32bit/64bit? ReadyBoost or more RAM?

[cmartini]

I have been running build 7260 for awhile on my Asus notebook (see system spec) and so far have not had too many issues with it. Since I have done several succesive upgrades: Vista Business > Windows 7 build 7227 > Windows 7 build 7260 I have noticed some bugs creeping in (apps and games are crashing periodically or not loading correctly, gaming performance could be better). I attribute this to the string of successive upgrades.

I am going to wipe the drive and do a clean install of either the 32 or 64 bit RTM build in the next few days as it becomes available. One of the main goals is to increase performance with both applications and games. I use this laptop for work doing web development and heavy photoshop and graphics intensive work. I typically have many applications open at once using quite allot of system resources.

For this project I am going to:

A: Add another 2gb of ram to bring the total from 3gb to 4gb, or
B: Add a fast 16gb sd card to the system for the ReadyBoost feature, probably using around 6 to 9gb for this feature

For me to add the extra gig of ram it becomes more necessary to install the 64 bit build. If I use the 16gb sd card for ReadBoost, I can probably stick with 32 bit. None of my apps are currently 64 bit anyhow so I am not sure 64bit is the way to go right now.

I would like to hear people's thoughts on this and what others experiences have been especially using ReadyBoost on systems with over 2gb of memory...

 

[Lee]

If you add the extra ram, and the 64 bit win 7 then you won't did the SD Card for readyboost. Also, the upgrade to 64 bit applications will give you more processing power (Example: applications like Photoshop, and LightRoom will run faster and smoother). Also if you are running MS Office 2010 Beta you will see a mark improvement over the 2007 32 bit version.

I have been running 64 bit Win 7 since the first beta, and have not looked back.

As far as ReadyBoost goes because I am running 8 Gigs of memory there as been no reason to use it; and as stated before if you are going to 8 Gigs then there will be no use for the SD Card.

 

[7echno7im]

RAM is 1000x faster than an SD card. You can never go wrong with more ram, especially at the 2-4 GB range. Beyond that it for specific needs. My new minimum ram is 4GB, anything under that, the first priority for me in an upgrade is more RAM.

I have 6GB though, mainly because I got a good deal on Triple Channel RAM that came in 3x2GB. Mainly comes in handy when I have my Virtual PCs running, I never even feel a hiccup with 2 fired up and all of my other apps, games, etc...

 

[gurm42]

64-bit OS != 64-bit apps.

Win7 x64 can run 64-bit and 32-bit apps with equal facility. It DOES require 64-bit drivers, but odds are those exist for all your hardware, since MS has required 64-bit drivers in order to achieve WHQL status since Vista was introduced.

A machine with x64 and 4GB of RAM is superior in every way to a machine with x32 and 3GB of RAM, even with ReadyBoost (which is a marketing gimmick, it only nets you like a 2% boost under better-than-ideal conditions).

The ONLY downside is that every once in a great while you run into an app that doesn't run under x64. And for those you have XP Mode.

 

[cmartini]

Lee, 7echno7im & gurm42:

Helpful suggestions from you all. I think I will throw an extra gig of ram into it and just go x64 once the 7600 rtm build is finally here...