To Windoze 7 or not to Windoze 7 (help me, computer smart people!)
One of the myriad things distracting from my actual job today was an email that came in today, reminding me that I can download Windows 7, Home or Professional Edition, for $30. Hooray for stoodent discounts! Of course, the question is whether or not I should get it.
A digression for the boring technical stuff: I'm using a Dell Latitude D630 notebook PC from 2007. The processor is an Intel Core 2 Centrino Duo, T7300 with 2 2 Ghz cores. Apparently, it also has 64-bit architecture, which means I could run 64-bit Windows 7 (is this correct?). I've got 2 GB of RAM. So that's what I'm working with.
The major question is whether or not Windows 7 will improve or hinder performance on this machine. From the research I conducted this afternoon, it appears that the answer is that will help, though some external validation would be nice. The sub-question is whether I should buy the 32-bit or 64-bit edition. The 32-bit version has the advantage of being compatible with pretty much everything, whereas the 64-bit version will allow me to upgrade to 4 GB or more of RAM and get maximum performance. Since this PC is likely to be my goofing-around machine for quite some time, it seems like a reasonable way to extend its useful, not-molasses-slow life. But of course, compatibility with some programs might be problematic.
Right now, I'm leaning toward getting the upgrade, and probably the 64-bit version, but I would appreciate some advice from more knowledgeable individuals than myself. Thanks guys!
A digression for the boring technical stuff: I'm using a Dell Latitude D630 notebook PC from 2007. The processor is an Intel Core 2 Centrino Duo, T7300 with 2 2 Ghz cores. Apparently, it also has 64-bit architecture, which means I could run 64-bit Windows 7 (is this correct?). I've got 2 GB of RAM. So that's what I'm working with.
The major question is whether or not Windows 7 will improve or hinder performance on this machine. From the research I conducted this afternoon, it appears that the answer is that will help, though some external validation would be nice. The sub-question is whether I should buy the 32-bit or 64-bit edition. The 32-bit version has the advantage of being compatible with pretty much everything, whereas the 64-bit version will allow me to upgrade to 4 GB or more of RAM and get maximum performance. Since this PC is likely to be my goofing-around machine for quite some time, it seems like a reasonable way to extend its useful, not-molasses-slow life. But of course, compatibility with some programs might be problematic.
Right now, I'm leaning toward getting the upgrade, and probably the 64-bit version, but I would appreciate some advice from more knowledgeable individuals than myself. Thanks guys!