32bit or 64bit

[MattBaldry]

Hi all,

What are the benefits of converting my database to a 64bit version?

~Matt

 

[Galaxiom]

None.

 

[arnelgp]

Its preparation to the future.
There is no going back.
Like nokia who ignore change, they suffer.

 

[theDBguy]

Hi all,

What are the benefits of converting my database to a 64bit version?

~Matt

If you don't use APIs or ActiveX controls, then there's no need to convert your app into 64-bit. In fact, there would be nothing to convert.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

For reasons not known but only suspected, Microsoft did not convert Access internals to take advantage of 64-bit addresses, so there is absolutely zero benefit for such a usage UNLESS you have to work with 64-bit spreadsheets. None of the other Office elements benefit that much from 64-bit environments. It is incredibly rare to have a Word document big enough to require 64-bit unless you are publishing a photographic tour guide of the world. Power-point presentations won't grow that fast either. Only Excel has benefited much if at all from the bigger address space.

 

[Deleted member 147267]

I dunno about some of those many comments...
Maybe look here...

 

[isladogs]

As already stated, there are no advantages to converting to 64-bit.
Even if you don't use APIs, there are still risks to converting to 64-bit as some ActiveX controls such as Treeview and Flexgrid don't work in 64-bit.
Similarly for some of the older reference libraries.

However, as a developer of applications distributed via the internet, I have to ensure my applications work in both 32-bit and 64-bit
This means I have to have both bitnesses myself in order to test my applications and to create ACCDE files in both witnesses.

As @arnelgp said, 64-bit is the future...and in fact is now the default install for Office 365....BUT there are still no advantages to its use in Access

 

[theDBguy]

Similarly for some of the older reference libraries.

Just for my own education, could you please mention some of those? They're not ActiveX controls or MDB to ACCDB issues, correct? Thanks.

 

[isladogs]

Just for my own education, could you please mention some of those? They're not ActiveX controls or MDB to ACCDB issues, correct? Thanks.

There are several of these.
From memory, IIRC examples include:
1. Microsoft Common Dialog Control 6.0 (SP6) (comdlg32.ocx) - see https://www.access-programmers.co.u...rakes-view-users-logged-into-database.295174/
2. Microsoft Windows Common Controls (MSCOMCTL.OCX) - see https://www.access-programmers.co.uk/forums/threads/32-bit-issue.303973/
3. Skype4COM 1.0 Type Library - skype4com.dll ???? - Can't find a link to conform that one

 

[theDBguy]

There are several of these.
From memory, IIRC examples include:
1. Microsoft Common Dialog Control 6.0 (SP6) (comdlg32.ocx) - see https://www.access-programmers.co.u...rakes-view-users-logged-into-database.295174/
2. Microsoft Windows Common Controls (MSCOMCTL.OCX) - see https://www.access-programmers.co.uk/forums/threads/32-bit-issue.303973/
3. Skype4COM 1.0 Type Library - skype4com.dll ???? - Can't find a link to conform that one

Okay, unless I'm mistaken, I thought those are for ActiveX Controls, right? Or, maybe just some of them? If so, thanks!

 

[onur_can]

I always favor innovation, the top versions are the best. That's why I try to keep my system update, whether it's windows or an office. and this is of great benefit to me.
64 bit is better for you if you are working with very large data sets.

 

[isladogs]

I always favor innovation, the top versions are the best. That's why I try to keep my system update, whether it's windows or an office. and this is of great benefit to me.
64 bit is better for you if you are working with very large data sets.

The latest versions of Office 365 often contain serious bugs that mean they are certainly not the best.
64-bit is certainly better for use with large datasets in Excel. It offers no advantages in Access

 

[isladogs]

Okay, unless I'm mistaken, I thought those are for ActiveX Controls, right? Or, maybe just some of them? If so, thanks!

Whether ActiveX or not, these are all old libraries that stopped working in Win 10 and/or 64-bit.
I believe that an update that does work in 64-bit is planned for at least one of these.

However Flexgrid has definitely been allowed to 'die' which is a shame as it had some unique features that are no longer available

 

[theDBguy]

Whether ActiveX or not, these are all old libraries that stopped working in Win 10 and/or 64-bit.
I believe that an update that does work in 64-bit is planned for at least one of these.

However Flexgrid has definitely been allowed to 'die' which is a shame as it had some unique features that are no longer available

Okay, thanks. I just thought you were talking about something I missed. Cheers!

 

[deletedT]

I always favor innovation, the top versions are the best. That's why I try to keep my system update, whether it's windows or an office. and this is of great benefit to me.
64 bit is better for you if you are working with very large data sets.

For us who work in the Engineering CAD world, we never update to the latest version. Because the latest version is always a step after beta. And full of bugs. Every year each CAD software sends out a new version, then during the whole year they give 5 Service Packs. Almost everyone who works with a CAD software, never versions up to the new release until SP4 or SP5. It means one year delayed.
You update sooner, you face a lot of troubles that makes you stop your work or makes you slower.

Microsoft is not better. During the last year there was at least two updates for office that was a tragedy to Access world.
Here's one:

Access error -query is corrupt

For info. New article from MS released today https://support.office.com/en-us/article/access-error-query-is-corrupt-fad205a5-9fd4-49f1-be83-f21636caedec Here's an example Only a month to wait for the fix - 10 Dec 2019. Sigh! But of course sooner for those running 365! 24 Nov. Reminds me of...

www.access-programmers.co.uk

There was a lot of problems with updates for Windows too.
So, I never update until a service pack is out.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

Dealing with new versions is industry-wide. We always knew that we NEVER wanted to run production on version x.0 of any operating system. We always waited (if we could) until x.1 had come out with bug fixes for all the new features in x.0 that were great ideas that needed some work.

 

[onur_can]

Friends,
As you know, the program writers know. After writing the first version of a program and delivering it to the customer, the customer starts to use it. But over time, some suggestions and e-mails are received from the customer about meeting the needs. Sometimes there are unnecessary points and they want to be removed. And after 6 months or 1 year, you make changes in the program you have written by evaluating all your ideas and suggestions. So you update. Now I'm asking you;
You use my first version or is it the 2nd version?
Of course you would choose version 2. It's the 3rd version if it's even made.
This is the basic logic in all software programs. But there are some exceptions, but the exceptions do not break the rule. Let me ask one more question now;
Who uses Windows 3.1 when there is Windows 10 Pro?
Who uses Adobe Acrobat Reader 4 with Adobe Acrobat Reader DC?
Who uses Word 97 with Word 2019?
.......
.......
The most up to date system is always good.
Why do manufacturers publish Firmware in mobile phones, LED TVs and other electronic devices and strongly recommend that they apply it? Have you ever thought? To ensure the stability of their systems.
Why do you download and install the latest driver for the hardware you use on your computers?
For more stable work,
Why do you feel the need to update your computers BIOS?
to adapt to newer hardware.
We can reproduce these examples even more.
I hope I could explain.

 

[Galaxiom]

Who uses Windows 3.1 when there is Windows 10 Pro?
Who uses Adobe Acrobat Reader 4 with Adobe Acrobat Reader DC?
Who uses Word 97 with Word 2019?

You are comparing current versions with extremely out of date versions.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with using previous versions while they are still supported.
If the newer version doesn't offer any features that are important or at least useful then there is no reason to waste money on the later version.

Plenty of people kept using Windows XP long after Vista was released for very good reasons. This was especially so in critical situations.

Moreover 32 bit Office is not an obsolete version. It is a fully up to date parallel development with the 64 bit version.

 

[deletedT]

Who uses Windows 3.1 when there is Windows 10 Pro?
Who uses Adobe Acrobat Reader 4 with Adobe Acrobat Reader DC?
Who uses Word 97 with Word 2019?

You're exaggerating. Nobody says use a 40 years old OS.
If you read about the updates, you see most of them come out as a solution to a bug in a prior update. I can give you a thousand example.
But updating as soon as a version is out, is not what I choose. As I said, new version=new bug.
And it's not only about Microsoft.
As I said, I wait at least for two or three service pack.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

@onur_can - there is a difference in some operating systems that makes it wise to delay IF POSSIBLE.

For example, in OpenVMS you NEVER ran version x.0 because it contained new features. Those new features were buggy. Version x.1 cleaned up those versions. With the Navy, we had a mandate to use the latest version of the O/S available - but our "out" was that if our system was deemed mission-critical then we had to schedule down-time. AND we had enough products that the upper echelons decided it was OK to accumulate a few versions and have one great big "update the world" weekend.

You HAVE to know that the first version of Windows NT was buggy as all heck but once a few patches became available, it stabilized quickly. Trust me when I say that there is not - and perhaps should NEVER be - a rush to install the latest, greatest version of any O/S precisely because it might be the latest, greatest MESS that ever hit the fan. Take the furor over Win10 release 2004, which "reset" a whole bunch of my settings and forced me to find my notes on where I could turn off this or that feature. Not to mention pushing O365 and Edge again, neither of which are of any value to me. I'm NEVER hot to install new software that counts as a "major feature release."

Do you know WHY it is that way? If you don't, you need to know it. The best software regression testers are the customers in the field. The testers in the software companies think too logically. They think like computer people. They don't think like "average Joe Schmuckatelli." Here's a case in point. We had a "rock-solid" system that was going to be responsible for interstate transport of hazardous material (petroleum distillates) through pipelines. Minimum down-time required. We were sure we had it right. So the customer comes one day for progress testing to verify that we are in fact working on his machine. He walks over to our setup, hears our spiel about how solid we think it is. He walks to the operator console using our special keyboards. He sits down on the operator's special keyboard. And lo and behold, 8.02 seconds later the system crashes. That is because those of us in the industry can't think down to the level of the minimum wage system operators who often get put on the "graveyard shift." That is why version x.0 of something isn't such a great idea all of the time.