****Re: ****Re: ****Re: ****What's up with 64 bit Linux

[Jon M. Hanson]

Chris Gehlker wrote:
> In the Intel world, the data path isn't wider between i386 and  
> ix86-64. There are more registers, but compilers haven't really been  
> optimized to use them yet. But even when they are, one cache miss will  
> wipe out the gains from running hundreds of instructions with more  
> registers.
>   
This isn't true at all. If you're running in x86-64 and something has 
been compiled as x86-64 you will absolutely use the additional 
registers. Compilers (at least GCC and Intel's compiler, I can't speak 
for Microsoft's) have supported x86-64 for quite a while now.