LEAP5 vs WINDOWS7 64b

[cstrahm]

That is MS's recommended solution. The results with W7/64 are not uniform. Previous Windows versions operated on the HAL.DLL, hardware abstraction layer. That is now gone and been replaced by HAV, hardware virtualization. It depends on specific hardware/CPU features. Motherboards/CPUs support HAV differently, some are fast some are slow. It is complicated.

There have been many problems and complaints with W7, it slows many things down, most gamers do not like it. A couple links below. Much more info on the Web. Many install an XP copy for dual boot.

http://social.answers.microsoft.com/...b-f2d9e7c1efd9

http://www.slashgear.com/intel-cpu-v...-mode-0642923/

[LukasLouw]

Chris, will the LX500 software also be affected by this? My old laptop died, and the new one came with Win7.

Lukas

[cstrahm]

Your question exemplifies the problems. Users have no idea what Windows7 is or what they are actually running. There are both 32b and 64b versions. So when someone says they have "W7" that does not specify if it is 32b or 64b. I find that most users do not even know what they have.

Windows-7 32b/64b
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/w...sked-questions

The initial version of the LX500 software will be Win32 as always. In the interest of time there is no other option.

[didi]

Now I have my new Thinkpad W510 W7-64 and installed XP on Virtual PC and LEAP 5 work fine and fast. My future investment will be LX500 and wish it will be smooth.
W510 - i7-720QM.

[didi]

Sorry, mistake;Thinkpad W510 - i7-820QM. W7-64.

[cstrahm]

Thanks for the feedback. It validates the point I was trying to make. W7-64 does not run the same on all PCs. The XP Mode requires hardware virtualization acceleration and some of the PCs don't have this, so they run slow. Other PCs have the required hardware features to run XPM very fast. So when someone says W7-64 ran slow or fast, those results are specific to that machine.

But it's even far more complex than that. W7 is not one OS. There are Home, Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate versions; then there are the 32b or 64b versions of those. The Home version does not even have XPM. When you combine all these different OS variations, with the different variations in the PC hardware, the performance results can be all over the map. How the video systems and drivers handle all this is yet another huge variable. Lower priced laptop PCs are notorious for having lower performance video systems.

32b app on 32b OS vs. 64b app on 64b OS
Many people seem to have the idea that just re-compiling an app for 64b vs. 32b is going to be faster. Don't bet on it. All other things being equal, running a larger word size will always be slower than running a smaller word size.

The link below shows 32b vs. 64b benchmark tests done on the same app compiled for 32b or 64b with binaries to match, on the same hardware. In virtually every test the 64b is slower. The worse test was 20% slower.

http://www.osnews.com/story/5768/Are...naries_/page2/

This kind of testing is very specific to the kinds of tests run and the needs of the app: graphics, video, memory, floating point, harddisk, etc. If you had an app that had tons of 64b integers or fields, huge databases etc, I would expect the 64b OS/App combination to be faster. But 99% of all PC software does not fall into this category.

[LukasLouw]

I should have mentioned that my laptop has Win7 64 bit. I think I'm just going to can it and install XP. I don't like Win7 in general anyway.

[Joao Cruz]

Hi everyone,

First time here. My old desktop a P4 1.7Ghz was dead so I need a new desktop.

My portable don't run LEAP5 a Sony Vaio with a ATI Mobility Radeon X2300.

I go to a ASUS P6X58D-E motherboard, PNY Quadro 600 graphics, a SSD drive and I7 950 CPU with 6GB.

A very fast machine build from scratch to support a CLIO with a old PCI(32bits) not tested yet, and LEAP 5, and others professional software. The others 2 simulation SW work fine under W7 64.

The LEAP5 works flawless until now under Microsoft Virtual XP Mode. In the summer I will give a more extensive feedback.

With such fast machines today everyone can work today in different OS virtualy at the same time.

How much increase in the price over the package to certificate the 64driver?. Any value or in fact tired of the Windows OS?. I understand that if you go to Linux for me it no issue.

Best Regards

[cstrahm]

Thanks for the feedback.

>> How much ... to certificate the 64driver?.

Last time I checked it was thousands of dollars. It is quite involved, and it appears it is not even a one time charge. The certificates expire and we may have to keep paying. This affects multiple products too. It is expensive.

>> I understand that if you go to Linux for me it no issue.

That could well be the end result.