what are 32 and 64-bits in computers and what difference do they make?

Question

Does it make the computer faster? And how are they different from 8 and 16-bit video game consoles?

In: 2446

Answer 1

This value is called the “native word size,” and it determines the maximum number size the processor can operate on in a single step.

A 32-bit computer *can* work with 64-bit (or even larger) numbers, but it has to split operations into multiple steps. For example, to add two 64-bit numbers it would need to take twice as many steps. In practical terms, this makes it slower when working with large numbers than a 64-bit computer.

This is an oversimplification, but it’s the gist of things.