random
OS/161 Reference Manual
Name
random - pseudorandom number generation
Library
Standard C Library (libc, -lc)
Synopsis
#include <stdlib.h>
long
random(void);
void
srandom(unsigned long seed);
Description
random returns a number between 0 and 0x7fffffff (RAND_MAX). This
number is selected using a rather complex generator which is believed
to generate randomness of an acceptable (though not cryptographic)
quality. Unlike with some generators, all bits of the values returned
are random.
srandom initializes the generator state based on the passed-in
seed. If srandom is not called, the sequence of numbers
returned by random is the same as if srandom had been called with a
seed of 1.
The implementation of random and srandom used in OS/161 is software
developed by the University of California, Berkeley and its
contributors.