Are you using a processor that supports a 64-bit operating system? If so, are you using a 64-bit operating system? The average off-and-on PC user probably doesn’t know the answers to these questions, although they should!

The 64-bit versions of Windows operating systems offer many advantages, for example practically unlimited RAM. In the 64-bit variant, Windows also offers digital signing of drivers, which means you won’t be crashing nearly as much. We’ve put out an article on the difference between the 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows, and some are extremely important.  All of this information and more can be extremely important when determining if you should be going after Windows in its a 32-bit or 64-bit version.

There are so many reasons why 64-bit operating systems are better! Now, let’s look into four ways that you can figure out if you’ve already got the 64-bit goodies.

64bit Checker is a free tool for Windows that accomplishes this goal, among other things. 64bit Checker will give you information about the operating system and CPU in regards to 64-bit compatibility, as well as the version of Windows that you’re running, what Service Pack you’re on, and when you installed Windows.

In the Report tab, you’re given a plaintext version of this information in a field that will allow you to copy and paste directly from it or save the report in HTM or TXT format.

This tool is completely portable and literally takes seconds to download and run.

Why it’s useful: 64bit Checker tells you everything you need to know. You don’t have to do anything technical or search for information, for example whether your processor can handle a 64-bit operating system. You run the application, read through the table or the text report, and you learn the specifics. It’s that easy.

You very likely have a desktop shortcut to My Computer / Computer. Right-clicking that shortcut and selecting Properties will bring up a screen with basic information about your system.

You’re able to see if you’re running a 64-bit operating system and if you’re using a processor that supports one. Other information includes your Windows Experience Index score, basic processor information, installed RAM, and more.

Why it’s useful: This is probably the quickest way to figure out whether or not you’re currently running a 64-bit operating system and what model processor powers your machine.

Through a Command Line prompt, typing the command “set pro” will reveal a lot of information that will help you piece together required details to know if you are or aren’t on a 64-bit machine.

Your processor’s architecture and the folder paths shown here reveal a few things about your 64-bit status. You can see that there is a path in this list pointing to Program Files specific to x86, which is an immediate giveaway that you’re on a 64-bit operating system. The 32-bit versions of Windows only use a single Program Files folder.

Why it’s useful: If your intent is to learn the most about your processor in the quickest way, this method is best. As you can see in the screenshot, your processor’s architecture, identifier, level, and revision are all displayed. It’s incredibly clear in this example that the CPU supports the use of a 64-bit operating system.

Spurring directly from the last method, simply navigating to your main drive’s root directory can be enough to do the trick.

As aforementioned, 32-bit versions of Windows will only include a single Program Files folder, while the two folders you see above will be present on any 64-bit system. The Program Files (x86) folder is where applications that are meant to run on 32-bit systems are installed. The main Program Files folder is where all 64-bit applications reside.

Why it’s useful: A lot of software now comes in both 32 and 64-bit versions. While just glancing at the folders reveals if you’re on a 64-bit operating system or not, actually browsing through your Program Files folder for 32-bit applications is a good way of seeing which applications you have installed that might be worth a potential upgrade to a 64-bit version.

If you’ve purchased a new computer in the past year, I’d be surprised to hear that it has come loaded with a 32-bit operating system or with a processor that doesn’t support 64-bit operating systems. We’re past the transition point where 64-bit is the new standard, but it’s not possible to be too safe and to make sure that you’re running a 64-bit operating system before you do something like decide to install the 64-bit version of a piece of software over its 32-bit version. If you’re ever in a situation like that, and in doubt, you should keep in mind that the 32-bit architecture works just fine under a 64-bit operating system.

If you’ve got any questions about 32-bit or 64-bit operating systems, feel free to leave me a comment in the section below. Otherwise, let me know which of these methods is easiest to you. Do you prefer the ease of use in one of Windows’ provided options, or is the presentation that 64bit Checker offers enough to get you to download it? Let me know what you think.

Google's Chromecast only began shipping at the end of last week, but the hacking has already begun.

The folks at GTV Hacker have discovered an exploit for the Chromecast's bootloader, allowing root access to the $35 TV dongle. With the USB image provided by GTV Hacker, rooting the Chromecast is just a simple seven-step process.

Most Chromecast users will want to hold off on hacking their dongles, since there are no practical applications for the rooted device right now, and Google could patch the exploit at any time. The purpose of the current exploit is to learn more about the Chromecast and to give developers a chance to test their software.

To that end, GTV Hacker claims that the Chromecast is “more Android than ChromeOS,” despite Google's claims that Chrome is at the heart of the device. The software appears to be a modified version of Google TV, derived from the same bootloader, kernel, scripts and binaries, and Google TV itself runs a customized version of Android. The big difference with Chromecast is that it lacks the Dalvik virtual machine architecture found in Android devices.

In other words, you won't be able to sideload Android apps on Chromecast, but GTV Hacker hasn't ruled out the possibility of turning the device into a Google TV stick at some point. Just keep in mind that such a hack would run into hardware limitations, as Chromecast has a mere 2 GB of flash memory and 512 MB of RAM on board, according to iFixit .

The idea that Chromecast and Google TV share some common blood shouldn't be too much of a surprise. Google TV users can already “Cast” YouTube videos from their phones and tablets to the television. Other features of Chromecast, such as the ability to send Netflix videos to the television and to mirror browser tabs from Chrome, will be coming to Google TV as well. Google has said the two television products will co-exist, which makes some sense if Chromecast is just a stripped-down version of Google TV.

 

Recently, I took a closer look at Red Hat Enterprise Linux, or “RHEL”, to see how good of an enterprise desktop operating system it really is. I found that it’s a top quality product, and Fedora users would be extremely familiar with it (no surprise there). However, Red Hat isn’t the only company in the Linux enterprise desktop market — there’s also SUSE.

While aiming towards the same goals, SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop, or “SLED” which costs $120 for a one-year subscription, and offers different technologies and software to get the job done. But just what can SLED offer, and how is it different to Red Hat’s offering?

Getting the Evaluation Copy and Installation

From the start, getting an evaluation copy of SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop was easier because, unlike Red Hat, you don’t need to be associated with a business or enterprise to be eligible. In fact, all you need to do is visit this site and request an evaluation copy. You’ll then be asked to create an account so that the evaluation code can be associated with something. Once this has been done, you can go ahead and download your SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop installation media. The evaluation copy of SLED lasts for a total of 60 days rather than just 30 days with Red Hat.

The installation and registration of the software was also easy — the installer did almost everything for me (any openSUSE user will be very familiar with the installer), and the registration works flawlessly after entering in both your email address and your subscription code.

Software

Surprisingly, SUSE still considers GNOME to be its default desktop environment for its enterprise offerings, despite the fact that openSUSE (from which SLED is derived) is more known for its slick KDE polish and integration. No matter, SLED’s GNOME implementation is also pretty nice, as it’s adjusted to reflect a Windows-like setup where there is only one panel and an application launcher at the bottom right corner.

The latest release of SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop version 11 SP3, actually includes some decently updated software. Some examples include Linux kernel 3.0.82, Firefox 17 (the latest long term support release), LibreOffice 4, and GNOME 2.28.2. While they’re certainly not the latest and greatest releases, they’re certainly more up-to-date than Red Hat while still being considered reasonably stable for enterprise environments.

Generally speaking, everything that you may find in openSUSE will be highly recognizable in SLED. The major difference between the two is that the software is more stable and the support timeframes are much longer for SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop than they are for openSUSE. In fact, the software available under SLED isn’t nearly as restricted as it is under Red Hat Enterprise Linux. For example, you are still able to see the Games, Education, and Multimedia software categories in the software manager. While I’m not sure if this really makes a difference in the long run for enterprise environments, I definitely like to see more choices available.

Additionally, with SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop, you get professional support from the company who makes the operating system.

RHEL vs. SLED

There are a handful of differences between Red Hat and SUSE. For example, Red Hat focuses primarily on GNOME while SUSE offers both GNOME and KDE (but has GNOME as its default). Red Hat also uses completely different tools for system management like yum for package installation, GNOME system settings, and kickstart for automated installations. SUSE, on the other hand, uses YaST as a complete control center for every system setting or task, and AutoYaST for automated installations.

Conclusion

I certainly like SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop. In fact, I like it a lot, and I’m sure I’d like it even more if I chose to install the KDE desktop rather than stick with the defaults. However, whether I like it more than Red Hat — I’m not sure. I do enjoy the larger software selection and more up-to-date software, but I also like Red Hat’s stability and configuration tools.

I’m sure plenty of people like SUSE’s YaST to configure their entire system from one location, but I find myself constantly struggling to fully understand what everything does or means. As someone who’s running the latest version of Fedora with KDE, I really can’t help but feel like I’m stuck in the middle. SUSE certainly tries to entice you, so if you’re fine with using YaST, then SUSE may be slightly better.

Unless you have specific reasons to like one or the other, I’d just suggest to go with the vendor that’s geographically closer to you (where Red Hat is in the United States and SUSE is headquartered in Germany). This way, you’ll be dealing with a more local provider who can better serve you in terms of support.

Which enterprise desktop solution do you think is better, RHEL or SLED? What about their open counterparts, Fedora and openSUSE? Let us know in the comments below!