I have decided against installing the 64 bit XP pro, but I am wondering if it will recognize all my memory. I will be installing 4gb RAM and a 1gb video card. Will it recognize all the memory? or should I still to just installing 3gb Ram. I already bought the video card and will be purchasing the ram this week. Side question, is it worth it to install Vista? or just continue to use XP?
You were right not to install XP pro 64-bit its pretty shoddy. XP home will recognise 3GB memory (plus a lil more). Running home with 4GB of RAM can sometimes cause problems but there is a fix that makes XP only see the 3GB it can use. Whether to install Vista depends on your system specs, whether or not you like the layout (have a bash on somebody elses before putting it on your own) and finally whether you think its worth waiting for 7 to be released.