Hard decision

[Bob Chiodini]

On Wed, 2006-03-22 at 13:38 -0300, Mariano López Reta wrote:
> Fellow co-listers:
> 
> Right now, on my machine, there's a 64bit FC4. The CPU is an Athlon64
> 3000+ with 512MB 400Mhz RAM. Graphics are handled by a GeForce 5200 with
> 128MB. HD is a 160GB 7200RPM Hitachi SATA.
> 
> I'm downloading both x86-64 and i386 versions of FC5, so the big
> question is: should I "downgrade" to i386 in order to get all firefox
> plugins, less compilation hassles when compiling 3rd-party stuff, and
> (mainly) shockwave/flash (unfortunately, most web pages, including home
> banking ones, use flash in my country, so there's no way to avoid it).
> Or should I stick to the 64bit version and face all the inconveniences
> that I have now? Quick answer would be: if you can handle the hassle,
> keep 64. But the deeper question here is: is it worth it to face all the
> hassle? Are there really significant differences in performance?
> 
> Thanks to all,
> 
> 
> -- 
> Mariano López Reta <mlreta at alternativagratis.com>
> Tortuguitas, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Mariano,

I "downgraded" FC4 from 64 to 32 bits and did not notice a significant
performance decrease.

The firefox/plugin issues were not the deciding factor.  Unfortunately,
my scanner only had drivers that use proprietary 32-bit (binary only)
libraries.  The manufacturer (Brother) has not released a 64-bit
version.  Apparently their claims to honor the GPL were not all
inclusive and therefore I could not successfully rebuild the driver for
the 64-bit architecture.

Bob...