Systemd is the controversial project taking Linux by storm. Several Linux distros have or are in the process of switching over to systemd, namely Fedora, OpenSuse, Ubuntu, Debian and Arch Linux. Linux Mint, the currently popular distro, will most likely follow suit. After all, Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu.
What’s the hullabaloo about systemd? Systemd is the replacement for the old SysV, the init system that initializes Linux on boot. Some detractors are saying that systemd is not Unix-like, whatever that means. Some say it’s very intrusive software because it’s not only an init system, but a software suite that handles daemons for login, event logs, virtual devices, cron task scheduling, as well as the network.
If you like to dig more about systemd, here’s a good writeup worth reading from PCWorld.