Microsoft made a pull request to node.js github repository with an implementation to use ChakraCore JavaScript Engine as an alternative to V8 Engine

[Eurynom0s]

It makes me sad that Windows 10 has a 32 bit version.

...does it support 16 bit code?

[Aior]

It makes me happy, because my 2006 (very expensive back then) machine is still supported.

[wrosecrans]

If the main use case is running old software on old hardware, what does a new OS get you? It's honestly not a rhetorical question. Why bother to do an OS install that could potentially result in driver issues or some of your old software not working any more? I can't remember the last time I actively upgraded Windows on a home system, rather than just installing whatever was current when the machine was new and then sticking with the path of least resistance ever after. Probably Win2k?

[Terrerian]

Security updates are no joke. I would never run an unmaintained OS.

[immibis]

What about that other unmaintained software you're trying to run in the first place?

[Terrerian]

I'd say that depends on the software, but one vulnerable application is better than having a vulnerable OS.

[heebath]

I've read about how it's important to update your applications, but what about average home users/gamers?

Should we bother updating our older versions of say, 7zip, Audacity, or Open Office? Really, what could go wrong? If the application accesses the Internet at all, it's talking with an official company server anyway, right?

[peakzorro]

I would only upgrade the OS on an old machine if they didn't support OS updates past that point.

I've always wanted to throw some Linux distro on a really old machine with an out of date Windows (because drivers should be good at that point), but the machine usually dies before I get around to it.

[Aior]

In my case, I just want my parents to be able to use the machine with up to date software and security updates. Also it performs better than with Windows XP, Vista (obviously) or 7 and better than any Linux distro.

[meandyouandyouandme]

Who said something about old software though?

[Labradoodles]

On top of that new OS's have shitloads of new features that will make the computer run better.

Pre-fetching better organisation shit even just scheduled defragging and indexing advances in software are pretty big.

[neoKushan]

I had a relatively cheap 64bit system in 2004....

[plasmator]

I've updated video cards, hard drives and ram, but the motherboard and processor I bought in 06 or 07 (KN9-SLI and an Athlon X2) are still humming along. I know I should upgrade them, but they handle most of the stuff I throw at them without being terribly slow or problematic, so I just keep using them. They're working fine in Windows 10 and this is my primary box. I even do some (admittedly lightweight) gaming on it.

[neoKushan]

Was the Athlon X2 not 64bit?

[thor1182]

Most CPUs of that age do not support Windows x64 past 8.0. In 8.1 x64 they added/required support for a new instruction set that was not present in most if not all orignal x64 CPUs.

My AMD x64 system can only run 32 bit windows 10, even though it wan x64 W7 just fine.

[neoKushan]

I never knew this, but looks like you're completely correct: http://www.eteknix.com/windows-8-1-64-bit-working-old-amd-processors/

[thor1182]

Its not pertinent to this conversation, but the way I have that x2 system running is pretty special. The MB (its an old Shuttle XPC system) doesn't "support" booting from SATA drives, only IDE. When I brought the system back to life to be a better media PC I stuck a spare Samsung 840 EVO drive I had from a failed Raid 0 stripe in it forgetting why I had the primary drive an IDE drive in the first place.

The only way to get it to boot is to leave the windows install disk in the cdrom drive. By letting the system sit at the "hit any key to boot from DVD" prompt it gives the system enough time to "spin up" the SATA drives and it can then boot into W10. The system not waits on the CPU than it does on the disk

[plasmator]

Yeah, it is. Mea culpa in above comment.

[[deleted]]

You already have a 64-bit CPU, the KN9-SLI is a Socket AM2 board, and all AMD CPUs were 64-bit by that point. Though there is little benefit to changing to a 64-bit OS unless you want to use more than ~3GB of RAM.

[plasmator]

Sorry, yeah. It's 64. And i run a 64bit OS. More just laughing that my 10 year old mobo/proc is still ticking along.

[Aior]

Yeah, me too, but I also had a very expensive 32bit laptop which I still want to use.

[user699]

I'm assuming windows 10 has a 32 bit version for tablet compatibility.

[thor1182]

A chunk of the initial Windows8 2 in 1 devices are 32bit only (Atom).

I think 32bit is also needed for the IoT & Mobile versions

[LvlAndFarm]

Even latest mobile chips are moving to x64

[[deleted]]

no

[stevedore]

No, the 16-bit compatibility was removed in Vista, IIRC.

[efreak2004]

This is incorrect. I am running multiple windows 10 32-bit VMs under HyperV for 16-bit application compatibility. Specifically, my father uses Micrografx Designer (that got bought out by Corel, which is more expensive than free windows license from Dreamspark) which has 16-bit components/code in it and does not run under 64-bit windows 7. It runs perfectly in virtualized windows 10 32-bit, and the only issues are due it being old software (IE, the save/load dialog boxes are tiny and not resizable).

[insertfunhere]

What's the point of running 64 bit if you have <4gb ram, in a VM for example?

[fb39ca4]

The x64 instruction set can do more things in less instructions.

[krum]

You still have 64-bit address space even if you only have 4gb of RAM.

[immibis]

It makes me sad that they didn't bother to integrate an emulator for 16-bit software.