I need a ‘freshwater fishspert’ about aquarium set up for glassfish (Parambassis ranga) – NOT PAINTED!?

I know that most people are going to say "get a 10 gallon," "get a betta instead," or "bowls are cruel." I don’t need any of those as an answer. I am responsible. I have been doing research for quite a while and not asking around – til’ now obviously. I do not intend to purchase fish until I have a decent setup going and feel that it is good and ready… no ‘tester fish.’

I live in a dorm with certain size restrictions on aquariums (very small – desktop size if preferred) and they prefer that students have a bowl for aquatic life over a big and noisy aquarium. Again, the answer is not ‘betta.’

I have kept goldfish alive for about 5 years at a time and bettas at 3 years before in a bowl setup AND have had guppies in an aquarium setup before. I would like to step it up quite a bit and get a few glassfish (NOT painted – they are beautiful as nature intended them to be – I am against fish painting.)

Here is where I need help. I have been doing my homework and I just get lost in all of this information. I have read that glassfish, in the wild, live in fresh, still standing water. The reason why people place them into brakish (salted) aquarium water is because it seems to reduce stress more and those that have been painted surive better. Again, I am NOT getting painted fish. I may salt the water a bit.

My questions are:

How many gallons to each fish? (Not going by one inch fish = 1 gallon rule here —- think more along the lines of how much ammonia they produce – are they cleaner than most fish or messier?)

Glassfish survive well, in the wild, in still standing water… can I keep them with minimum cycling and some plant life, can I keep them without cycling and regular water changes?

If I get a 5 gallon, how many Glassfish can I keep without overcrowding?

If I get a 7 gallon, how many Glassfish can I keep without overcrowding?

Help if you can. Thank you!
Actually, Darwin, they are NOT brackish. I will repeat myself: "The reason why people place them into brakish (salted) aquarium water is because it seems to reduce stress more and those that have been painted surive better. Again, I am NOT getting painted fish. I may salt the water a bit."

Here is just one site… prove it as not being credible and I will follow the advice in your answer:
"Glassfish have a reputation for being difficult to keep alive, but this belief largely stems from the myth that they require brackish water to survive. In nature, these fish live in standing water such as bodies created from dammed mountain streams, not estuaries or other areas of brackish water. If they are kept in true freshwater, they seem to be fairly hardy fish, no more difficult to keep than many tetras" (FishLore.com).
Parambassis ranga! NOT ‘Chanda ranga.’

The reason why some people keep Parambassis ranga in brackish water isn’t stress-related, but rather because of the old myth that they’re brackish fish, when they’re actually freshwater fish. While they can certainly tolerate it, they do not require any salt in their water.

As for how many you can keep in a 5-7 gallon tank – zero. Parambassis ranga is a schooling fish that grows to around 3", and have no place in such a small tank.