Living in Elko is pretty much like living in any small town in the western United States. Cost of living is pretty high because of the gold mining activity. The price of gas, groceries, rent, and etc is almost always highest in Elko compared to the rest of Nevada. There really isn't much to do around town, unless you are into going to the bars and/or whore houses. However there is plenty of stores and a few gyms. There are also a couple of decent places to eat, but for the most part they are pretty limited.
From my experience, most of the people in Elko pretty much keep to themselves. I have run into a few scumbags around town, but you can get that pretty much anywhere you live. The crime rate in Elko is pretty high. There seems to be a pretty big homeless community and a lot of drug and alcohol use by people around town that fuels the crime rate. Instead of trying to make the community a better place to live, the local politicians seem to worry more about NDOW and the Feds than the well being of the citizens of Elko County.
Pretty much in a nutshell, Elko is awesome if you live for the outdoors. The Rubies are about as good as it gets. If I were to rate living in Elko on a scale from 1 to 10, I would give Elko a 5.