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The FOSS Force Distro of the Week — Origami Linux

It’s paper folding time at Distro of the Week. Well, sort of… Actually, we’re looking at Origami Linux, an immutable Linux distro based on Fedora Atomic which features System76’s Cosmic desktop environment. It’s part of a new breed of Linux distro that’s becoming prevalent in the Linux universe and deserves a closer look.

Immutably Atomic

Immutable refers to a Linux distro whose essential system files and directories are locked as read-only. This makes them super secure, protected from both intruders and accidental changes from users. In other words, you can’t easily modify the distro, including the file system, directories, applications, and even configurations. Even as an administrator, you can’t make any modifications to the distribution.

The advantages to immutable systems are enhanced security, simpler maintenance (although, to be fair, every new software addition requires a reboot), and improved reliability. Also, the atomic updates in this Fedora-based distro are done throughout the entire distro itself. In other words, the entire OS is treated as a single indivisible unit. If there is any kind of failure during the update, the system rolls back to the previous state.

Subhed: Meanwhile, back at Origami Linux . . .

Origami Linux was conceived in 2021 by John Holt, a developer with a vision to create a Linux distribution that would blend the beauty of Cosmic Desktop with the security and reliability of Fedora Atomic. The name “Origami” was chosen to represent the idea that, just like a single sheet of paper can be transformed into infinite forms through folding, Origami Linux could be shaped by its users to suit their personal workflows.

The user is given the choice of three ISOs on the Origami webpage – Standard, Cachy OS, and Nvidia. For purposes of this review, I opted for the Standard ISO, which weighed in at an average 4.3 GB. After transferring it to a thumb drive, it was nice to see my old friend, the Anaconda installer – a Fedora mainstay – and Origami didn’t even bother to change the Fedora branding on it.

Installation was pretty straightforward on Anaconda and a few minutes later we were up and running with Origami Linux.

Subhed: Kicking the tires

On first look at Origami, the user has the Cosmic desktop environment greeting him or her, along with a Welcome window taking the user through the basics of the distro, especially some of the nuances of its immutable nature. Once that’s out of the way, the user will notices the complete lack of software included in the install. It comes with Cosmic’s toolset and the Zen web browser, but that’s essentially it.

In Origami’s defense, the lack of software is by design, since the philosophy behind the distro itself is for the user to take his or her own initiative and design their own personal workflows. Hence, the Cosmic Store gets a phenomenal workout in adding some basic software to the distro’s mix.

Thunderbird email client? Check. VLC media player? Yes, please. The LibreOffice suite of software? Absolutely. Throw in the GIMP graphics editor and it looks like we’re good to go. To its credit, the Cosmic Store provides a wealth of software and adding it to Origami with the Flatpak-based software is a breeze.

Origami Linux integrates Cloudflare Warp for secure, fast, and private internet browsing. This enhances the user experience by providing faster connections and reducing latency. Whether you’re downloading large files or working on cloud-based projects, Cloudflare Warp helps to improve your overall network performance.

Navigating the Cosmic desktop environment entails a slight learning curve, and things like finding and placing the Applications widget in the lower dock, it’s a labyrinthine process of Settings > Desktop > Dock > Configuration > Applets. That may be the Cosmic way of doing things, but it seems a bit much.

Nevertheless, the distro itself performed without a hitch. Despite having to reboot every time I added software or performed an update – which I did twice during the week – the software performed meticulously. Even under multitasking conditions, the programs each achieved its goal without exception, and the interactions with cloud-based programs, like Google Docs or Google Drive, were flawless.

Subhed: Final thoughts

To be honest, I am still on the proverbial fence regarding immutable Linux distros. I understand the security issues and how they might play regarding servers, for example, and you only have to go as far as your Android phone to see an immutable Linux-based system in action. However, for individuals working on laptops and desktops, immutable Linux is a two-edged sword which primarily sacrifices individual freedom of tweaking one’s system on the altar of some real-or-imagined security issues.

That may be the experienced Linux user in me talking. For new users migrating from Windows 10, this may not be an issue at all, as long as the distro just works.

And this is where Origami Linux comes in. Overall, this distro just works in spite of some of the quirky nuances of the Cosmic desktop environment; which, to be fair, System76 is still hammering out some – and eventually all, hopefully – of Cosmic’s idiosyncrasies.

Until then, though, Linux beginners should avoid this distro for the time being, while a different caveat exists for more experienced users: Greybeards will primarily have to learn a new set of terminal commands to make things work. This is not good news for those with muscle memory in the terminal department. Goodbye ls and hello eza for starters, according to the Origami Linux wiki. To say nothing of adding software old-school style with rpm – try rpm-ostree from here on in.

But despite its rough edges, whether you are a developer, a security-conscious user, or someone looking for a beautiful desktop environment, Origami Linux provides the tools, flexibility, and design needed for a quality Linux experience.

See for yourself. Download Origami Linux from their webpage here.

Do you have a distro you think would make a great feature for FOSS Force’s Distro of the Week? Don’t be shy—let us know! Offer your suggestions in the comments below (or use the “contact us” link under our masthead) and we’ll make an effort to make it so… No suggestion is too mainstream or too niche—let us know what you’d like to see!