don't follow you there. What kind of hacking do you need to do to get a game to run, and how is failing to do that a valid criticism of the 64b OS?