Do I need more RAM for programming if I switch to a 64 Bit OS?
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Published on 2009-09-20T19:13:16Z
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2010/03/18
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Hi,
Given that today (for performance reasons?) variables are usually aligned to the "bit-width" (I wanted to use "word-width" here, but on x86 a "word" is still 16 bits right?) of the processor, would switching from a 32 bit OS to its 64 bit version double the RAM usage?
Would this then in turn mean that to do the same work a 32 bit OS can do with 4 GB RAM (well, the 3.x GB actually...) with a 64 bit OS I would need 8 GB of RAM for programming?
Please note that I'm only talking about everyday x86 computers here.
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