Confused with 32 bit and 64 bit

Welcome to the forum!!

Good luck with your purchase.

There are two reasons your Pentium is starting to run hotter than normal.

1. Your CPU cooler heatsink is clogged with dust and debris and needs a good cleaning.

2. The thermal compound or TIM as it's called these days that makes a "heat transfer" conduction between your CPU and the heatsink has aged and gone bad. Especially with stock coolers supplied by Intel and AMD, they use a wax or paraffin-based material that through time and heat it dries up and begins to crack and get hard.

The best cure would be to removed the CPU heatsink, clean it up and such, and remove all the old compound and put some new TIM on the CPU, then re-mount the cooler.

Regarding the new CPU choice, I use an Intel Core-2 Duo Dual Core and it rocks. It's an E8400 @ 3.0 GHz clock speed and does everything I could possibly ask of it.

The only reason I would recommend a Quad-Core is if you run a LOT of applications at once, use Photoshop, Auto-CAD, a heavy gamer or video intensive software. If not, then a Dual-Core will suffice for your needs.

The BIGGEST key is to get enough RAM to have a smooth running operating system. I recommend at least 4GB for a 64-bit system.

Since the new computer will be made with all 64-bit hardware and components, there is no reason not to go to a 64-bit Windows 7.

To use a NASCAR term, putting a 32-bit operating system on a 64-bit capable computer is like putting restrictor plate on the intake manifold.

What ever decision you make will be the right one for you though.

jimpierce7, you won't go wrong with the quad core, believe me. I wished that I had one myself. But when I buy a new notebook, I can correct that mistake of buying a dual core. I'll make sure that I buy a quad, hopefully I can find one (most likely AMD) for around $600 (hopefully). Lenovo does attract me, as does HP. I'll find the best deal that meets my budget, if I need a little more cash, I can hold off another month or two. Congrats on your purchase, I think you'll be pleased with the power of quad core computing, and within a year or two, it'll be mainstream anyway, Nibiru made a post on it a couple of months ago, quad is gaining momentum, just as 64 bit is.

Best of Luck,
Cat

Cat - to be honest a Quad-Core CPU on a notebook computer is overkill, in my opinion. Unless you're a serious die-hard gamer you won't see any benefit at all.

Also to find one for around $600 even with an AMD CPU will be sketchy to say the least.

You're trying to put a 426 HEMI with dual 4 barrel Holley 750 CFM carbs in a Rambler Nash!

Quad-Cores are really more for the desktop market, where there is adequate cooling capacity and better power.

Nibiru I'm old enough to remember all about those 426 Hemi's and dual quad Holley's!
Ah, the memories! Colorful analogy, but true.

I'll see benefit when I'm folding, there's no doubt about that. I'll do some serious homework before my next purchase, if I can't get it for that price, no problem, I'll put more cash up until I can get it.

My last purchase (this desktop) was made, based on advice from PC World. As I remember the article, "the best sub-$750 PC's". The computer is fine for ordinary use, but try to run a high performance program, you're in one of those Rambler's.

This is why when I make my next notebook purchase, I'll shop until I get what I want. If I can't get it for $600, then mabye $800 will do. I don't know. But I want a performer, and you must pay for performance, if that's what you want. I'm already stashing some cash now for the cause, and somewhere out there, is a serious performance notebook with my name on it.

And I will have it in writing that if it doesn't meet my expectations, I can return it for a refund. It will have to run that high performance folding client, and have the jobs done before the deadline, on a continual basis, plus anything else I want it to do. The first week, that would be good, that will make sure that thermal paste takes good to it.

Folding is processor intensive, so yes a quad core would be a benefit, similar to if you run autocad applications. But for normal users the most processor intensive apps they will run will be 3D gaming and in that case the graphics card in the laptop will limit the usefulness of the extra processor power. If you go to Control Panel\System and click the "Windows Experience Index" I think you find the gaming graphics index holds your computer back even though your processor index on a quad four is great.