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...is there any benefit of changing to 64-bit Windows XP.
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The advantage of 64-bit is to have more than 4GB of RAM. For 32-bit windows, it can only detect 3.25GB and 750MB is reserved for PCI, IDE, etc. So, if you are compiling for huge devices like the Stratix III and you almost use up all the logic, you might require more than 4GB of RAM. The 64-bit windows will come in handy.
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For a new machine that might compile a large design in the future, definitely get a 64-bit operating system for the reason Rubikian gave. Even with a 64-bit operating system, however, run Quartus itself in 32-bit mode to minimize memory usage when 32-bit mode is sufficient. "Compiling designs with a 64-bit version of Quartus II can require 50 to 100 percent more memory than the same design compiled with a 32-bit version." Be sure to plan for this larger memory usage when you decide how much physical RAM to install in the machine. More information is at
http://www.altera.com/support/software/quartus2/memory/qts-memory.html. "Help --> Readme File" in Quartus will give you a rough idea how much physical RAM each device size could require, but the actual amount is very design dependent.
For Quartus running in 32-bit mode under Windows XP, a 64-bit operating system has the advantage of giving 32-bit Quartus access to over 2 GB of memory space. The boot.ini method mentioned on the referenced web page to access 3 GB memory space with 32-bit Windows XP does not work for a lot of people (a Microsoft issue).
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