what does 64bit mean? when the athlon 64 came out i was just thinking wow 64 bit, never actually questioned what id did. now windows xp 64-bit edition is out, i just wannna know what the difference will be between this and normal xp.
i know 64it porecessors are much better and are somekind of new generation coz all the other are 32 bits processors but.. i really dont know anything m,ore i would love to know more also..
quote:Originally posted by http://search390.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid10_gci498697,00.html
A 64-bit processor is a microprocessor with a word size of 64 bits, a requirement for memory and data intensive applications such as computer-aided design (CAD) applications, database management systems, technical and scientific applications, and high-performance servers. 64-bit computer architecture provides higher performance than 32-bit architecture by handling twice as many bits of information in the same clock cycle.
The 64-bit processor is backwards compatible with older applications and operating systems; it detects whether an application or operating system is 16-bit, 32-bit, or 64-bit and computes accordingly. This is essential for enterprise situations where purchasing new software is not feasible.
Intel, IBM, Sun Microsystems, Hewlett Packard, and AMD currently develop or offer 64-bit processors.