If you’re not running Windows 7 64-bit yet, please do so soon
I’m looking forward to not running into the 2 gigabyte limit anymore on development.
Why, i have XP x64 and have 16 gb ram without any problem...
In fact, having Windows 7 64-bit... the Starter, Home basic and Home premium edition ( the more used ) will make you running into a other limit, the 1 processor limit ( same if the license ( legal text ) say that it is good for two processor ).
In fact, system from 10 year ago, using windows 2000 32 bits datacenter edition was able to use a max 32 gb ram...
Will move to a new Windows version when these new version is a OS upgrade and not a OS downgrade... At the GUI and visual level, i agree that version after XP are a upgrade but a beautiful screen is not the main function of a OS...
By the way, half of the world continue to use XP, not everybody is ready to pay 319 euro for having a functional Win7 version... specially when these 2 gigabyte limit is a artificial one... Since the pentium pro in 1995, all 32 bit processor are in fact 36 bits processor who allow to access 16tb ram...
Since you are a dev, you certainly know about PAE... was a option in the original release of xp, removed with the service pack 1, reintroduce with the service pack 2 and auto enable if the NX bit is enable in the bios...
For any real dev or curious people wishing to know, take a look at http://www.geoffchappell.com/viewer.htm?doc=notes/windows/license/memory.htm ... these page explain a lot and show how to make a normal 32 bits Vista edition to use 8 gb ram...
These 2 gigabyte limit is a virtual one, one created by Microsoft... and i am ashamed that a real dev use these escuse for push computer uneducated people to spend money on a new OS when in fact, it is not a real need... hey, the old Photoshop CS2 32 bits have a 3gb limit... why is there different limit for different devs !!!
Any Joe user need to realize that marketing lies exist in the computer world... by example, actual 64 bits processor support only 2^48 bytes of ram ( 48 bits address range )... that your new 1TB harddrive is in fact a 0.901 TB harddrive because marketing have decide that 1kb was not more 1024 bytes ( real binary ) but 1000 bytes ( marketing number )...
Well, there is a lot to write about OS and technologie... thing who are hidden to customer Joe... sure that customer Joe will continue to believe lie, be happy to empty his wallet for the pleasure of computer/software business...