Re: Transitioning to 64bit, is it worth it, and how
Alan Chandler wrote:
> I have a Core2 Duo on which I am running a 686 kernel (from Debian
> unstable). It has 1GB of memory
>
> I am wondering two things
>
> a) What are the pros and cons in switching to 64 bit mode?
> - Is it faster?
> - Are the packages less stable?
> - Does it need significantly more memory?
> - Can I use 32 bit apps from the repository if I have problems with an
> identically named one in the 64 bit repository (with pinning maybe)
Yes, it is faster. Packages are not less stable, but some are
unavailable. It does need significantly more memory, but your system
should work fine, unless you use some very "hungry" apps like Eclipse.
You can install some 32-bit apps using dpkg with --force-architecture
option. If you need Acroread, first install ia32-libs-gtk from Ubuntu.
> b) Is there a simple transition path?
> - Is there any howto?
> - My current unstable repository seems to have a 64 bit kernel - do I
> just install that and then change where my sources.list points>
>
I think you have to install from scratch.
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