In today's open source roundup: The question of bloat in Linux. Plus: Samsung will release a limited edition Galaxy Alpha phone, and does Oracle Linux have a future? Bloat in Linux: Myth or reality? Linux has long been known as an operating system that would run well even on older hardware. But has Linux become bloated in recent releases and how does it compare to Windows 8 in terms of system requirements? Tux Wallpapers Jack Wallen at TechRepublic explores the question of bloat in Linux: …to say that Linux is bloated is like saying a LEGO set that comes with a million LEGOs is bloated. Just because it has all the pieces doesn’t mean they’ll be used to create a single, monolithic creation. Make what you want. Take those LEGOs and make a bunch of really cool toys. You are free to do with those individual pieces what you want. Of course, some of those pieces will be used more than others (like the Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader figures). Same thing with Linux. …the requirements of my distribution of choice (Ubuntu 14.04, at the moment) are: 700 MHz processor (about Intel Celeron or better) 512 MiB RAM (system memory) 5 GB of hard drive space (or USB stick, memory card, or external drive — but see LiveCD for an alternative approach) VGA capable of 1024 x 768 screen resolution Either a CD/DVD drive or a USB port for the installer media The system requirements for Windows 8: Processor: 1 GHz or faster with support for PAE, NX, and SSE2 (more info) RAM: 1 GB (32-bit) or 2 GB (64-bit) Hard disk space: 16 GB (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit) Graphics card: Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM driver More at TechRepublic Samsung will release limited edition Galaxy Alpha with leather Samsung has decided to release a very limited edition of its Galaxy Alpha phone. This special version will combine metal and leather. Alex Wagner at Android and Me reports: Samsung’s Galaxy Alpha made headlines when it launched earlier this year because it was the first Samsung smartphone to feature some metal in its design. Now Samsung is taking things a step further with the Galaxy Alpha by throwing in some leather as well. Samsung France has announced that it’ll offer super-limited editions of the Galaxy Alpha with leather backsides. The phones are designed by shoe company Free Lance and artist Jean-Baptiste Rautureau for women and men, respectively. There will be just 100 leather-clad Galaxy Alpha units sold. More at Android and Me The future of Oracle Linux A redditor recently asked for feedback about Oracle Linux and its future in a thread on the Linux subreddit. Many other redditors chimed in with their thoughts. Dogecoinslove asks about the future of Oracle Linux: How good is the future. Will it be able to survive next 10 years. I know many DBAs still vouch for Solaris but due to cost factor I am seeing lot of clients moving to Oracle Linux . In short – Does it have a future. More at Reddit Centropomus responded with what might have been the real purpose of Oracle Linux: The project was originally an effort to lower Red Hat’s stock price in preparation for a possible acquisition. It worked, though they decided to go a different route in shoring up their platform control. Whatever customer focus they may have is an afterthought. It’s fine if you only want to run Oracle on it, but if you want good general-purpose support, Red Hat is the way to go. disclosure: former Red Hat employee More at Reddit Adila01 noted that Oracle may not have the best interests of Linux at heart: Yeah, Oracle is actually damaging the Linux ecosystem by not contributing back and adding on proprietary functionality like ksplice. More at Reddit What’s your take on all this? Tell me in the comments below. Open Source