Mail Archives: djgpp-workers/1998/11/23/01:32:09
On Sun, 22 Nov 1998 Kbwms AT aol DOT com wrote:
> Whose computer works in 48-bit arithmetic nowadays? And what
> advantages accrue when using 48-bit generators?
One advantage is compatibility with other platforms. *rand48 are used
quite a bit, and their algorithm seems to be well defined. So I think
it's a good idea to have an implementation in the library.
> Spoken like a man who has no intention of ever using the output of
> a random number generator. No serious investigator uses the output
> of a random number generator that cannot be identified and verified.
Not all DJGPP users are ``serious investigators'' whose concern is to
produce random numbers with good properties.
Apart of these, there are also people who have a program that works on
another platform which they want to compile and run on DOS/Windows.
If the program has a good reputation on the other platform, and was
tested and debugged by many people, I can easily imagine somebody who
couldn't care less about the exact properties of the random generator
that program employs; all they'd care is how to get an otherwise
working program to run as quickly as possible.
This may not be good enough for serious investigators, but that's what
having compatibility functions is all about. If you have ever ported
a large and complicated program to another OS/compiler, you know how
to appreciate this.
For example, if I would attempt to identify and verify every algorithm
in even in small GNU packages like Make or Sed (to say nothing about
TeX and Emacs), I would be investigating forever instead of producing
a working port in a few days or a few weeks.
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