Art said:
I'm new to this group and to Windows 7, also. I plan to upgrade my OS
to Windows 7 by total computer replacement. I was checking my hardware
to see what kind of problems I might encounter. I have a Microtek
ScanMaker 6000 scanner. Looking for Windows 7 drivers I only find one
that says 32 bit. To use this would I have to install Windows 7 as a 32
bit OS or will it work with the normal 64 bit Windows 7. I might
actually be saying something stupid because, as I have said, I know
little about 7.
Thanks for any help.
According to this, the scanner hardware interface is USB2. The interface
type is important, to determining all the possible operating options. Some
other interface options would be much less flexible.
http://www.amazon.com/Microtek-ScanMaker-6000-Flatbed-Scanner/dp/B0000CFY87
*******
The main purpose of the x64 OS install option, is supporting installed
physical memory greater than 4GB. Say, for example, the new computer you
bought had 6GB installed. If you used a x32 OS, it will report "3.1GB free".
Much of the new RAM is thrown away in a sense, if you were to use a
32 bit OS with a 6GB installed memory computer.
The x64 OS extended the licensed memory model of the OS, to allow more
of the memory to be used. With the x64 OS and the 6GB of installed
memory, you should be getting closer to the 6GB value as "free".
On a desktop system, it is easy to fit 16GB, as they now make 4GB DDR3
memory sticks, and you can have 4x4GB fitted to the machine. (Either
initially, or as an expansion in the future.) So if the machine has
that as it's maximum memory configuration, installing an x64 OS might
help keep the memory expansion options open. It's another matter though,
whether every user needs 16GB - that is a *lot* of memory. Way more
than is needed for email and web surfing. Even photo editing should be
able to complete well on a machine with 4GB total installed.
*******
A day may come, when companies providing executable code, choose to
release only an x64 version. Perhaps the product will be Photoshop
from Adobe. But it would be foolish for a company to limit the potential
market for a product, without understanding what percentage of
the market they might alienate. If only 10% of customers have x64
OSes, then releasing a product with 64 bit executables only, shrinks
your market considerably. (The many WinXP x32 users, would dilute
their potential market.)
The x64 OS might require 64 bit drivers. The x64 OS supports a processor
operating mode, where both x64 and x32 program executables exist. Backward
compatibility to 16 bit programs is missing on the 64 bit OS.
As an example of what is available on the program side of things,
Internet Explorer in Windows 7, is available in both x64 and x32
executables, even on the same machine. If you had the x64 OS, you
could run the 32 bit version of IE or the 64 bit version. Other
commercial programs, might offer similar options (both kinds of
executables ship with the program).
If you own older software, it might be 32 bit. It will operate in
either your x64 OS (as it supports both 32 and 64), or your x32 OS
(which supports 32 and 16).
While this article addresses Vista, the "Information" section should
also apply to Windows 7.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/946765
*******
Certain versions of Windows 7 (more $$$), support "WinXP Mode". That
is a copy of 32 bit Windows XP, operating in a virtual machine. One
of the features of the virtual machine, is the ability to redirect
USB devices to the virtual machine. So if you had WinXP Mode installed
and operating, it might be possible to run the scanner from there. The
virtual machine preserves much of the operating speed of the machine.
(The last test I did, not on WinXP Mode, gave about 90% of the
speed of a single core of the processor.) If the computer you
buy, comes only with a "lesser" version of Windows 7, you can
do an "Anytime Upgrade" and purchase a license key to allow the
higher features to be turned on. The price of doing this, is
roughly equivalent to buying an OEM copy of Windows XP (so it
is not really free, you're paying for it one way or another).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_xp_mode#Windows_XP_Mode
If you already owned a copy of WinXP, with a license key you could reuse,
you could select a lower version of Windows 7, install the third party
VirtualBox, and I think it has USB redirection as well. You would install
your copy of Windows XP in VirtualBox, install your scanner drivers
in there, and from the menu bar of VirtualBox, you would tell the
virtual machine to "grab" a particular USB device plugged in (the scanner).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtualbox
"Features only available with the extension pack
Some features require the installation of the closed-source
"VirtualBox Extension Pack"[28]:
* Support for a virtual USB 2.0 controller (EHCI)"
http://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads
"VirtualBox 4.0.10 Oracle VM VirtualBox Extension Pack All platforms
Support for USB 2.0 devices, VirtualBox RDP and PXE boot for Intel
cards. See this chapter from the User Manual for an introduction to
this Extension Pack. The Extension Pack binaries are released under
the VirtualBox Personal Use and Evaluation License (PUEL)."
So those are alternatives, to trying Windows 7 x32 as your OS solution.
*******
Summary:
1) Windows 7 32 bit - has some "compatibility" modes, to help older software.
- limited to 4GB RAM license.
2) Windows 7 64 bit - drivers may be a problem
Occasionally, someone finds a workaround. It happens.
AFAIK, drivers need to be "signed" for the 64 bit OS.
Since your device is USB based, you can use
- WinXP Mode 32 bit as an optional environment
- Or, VirtualBox plus an old copy of WinXP you can reuse.
The easiest copy of WinXP to do that with, is a
retail ($$$) copy of WinXP.
HTH,
Paul
