64 bit versus 32 bit

[Foolse]

Hello all!

A couple of years ago I built a machine and started to search for a suitable distro. I decided on Mandriva and since I got an AMD 64 I also installed the 64bit version of Mandriva. The system worked well but I experienced some problems with installing 32 bits programs. So after reading TechieMoes excellent article about 64 versus 32 I switched to 32 bit.

Now I am about to upgrade and are wondering if the maturity of the 64 bit distributions or perhaps I should put it the other way around - if there are enough programs to use. (for instance quanta+, firefox, gimp etc)

Thanks
/Ove

[techieMoe]

There aren't any real barriers to 64-bit adoption right now. It's stable for the most part, and there are 64-bit versions of pretty much every major piece of GPL software out there. The only thing going against 64-bit in my opinion is that there's still no tangible benefit to running it for the average desktop user. Sure, you get bragging rights, but you're not going to have any major speed increases or new functionality. 64-bit Linux has managed to get feature parity with its 32-bit counterparts, but that's all. It's the same.

[Cabhan]

But what about the Year 2038 problem!? You're not thinking for the future!

But techieMoe is right. 64-bit distros are pretty stable at this point, as is their 32-bit compatibility. There are relatively few benefits, however, unless you're doing scientific computations with more than 4 GB of RAM. Having said that, if you're planning to upgrade, you might as well make the 32 to 64 bit jump now, so as to avoid having to do it later.

[Foolse]

Thanks for the enlightment!

The last time I tried the 64bit version my subjective experience was that
1) The system was faster for the programs I used (scribus, gimp)
2) Very few programs had 64-bit versions... I could get some of them to work but far from all.

I know that there are no evidence that the 64-bit distros really are faster but the experience was such...

So now I have the pleasant problem of choosing the distro. (I would like to try Fedora, Mint, plain Debian or the latest OpenSuse - Oh, all these choices!!)

Best!
/Ove