Re: OT-ish: New PC questions

["clax01011971" <UKHA@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Thanks for the advice. I never knew about the Intel-VT extension. I was
looking to buy a machine with a Q8300 processor and, apparently, some
Q8300s do the come with Intel-VT and some don't so I'll check which type
Dell sell.

Thanks again.
Dave

--- In ukha_d@xxxxxxx, "Paul Gordon" <paul_gordon@...>
wrote:
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ukha_d@xxxxxxx [mailto:ukha_d@xxxxxxx] On Behalf Of
> clax01011971
> Sent: 31 October 2009 14:59
> To: ukha_d@xxxxxxx
> Subject: [ukha_d] OT-ish: New PC questions
>
> I'm looking to buy a new Dell PC and I have a few questions that I
hope some
> of you guys can help me with.
>
> 1) Dell seem to have started switching the vast majority of their
Windows 7
> machines to 64 bit, is 64 bit a 'safe' way to go these days?
>
> I think so now. IME it seems most software vendors have finally woken
up &
> started supporting 64 bit pproperly. I've been running 64 bit
exclusively on
> my desktop machine for about the last year-18 months or so.
>
>
> 2) I'm looking at a quad core, is there any point in spending the
extra on
> one of the new core processors? (The most heavy duty applications that
I'll
> run are Visual Studio and SQL Server).
>
> IMO the core processors are *very* good - albeit they come in a
bewildering
> selection of modeals & features. I think the newer core i7
processors are
> apparently even better, but I don't have direct experience of those
yet, and
> I'm still perfectly well server by the current crop of core-2's of
which I
> currently run about half-a-dozen.
>
>
> 3) I'm also looking to run some virtual PCs on the machine now and
then, am
> I right to assume that running a 64bit os makes no difference to what
> virtual machine os I can run?
>
> Sort of... it depends on a number of factors. First point of advice is
if
> you intend to run virtual machines, make  SURE you choose a chip with
the
> intel-VT extensions, - not all of them have this feature, and it will
> greatly enhance the performance of your virtualised machines, as well
as
> effect what combinations of features the virtualisation product will
> support.
>



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