My tiny but high performance Intel NUC has been performing very well since the fan (blower) transplant. It is everything I need for the job I ask it to do.
There is no worse feeling when a new and expensive item suddenly goes sour. The fan is probably one of the least expensive components in the computer. It was an easy fix. Probably a low bid component selection by Intel.
It’s that sort of thinking that tarnishes an otherwise good product. The extreme performance space shuttle fails because of a lousy rubber O-ring. No disaster here…
The NUC and Linux
The internet and search engines can bring instant information on any subject. One problem is it doesn’t bring the most current information. The reader must be very careful of basing decisions from information that is out of date and no longer relevant.
I did searches about the Intel NUC and using a Linux OS rather than Windows 10. The original NUC was designed as a Windows only computer. It was like Apple having its own OS-X. I found posting about how hard to impossible it was to install Linux on a NUC. Mostly driver problems and getting the Boot ROM and Linux boot identification files to talk to each other. The fixes were very messy. Then I saw the article was written five years ago. It was still on page one of the search results (!!)
Five years is a huge time-period with computers. I found current information about Linux and the Intel NUC . If the NUC is a current version, loading Linux is no longer a big issue. Load and lock. Doing searches Both Intel and the Linux distros show it easy and straightforward. An Intel NUC page provided a link to a Linux Mint install for a turning a NUC into an entertainment control center including an XBMC app to run the show.
A Linux OS in a high performance NUC is doable in 2018 without much fuss.
The Real Decision
A computer OS is not like choosing a sports team. The Fan-boy age of OS loyalists I hope is long past. The real choice is the end user application and the OS needed to execute it.
I have my feet in many computer operating systems. It’s all about the results, not which tool is used. In many cases one tool is as good as the other. In my case the division is because CNC machines need 100% communication with their control computer when it is used for direct control
Windows does not produce that reliability. It performs a vast number of background operations that interrupt critical timing needs of direct CNC control. The fix is an interface device between the windows PC and the CNC controller. The other option is a computer OS (Linux) that does not require the in-between interface. Either solution works.
Windows biggest problem for use in critical control applications is its practice to do systems updates and reset when not expected. That can be fixed by not connecting to a network with Internet access. The computer becomes dedicated to CNC control and less useful for other tasks.
Bottom line, either can be configured to do the job. Ford or Chevy, both can take you to work and back. I happen to like my turbo VW GTI for doing that job… Sometimes it IS all about the vehicle and the ride. Having a choice is wonderful!