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From: henry@utzoo.UUCP (Henry Spencer)
Newsgroups: net.crypt
Subject: Re: Why no hardware random numbers?
Message-ID: <5219@utzoo.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 12-Mar-85 15:45:01 EST
Article-I.D.: utzoo.5219
Posted: Tue Mar 12 15:45:01 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 12-Mar-85 15:45:01 EST
References: <868@utcsri.UUCP>
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
Lines: 13

> ... Why no hardware random numbers?

Because it's hard to build a hardware random-number generator that
will be unbiased and STAY unbiased.  There are any number of things
you can use as a source of random analog garbage -- I seem to recall
that thermal noise in a suitable semiconductor is a reasonable choice --
but converting them into bits that are reasonably evenly distributed
(and will stay that way without constant readjustment) is harder.
Plus, there is minimal demand.  The reproducibility of pseudorandom-
number generators is a feature, not a bug, for most purposes.
-- 
				Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology
				{allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!henry