Internet Explorer 64 Bit Vs 32 Bit (7.0)

[WHOwhatWHEREwhen]

Hey this might seem like a dumb q BUT i just got this new computer and it has TWO internet Explorers, one is 32 & one is 64. How do i know which one to open and WHEN?! Also the guy at Circuit City told me if i used the 32 bit one Google Desktop Sidebar WOULD run after i unsuccessfully tried to install it while downloading with IE64Bit...Well, of course, it wouldn't install! Last time msg said something about couldn't d/l to a 64 bit, but this time (using his advice) i used the IE 32 bit version but i still got a msg: "u must have vista sp3 or above".... So to summarize: Question #1, do i NEED to know which IE to use, and if so, HOW can i tell them apart, AND Question #2, anybody know a way around my 32/64 SP2/SP3 problem cuz i like Googles sidebar & gadgets sooooooooooo much better than Windows Vista's... Any help would sure be appreciated y'all- t/y!

[viking33]

Carol,
First of all, go to SYSTEM INFORMATION and download the System Information Utility.
Run it and it will tell you EVERYTHING you always wanted to know about your system.
Check for the TYPE of CPU you have installed. It should say either 32 bit OR 64 bit. ( and a TON of other information )
A 32 bit machine cannot run 64 bit programs.
So try to find out just what type of system you really have and post back to us.

VISTA does not have a SP3 version. There IS an Internet Explorer SP3 recently issued.

I think you have confused the Vista Sidebar feature with Google.

[WHOwhatWHEREwhen]

t/y Bob, for writing me back. K, system info, got it, printed it out. BUT i DO know i am running 64 bit, its a brandy new computer. The GUY (@circuit city) told me it won't present ANY problem with my programs (so says HE- i dint believe him for a minute!) i am not confusing Vista gadgets Sidebar with Google Sidebar gadgets (i hope i'm not or i'm in worse shape than i thought! - Google Gadgets sidebar has much nicer clock, weather, news and nifty Google search bar right there) but what i am saying is i have TWO Internet Explorers, one reg, one that says 64 bit (when i open START andd got to programs, there they BOTH are. What i was really needing to know is "do i need to know when to open one or the other?" If i run them "willy nilly" then will i have even MORE confusion? sheeesh, i hope not, my brain is about to explode AS IT IS- (i read Vista for Dummies almost ALL weekend, didnt retain MUCH and now almost my entire book is highlighted ) i think Woody's next should be titled "Vista For Complete & Total Idiots Who Can't Connect The Dots" ) t/y Bob (et al)

[JoeP517]

Some OEMs load the Google Sidebar and have it start at boot time instead of the Vista Sidebar. That is just fine if you want to keep it. You'll need to use the 32-bit IE if you visit a site that uses Flash as Adobe has not released a 64-bit version of Flash yet. I think that there is not a 64-bit Java runtime either. I'm not entirely sure about Java. It is likely there are other IE plugins that only come in a 32-bit version right now. So, unless you know for sure it will be hit & miss. If you run 64-bit IE and it does not work for a particular site try the 32-bit version.

Joe

[WHOwhatWHEREwhen]

(Edited by HansV to make URL clickable - see <!help=19>Help 19<!/help>)

oh and Google Gadgets Sidebar has a really cool Spider you can load that follows ur mouse around the screen and can easily scare some unsuspecting passerby cuz it looks so real! Check it out- too fun! http://desktop.google.com/plugins/sidebar/

[WHOwhatWHEREwhen]

t/y Joe, for the "hit or miss" solution... sounds like a plan, but of course i STILL don't have a clue as to "what the benefit of even bothering with the IE 64 Bit program would be. Whats the difference? Wait, don't EVEN try to explain that (many have TRIED, all have FAILED ) so are you saying TRY one, if i get messages, try the OTHER? or are u saying just stick with 32 bit for now and i can't "go wrong"? OR, are u saying, with my 64 bit OS, some programs WILL work ONLY if i have my 64 bit IE up, and some will work ONLY when i use my IE32bit ? (i can't believe they have done this to me, you wouldn't believe how hard it was for me JUST to figure out what the heck was going on when Interent Explorer introduced "TABS"! (i understand it NOW tho, and i love my "tabbed browsing" )

[JoeP517]

My impression is that the 32-bit version is supplied for compatibility purposes so that you can still access sites that won't run properly under the 64-bit version. Personally, I'd run the 64-bit version and see what happens. If it turns out to be too troublesome because of the sites you normally visit then I'd switch to the 32-bit version.

Joe

[WHOwhatWHEREwhen]

ok well i'll try it the way you suggested and see what happens..... Onto next dilemma...

With both versions of Internet Explorer, i tried to download Google Desktop and this is the error message i received: "Google Desktop is currently not compatible with your operating system. It requires a 32-bit version of Windows Vista, Windows XP or Windows 2000 Service Pack SP3 or above. " Now this is really puzzling that my new "state of the art" computer can't d/l Google Desktop. How do i have all this xtra RAM, tons of storage, 32 EXTRA bits (cuz my Vista OS is 64 bit ( HP assured me this was "a good thing" but now i'm not so sure) and yet i'm one shy in my Service Pack? Yikesssss!! Is that message saying "i'm AHEAD of my time"? (That would surely be a FIRST! ) t/y!

[JoeP517]

that is a Google problem not a Vista problem. Does Installation : 64-bit Windows compatibility - Desktop for Windows Help Center help?

Joe

[WHOwhatWHEREwhen]

ok went there (thank you - GREAT LINK answered my question completely ) So, it tells me i could try to "force" it. I have never EVER gone into that black screen (command prompt) in my 12 years of computing (i kid u not, 12 years and i know LESS than i started with ) but i felt adventurous this am and thought if i screwed up too bad i now have "Joe" and a recovery disk so i went for it! (First i had to figure out typing "command prompt" gets u there, that was a lil tricky cuz it used to be located in the "Run" box which i couldn't find. Anyway, i typed this line it told me to "'googledesktopsetup.exe /force" but it didn't wanna hear about it. (i don't think i was in the "install area of the BLACK BOX" but i got too scared to venture further and just "gottheheckouttatherelicketysplits!" (sigh) i'll just live with Vista Sidebar for now ) thanks for your help!!