EggXpert

Hey All.. I just spent my evening researching small form factor solutions, and decided on the Nettop 100. However, I have some questions, I'm hoping some of you may know the answers to:

 First off, my intent is to build a small system that I can leave on 24x7 with minimal power consumption. It's primary function will be to replace my Linksys WRT54GS which is currently running OpenWRT. And of course, it's a fully functional system with reasonably mainstream hardware so I can use it as a small server as well.

Questions:

 1. Since I am hoping to replace my wireless acess point / router, I needed to find a Mini PCI-E card that linux supports well. Specifically, a FOSS driver that will support "master mode" so that I can claim to be an access point. After much research, I've settled on a card I found on Ebay that uses the Atheros AR9281 chip which appears to be well supported by the FOSS complaint ath9k driver. The card happens to come with two small antenna wires as well. Unfortunately, it's coming from China and I'm going to wait forever. The card is not a "half Mini", it is a 'Full Mini'. I've seen conflicting reports in the comments on NewEgg.com that you can only fit a half Mini. I looked at pictures of the motherboard, and it's hard to tell. I've also seen comments of users purchasing other cards that are NOT half mini. Can anyone comment on this?

 Sparklan makes a PCI-Express Half Mini card based on the Realtek RT3091 chip, which seems to be ideal for my purposes. Unfortunately, drivers for Linux are still very new for this, and they do not appear to be FOSS complaint and/or support "Master Mode".

 2. Since the AR9281 supports the 802.11N, I'm not sure if the antenna that's provided with the Nettop 100 will suffice. Can anyone comment on this as well? I expect I'll somehow use the antenna wires that come with the card, maybe just tape them to the inside of the case. Maybe someone out there has found a 'canned' solution for a reasonable price?

3. Heat and noise. I saw many comments about the system getting too hot. I expect to use a Hitachi 1TB SATA drive that I have laying around in mine (HDT721010SLA360) and a Samsung DVD burner. After doing more research, I've decided to purchase a Vantec SF6025L 60mm case fan, which I saw one customer used to reduce noise and increase air flow. There's another version of this fan (SF6025 also available on NewEgg) that is variable speed and appears to move more air. Any comments on heat/noise issues?

 Thanks in advance! :)

-George