POS terminals and electronic billboards are not desktops, though, so arguments about desktop software is irrelevant. These are all dedicated application appliances with known, controlled hardware and software constraints. Using a general-purpose desktop designed for corporate executives running Excel and PowerPoint is just the wrong technology choice for such an application. Some kind of specialized Linux-based system, on the other hand, is an excellent choice.
Most of the point of sale systems I've seen run Windows, which means most of the off-the-shelf apps are written for Windows. Even if they are written in Java, they have hard dependencies on Windows.
> Using a general-purpose desktop designed for corporate executives running Excel and PowerPoint is just the wrong technology choice for such an application.
Agree, which is why most of the time you use Windows Embedded for Point of Service or Windows IoT Enterprise. Which again, is Windows.
