Power price

.jekyllignore

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+vendor/

CNAME

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-
+blog.greencloudcomputing.io

_config.yml

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-#
 # This file contains configuration flags to customize your site
 #
 
 # Name of your site (displayed in the header)
-name: Your Name
+name: Green Cloud Computing Ltd
 
 # Short bio or description (displayed in the header)
-description: Web Developer from Somewhere
+description: The future of ethical cloud computing...
 
 # URL of your avatar or profile pic (you could use your GitHub profile pic)
-avatar: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/barryclark/jekyll-now/master/images/jekyll-logo.png
+avatar: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/greencloudcomputing/greencloudcomputing.github.io/master/images/gclogo.jpg
 
 #
 # Flags below are optional
@@ -18,20 +17,19 @@ avatar: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/barryclark/jekyll-now/master/images/je
 # Includes an icon in the footer for each username you enter
 footer-links:
   dribbble:
-  email:
+  email: [email protected]
   facebook:
   flickr:
-  github: barryclark/jekyll-now
-  instagram:
-  linkedin:
+  github: greencloudcomputing
+  instagram: greencloudcomputing
+  linkedin: company/greencloudcomputing/
   pinterest:
   rss: # just type anything here for a working RSS icon
-  twitter: jekyllrb
+  twitter: gccdotio
   stackoverflow: # your stackoverflow profile, e.g. "users/50476/bart-kiers"
   youtube: # channel/<your_long_string> or user/<user-name>
   googleplus: # anything in your profile username that comes after plus.google.com/
 
-
 # Enter your Disqus shortname (not your username) to enable commenting on posts
 # You can find your shortname on the Settings page of your Disqus account
 disqus:
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   syntax_highlighter: rouge
   syntax_highlighter_opts:
     # Use existing pygments syntax highlighting css
-    css_class: 'highlight'
+    css_class: "highlight"
 
 # Set the Sass partials directory, as we're using @imports
 sass:
   style: :expanded # You might prefer to minify using :compressed
 
 # Use the following plug-ins
-gems:
+plugins:
   - jekyll-sitemap # Create a sitemap using the official Jekyll sitemap gem
   - jekyll-feed # Create an Atom feed using the official Jekyll feed gem
 
@@ -84,3 +82,7 @@ exclude:
   - LICENSE
   - README.md
   - CNAME
+exclude:
+  - vendor
+  - vendor/bundle
+  - vendor/bundle/**/*

_posts/2022-10-31-Progress.md

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+---
+layout: post
+title: Progress...
+---
+
+A few thoughts on where we are - and where we need to get to. 
+
+When I wrote my last update I was set on getting GreenCloud to be revenue positive by EOY 2022.  We have achieved that with Net Visibility using GreenCloud to perform their data extraction and NationWide Energy Consultants coming onboard also. These companies has expressed an interest in being involved with GreenCloud early on and we have identified suitable tasks that we can deliver for them.
+
+It is not the long term aim for us to write customers software. We are creating a system that is easy to use and people can write software for themselves, test locally and then deploy into GreenCloud and achieve their goals with the least hassle possible. 
+
+We are going to achieve this, but as with most things it always takes a bit longer than you would like...
+
+GreenCloud is running on a self funded model with some assistance from Innovate UK ( more about that later ) - as such each piece of software we write is carefully thought out and planned so as to make the best use of the funds we have. It doesn't always go to plan and this brings me to a core , but simple concept of communication.
+
+It is amazing that , regardless of my emphasis - communication can be hard. Green Cloud is a disparate team across the globe. Its something that I am proud of but also has its challenges. For example, getting us together when there are people in 4 different time zones or the language barrier (French, Spanish, Portuguese ). I'm British and speak English, the other members of Green Cloud speak only a little which can make for some interesting times and innovative solutions in how to translate!
+
+We have at our finger tips the means to send message around the globe is seconds, it is astonishing. And yet at times they can go unanswered or just missed. This lack of communication costs start ups like Green Cloud huge amounts in lost productivity. I'm old enough to know that projects seldom run from A to B in a flawless manner. Life just isn't like that. Its imperative to share the problems and talk them through. Even the act of verbalising your challenges often leads to new insights on how to resolve them. And it can be THAT simple and yet often people will refuse to do it. 
+
+I think there area a few reasons for this -: 
+
+1. Perceived Weakness - You are employed to deliver a task and are struggling to do so. It happens - its not ideal but how you handle it will speak volumes for your commitment to the team and the cause. Simply saying nothing only adds to frustration. A problem shared is a problem halved, right?
+
+2. Peer Pressure - often there is a pressure to appear to know everything and be able to solve everything. Especially in this 'Google' age. You could ascribe to this method of thinking but you are hoping the Google knows about what you are working on. I cannot seem to find anything about Superscape Control Language on the internet so how would I learn about WAITF statements.... ( that an incredibly obtuse language and command I've just referenced ). Ask, seek help, talk to people. Dare I say the phrase I hate, REACH OUT! One thing I've found from experience is how much people WANT to help you once you phrase the problem politely and kindly! Few people know that answer to seemingly everything. 
+
+3. Wanting to please - sure being able to please the boss is important, but the boss also wants progress. Keeping quiet and trying to power through but at the same time losing patience with people just doesn't work. What is required is good communication. 
+
+Being able to time and phrase your communication correctly to the audience who need to hear it is a key skill that all software developers should aim to work hard on. Does it make sense to report back, in incredibly technically detail with someone in a management position? Or, would it be better to let some time pass - address the challenge and report back in a timely manner later on with a carefully chosen response that will be well absorb be it positive or negative.
+
+I haven't finished with this topic yet! I am sure that, in time there are going to be more challenges ahead on this theme but I will keep banging the drum on communication.
+
+Onto some good things!
+
+During the last few months we applied to two organizations for help in developing the GreenCloud idea. One of these was TechNation and I am pleased to say that we were accepted onto that platform after a successful application. At the time of writing we have not been able to make good all that TechNation offers in terms of a platform for growth, such has our focus been on delivering the core technology, but in time I am sure GreenCloud will benefit from this relationship.
+
+Secondly and perhaps more exciting/astonishingly we were accepted for funding on the FastStart programme with Innovate UK. We were alerted to this programme in July of this year and had our application submitted just before the deadline at the end of August. We then awaited for a month whilst Innovate reviewed the application. As the date drew closer it became more and more nerve wracking to know if we had succeeded or not. My thoughts were - even if we didn't land the money we would still continue. BUT, having some help with developing the software that runs GreenCloud was going to be a huge benefit. We have secured close to £40,000 towards finishing the web site and core technology. 
+
+There were plans to deliver a new version of the Dispatcher technology, but for a variety of reasons we had to scrap that work. As ever with small businesses we had to pivot and yet in doing so - we not believe we will have a superior solution again as we develop the thinking around GreenCloud. 
+
+This money is going to allow us to deliver a whole host of upgrades to the software that runs GreenCloud which ultimately will make it faster and easier to use - and ALSO add new functionality to. At the time of writing we are still finalising some due diligence with Innovate but we are very excited to be in this rather fortunate position and look forward to over delivering on what we want to achieve in approximately three months time.
+
+Finally - it is incredibly heartening to see the technology come alive and be used by the first few customers. Our thanks to Neil Curtiss @Netvisibility.co.uk for joining the vision on what GreenCloud can deliver. We also look forward to finishing and onboarding NationWide Energy Associates. We have others waiting join , so why not join them? Register your interest with us and join a cleaner and smarter way to perform serverless computing that just doesn't just benefit us but also others! 
+

_posts/2022-6-12-Welcome.md

@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+---
+layout: post
+title: Welcome to the Blog!
+---
+
+Welcome to the Green Cloud blog - we will be updating the content here. The plan is to document the progress we make as we create this ground breaking novel way to perform Serverless cloud computing!

_posts/2022-6-14-What-Are-We-Trying-To-Do.md

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+---
+layout: post
+title: What are we trying to do!
+---
+
+I thought it would be a good idea to use the first blog entry to explain something about what we are going to achieve with Green Cloud. 
+
+The GreenCloud idea started off just over 12 months ago. Cloud computing has become the goto solution to solving peoples computing requirements. 
+
+That demand, however, is putting a lot of pressure on the electricity grids around the world. I've always found this image a great source of context as to just what we are talking about -:
+
+![Power Usage](https://blog.greencloudcomputing.io/images/power_usage.jpg)
+
+Taken from this [BBC Report](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-57108641)
+
+At the inaugural Green Software Foundation Summit event in London (June 2022) a presentation given by one of the delegates stating there would be a considerable of power increase - not decrease for data centers in the forseeable future.This isn't to say that the Data Center designers and engineers are being frivolous - the problem is a tough one!
+
+So we can see, cloud computing isn't going anywhere soon. Its a growing industry and it isn't without its own problems.
+
+The problem of power usage is where GreenCloud can come to the rescue. Its incredibly easy to see how it works when you consider -:
+
+ The cost of electricity is increasing alarmingly
+ Home owners are using Solar and Battery storage to mitigate these costs
+ Computers are not getting slower
+ Internet connections are only getting faster
+ We put the compute power where the energy is created
+
+
+Lets explore some of these in more detail. 
+
+The cost of electricity in the UK has risen sharply in the last 12 months. The move away from carbon intensive energy sources has created instability in the grid. The work required to effectively manage supply and demand has become a lot harder. During winter storms the UK's investment into offshore wind starts to make sense, statistics from the grid show that we can produce a LOT of energy from the wind. 
+
+The problem is the 'calm after the storm'. 
+
+The days after the storm show that we often revert back to carbon intensive solutions to power our grid. Following Twitter accounts like "@NationalGridESO" - are enlightnening on these sorts of situations. There are situations where we have too much energy in the grid! These should be the moments that we are storing the energy and offsetting it for the future. Novel ideas such as Gravitricity ( @gravitricity ) or ( @gh2org ) - and offsetting it for later use! 
+
+Looking back with hindsight to the days of cheap electricity that seem to be gone!
+
+Home owners are looking to mitigate these increasing energy costs with Solar and Battery storage. These systems are expensive to install but these costs are broadly reducing through the increase in solar panel production. People who make this investment want to see a return. There are two main ways that you can get this in the UK -:
+
+    1. Feed In Tariff - the price you get paid for the energy you put back into the grid.
+
+    2. Generation - the now finished tariff for just generating electricity.
+
+There are few actual services that you can subscribe to that can add to these income streams. GreenCloud is one. We pay our members for letting us use their computers that are powered by these renewable sources.
+
+Moores law was created to chart the rise of the density of resistors on the silicon chip. It has more or less held true - but its fair to say that the last few years its been a little patchy as we've moved into the Nanometer fabrication model. With this increase in computational power at the disposal of the man on the street - the capabilities that computers have are starting to out strip the requirements of the people who are buying them. A modern iphone is more powerful than the mainframe that I used to run programs on at Staffordshire University for my HND ! This growing discrepancy between the computational power that we have at our disposal and what we actually need opens up new models of computing that can be realistically be achieved. GreenCloud fits into this. We envisage a future where people will set aside their computers to be able to be part of GreenCloud as and when they want. 
+
+To be able to earn a source of passive income from such practice and crucially in most cases not even know that this was happening is a game changer for personal computing going into the future. 
+
+ We are only just getting going! 

_posts/2025-04-05-Power-Payments.md

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+---
+layout: post
+title: "Get Paid to Power the Planet: GreenCloud Device Payments Explained"
+date: 2025-04-17
+tags: [GreenCloud, sustainability]
+---
+
+Imagine getting paid just for leaving your laptop plugged in!
+
+At GreenCloud, we’re building a world where your everyday devices — laptops, phones, even TVs — can earn money while helping the planet by taking on tasks that would normally be handled by traditional data centers.
+
+In this post I'm going to share how it works and why it's a win-win for you and the environment.
+
+## 🔌 Your Devices Already Use Power — Let’s Make It Count
+
+We’ve been testing devices like the **Apple M1 MacBook**, which is already known for its impressive power efficiency — typically drawing just **10–20 watts** during normal use. 
+
+But here's the exciting part: when GreenCloud runs on your MacBook, it doesn’t need the screen or any of the energy-hungry components used for visual tasks. 
+
+That means the power usage can drop even further.
+
+To accurately understand how much energy is consumed while running GreenCloud tasks, we needed a reliable way to measure power usage in real time. That's why we use a [**Shelly smart power plug**](https://www.shelly.com/en/products/shelly-plug) — it allows us to track exactly how much electricity a device is drawing while GreenCloud is active. 
+
+With the screen off and no user interaction, background processing consumes far less power than typical everyday tasks like video playback or gaming.
+
+![Screenshot of Shelly power plug showing laptop power consumption](/images/shelley_power_reading.png)
+
+On average:
+
+- **Laptops** use 10–30W (MacBooks lean toward the lower end)
+- **Phones** use 2–6W while active (less if idle and charging)
+- **Smart TVs** can be used during idle time, drawing around 30–80W (depending on screen size and model)
+- **PlayStation 5** can draw 50–220W depending on activity (idle to active gameplay)
+- **Xbox Series X** typically draws 45–200W depending on usage
+
+Understanding the power consumption of different devices is only part of the story. To work out the real-world impact — both environmentally and financially — we also need to consider when and how that electricity is being used. That’s where your energy tariff comes in.
+
+## ⚡ The Tariff Talk — What Does This Cost You?
+
+In the UK, energy tariffs vary, and many people are now on **variable rates** or **time-of-use tariffs** like **Octopus Agile** or **Economy 7**. Here’s how that plays out:
+
+- **Standard tariff** (typical): ~28p per kWh
+- **Off-peak Agile tariff**: as low as 7–12p per kWh
+- **Solar-powered home**: potentially **free or surplus energy** during the day
+
+Let’s do the math for a **laptop running 10W for 8 hours a day**:
+
+- 10W × 8 hrs = 80Wh = 0.08kWh
+- Cost per day: 0.08kWh × 0.28p ≈ **2.24p**
+- Monthly cost: ≈ **£0.67**
+- Even cheaper if you're using off-peak or solar.
+
+That means the cost of powering a device for GreenCloud tasks is just pennies per day — or under a pound a month. When you compare that with the payments we offer — typically **£5–£10/month per device** — it’s easy to see how the economics start to work in your favour.
+
+While our platform works with any electricity source, we prioritise devices powered by clean energy — whether that’s rooftop solar, wind, or other low-carbon sources. 
+
+Looking ahead, we envision working directly with energy suppliers to create special tariffs that reward people for participating. These incentives could help reduce your monthly bill or even result in direct payments for the compute power your devices contribute — creating a virtuous cycle of clean, paid participation.
+
+## 🌍 Unlocking the World's Untapped Compute Power
+
+Across the globe, billions of devices spend significant portions of their time idle, representing a vast reservoir of untapped computational potential.
+
+While most global estimates focus on data center-class GPUs and TPUs — estimated at approximately 3.98 × 10²¹ FLOPS in 2023 ([wiki.aiimpacts.org](https://wiki.aiimpacts.org/ai_timelines/hardware_and_ai_timelines/computing_capacity_of_all_gpus_and_tpus?utm_source=chatgpt.com)) — the billions of consumer devices worldwide represent a parallel, underutilized computing layer. These devices often sit idle but remain powered and capable of contributing to distributed computing platforms like GreenCloud.
+
+By harnessing this residual compute power, GreenCloud can transform everyday electronics into contributors to global computational tasks, offering both environmental benefits and financial incentives to users.
+
+## 🌱 Sustainable and Rewarding
+
+This is about **distributed, carbon-free computing**. Your unused device time becomes part of our global network, helping researchers, creators, and developers — all without spinning up a giant data center.

about.md

@@ -4,12 +4,10 @@ title: About
 permalink: /about/
 ---
 
-Some information about you!
+Welcome to the Green Cloud Computing Blog. We will be updating our thoughts and progress here as we continue to work on Green Cloud!
 
-### More Information
+We hope you enjoy reading about the progress we make and want to join us!
 
-A place to include any other types of information that you'd like to include about yourself.
+### Contact Us
 
-### Contact me
-
-[[email protected]](mailto:[email protected])
+[[email protected]](mailto:[email protected])