TAOCP Vol 2: Seminumerical Algorithms · Week 56
TAOCP 3.6 Summary: reading guide
Knuth's practical summary of chapter 3: concrete advice on what kind of generator to use, how to use it, and what to avoid.
Time About 2 hours this week
Why it matters
The most directly practical few pages in the chapter.
Before you start
- Chapter 3
How to approach it
Read it and compare with what your language's standard library uses. Write down which generator your main language uses and whether it would pass Knuth's advice.
Exercises
This is a light section. Skim the exercises, do the ones rated 10 or under in your head, and spend the spare time catching up on earlier exercises you skipped.
Traps
- Using this advice for cryptography. Crypto needs a CSPRNG, a different problem.