08-28-2009, 11:41 AM

I'm thinking seriously of moving to Mac now from a PC and Windows XP Home which I know was 32-bit. Snow Leopard I understand is 64-bit but many applications 32-bit. I assume a basic MacBook will handle both. The truth is I haven't a clue what 32-bit and 64-bit mean!! Can someone explain to me in words of one syllable what these numbers mean and what difference they are going to make to me when I make that move. I am planning on Snow Leopard on a white MacBook with 4GB RAM simply because I am a writer and the best writing software, like Scrivener, is only available for the Mac. Thanks.

08-28-2009, 11:44 AM

I've heard a rumor that core duo intel macs (including white MacBooks) won't be able to take advantage of 64-bit processing. I understand the concept but I can't explain it very well

08-28-2009, 11:58 AM

ok

1stly

Snow Leopard takes FULL ADVANTAGE of 64bit computing if the hardware is compatible.

2ndly

whichever/however you decide to run snow leopard, 64bit applications will run as 64bit (with all advantages)

32bit applications will run as 32bit, and therefore won't have the benefits of 64bit computing

3rdly

64bit computing has the advantage of being FASTER and can be more secure



Of course, it all needs to be utilised correctly, but for the ease of understanding:

snow leopard is 64bit when it CAN be, and 32bit when it can't

08-28-2009, 11:59 AM

Originally Posted by iPod Nano

I've heard a rumor that core duo intel macs (including white MacBooks) won't be able to take advantage of 64-bit processing.

This is both right and wrong. It's true that Core Duo Macs aren't 64-bit but most white MacBooks are Core 2 Duo (such as mine) which are 64-bit. In fact, the only non C2D MacBooks were the very first ones (introduced in May 2006).

The differences are very technical and you probably won't notice the difference unless you actually needed 64-bit explicitly. So, for you, the difference will be of little relevance.

08-28-2009, 12:02 PM

I just noticed, mine is 64-bit! Thanks for the clarification. I'll plus rep you if I can!

08-28-2009, 12:22 PM

Thanks to all. I don't understand the difference between the two but it sounds as though I don't have to and can just ignore it. I have the feeling that, since I'm primarily going to be using the Mac for writing software rather than gaming or video editing, that 64-bit is not going to mean much anyway.