Windows XP 32-bit vs 64-bit

For this first installation of a two-part series investigating the performance of 64-bit Windows, we loaded up a test system with 2GB of RAM, an Athlon 64 X2 4800+, and a bunch of applications and benchmarks in both 64- and 32-bit flavors. The focus here is on how 64-bit Windows compares with the now venerable 32-bit Windows XP. Next week, we'll compare how the Athlon 64 X2 4800+ and Intel Pentium 840 Extreme Edition with EM64T architectures, both dual core, perform relative to each other on Windows XP Pro x64 edition. Continued...