On 6/19/16, 12:59 PM, "Fleshgrinder" <p...@fleshgrinder.com> wrote:
>This matches Tom Worster's analysis of mt: it's just crap. :P Actually I satisfied myself that both MT19937 and PHP's mt_rand() produce good quality random variates and I posted the evidence behind the belief. I don't think being slow and inefficient with memory justifies removal or deprecation (premature optimization). I think the decision to change this RNG or not is best left to the users. Only they understand the pros and cons of their specific context. Furthermore, I would prefer that if they decide nothing, perhaps even being unaware of the question, they can upgrade PHP and their programs still work. This is my opinion. >I am sorry if it seems to you as if I am ignoring you, Quite the >opposite is the case. It is just unbelievable to me that we are trying >to keep these functions if there are so many better alternatives that we >can provide to our users. There is nothing bad about a deprecation >together with a much better alternative. I cannot imagine that anyone >has a problem with that. It is quite common that different people can have full and correct appreciation of the technical aspects of something and have different judgements regarding the best action. So I am surprised you cannot imagine that someone who disagrees with your conclusions could understand the facts of the matter. In the language of politics and policy, since that's what this really is... You advocate a top-down structural approach to changing individual behavior for their own and the greater good. I advocate for new facilities, education, and the individual's responsibility to decide what's best for them. Subjective differences like this shouldn't be unbelievable, they should be expected. >* Let me know if I missed any other argument that clearly explains why >mt_rand() cannot be deprecated and removed. Oh, yes, I am ignoring the >legitimate usage from a private software that is unsharable because this >argument cannot be verified. As a general matter of taste, I don't like to be drawn by the "prove me wrong" rhetorical method. And in this specific position of this php-internals thread I don't see any chance of changing minds by arguing over what constitutes a legitimate use of a random in a PHP program. So, on both counts, I prefer not to. You have clearly stated your positions and explained your reasons. Please grant that other people with different positions and reasons may not feel any need or desire to prove you wrong and please don't represent this as evidence in support of your assertions. Tom -- PHP Internals - PHP Runtime Development Mailing List To unsubscribe, visit: http://www.php.net/unsub.php
