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Ask HN: What if Tx edu sys used idle compute resources to mine Bitcoin..?
...and turned over generated bitcoin to teachers.
- wmf 10y agoThey'd actually lose money, because the Bitcoin is worth less than the electricity that they spent. There is no free money.
- bob_hope_lives 10y agoClearly there is no free money. Their computers are already on running bloated windows os. Sure it would be an increased load, but can you really write it off as a complete loss without such much as taking even a cursory look at the numbers? If the state's school districts switched to Xubuntu and then did so..?
- wmf 10y agoThe reason I'm so confident is that I did run the numbers. I have profitably mined Bitcoin a couple times in the past.
- DanBC 10y agoProfitable bitcoin mining is all ASICs in places with favorable energy costs. Regular computers in schools are not going to make any profit. Here's a story about a man who installed SETI@Home on a bunch of school computers without getting correct permission. The extra electricity bill caused some consternation. http://www.securityfocus.com/news/300 http://www.securityfocus.com/news/300 And here's someone who lost their job because of it: https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20041010/2225204.shtml https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20041010/2225204.shtml
- bob_hope_lives 10y agoSweet, ty. That puts it in proper perspective.