SO,
The problem
It's well known about pseudo-random numbers. 'Pseudo' actually means, that, despite they are random (i.e. unpredictable) in general, they still will be same in sequence, in which same generator init value was used. For example, in PHP there's mt_srand() function to do that. Example:
mt_srand(1);
var_dump(mt_rand(), mt_rand(), mt_rand());
-no matter, how many time we'll launch our script: generated three numbers will always be same in sequence.
Now, my issue is how to do the same - but for shuffling array. I.e. I want to create a function, which will accept input array to shuffle and seed. Within same seed value shuffling must have consecutive same order. I.e. let we call that function shuffleWithSeed() - and then following should work for every script launch:
$input = ['foo', 'bar', 'baz'];
$test = shuffleWithSeed($input, 1000);//1000 is just some constant value
var_dump($test); //let it be ['bar', 'foo', 'baz']
$test = shuffleWithSeed($test, 1000);
var_dump($test); //let it be ['baz', 'foo', 'bar']
$test = shuffleWithSeed($test, 1000);
var_dump($test); //let it be ['baz', 'bar', 'foo']
//...
-i.e. no matter how many times we'll do shuffle for our array - I want for the next script launch ordering sequence will be always the same within one seed value.
My approach
I have in mind this algorithm:
Initialize random numbers generator with passed seed
Generate N random numbers, where N is the number of $input members
Sort numbers from step 2
Make corresponding numbers be dependent from $input keys.
I've implemented this in:
function shuffleWithSeed(array $input, $seed=null)
{
if(!isset($seed))
{
shuffle($input);
return $input;
}
if(!is_int($seed))
{
throw new InvalidArgumentException('Invalid seed value');
}
mt_srand($seed);
$random = [];
foreach($input as $key=>$value)
{
$random[$key] = mt_rand();
}
asort($random);
$random = array_combine(array_keys($random), array_values($input));
ksort($random);
return $random;
}
-now, also found Fisher-Yates algorithm - but not sure if it can work with pseudorandom numbers (i.e. with seed)
The question
As you can see, I'm doing two sorts in my function - first by values and second by keys.
Can this be done with one sort? Or without sort at all? Input array could be large, so I want to avoid this.
However, may be my algorithm is not well? If yes, what other options could be suggested?
Here's a copy and paste of a function I have implemented a while ago for exactly this purpose:
/**
* Shuffles an array in a repeatable manner, if the same $seed is provided.
*
* #param array &$items The array to be shuffled.
* #param integer $seed The result of the shuffle will be the same for the same input ($items and $seed). If not given, uses the current time as seed.
* #return void
*/
protected function seeded_shuffle(array &$items, $seed = false) {
$items = array_values($items);
mt_srand($seed ? $seed : time());
for ($i = count($items) - 1; $i > 0; $i--) {
$j = mt_rand(0, $i);
list($items[$i], $items[$j]) = array($items[$j], $items[$i]);
}
}
It implements a simple Fisher-Yates shuffle with a seeded random number generator.
Related
I would like to generate a random unique alpha string in PHP or Laravel, that would it be only 5 characters long, the problem is that in all the examples I've found, they mention how to generate alpha-numeric strings, and I need only alpha characters, and also it to be upper case, how can I do it? thank you.
Str::random(5) can be used to generate non-unique alpha-numeric strings, but if you want unique, alpha only, then you'll need some kind of helper function.
Laravel's Collection class has a number of methods that makes this rather trivial:
public function randomString() {
$alphaString = collect(array_merge(range('a', 'z'), range('A', 'Z')))
->shuffle()
->take(5)
->implode('');
}
This will generate 5 character alpha strings (without repeating values, that can be done too if you need more combinations), but still doesn't handle the "unique" part. To handle that, you simply need to check the generated value, and regenerate it if it already exists somewhere. A common use-case is using this value as a unique column for a Model:
public function randomString() {
$alphaString = collect(array_merge(range('a', 'z'), range('A', 'Z')))
->shuffle()
->take(5)
->implode('');
if (Model::where('column', $alphaString)->exists()) {
return $this->randomString();
}
return $alphaString;
}
If you want to allow repeated values, then you'd need to loop and shuffle:
public function randomString() {
$values = collect(array_merge(range('a', 'z'), range('A', 'Z')));
$characters = collect();
while ($characters->count() < 5) {
$characters->push($values->shuffle()->first());
}
$alphaString = $characters->implode('');
if (Model::where('column', $alphaString)->exists()) {
return $this->randomString();
}
return $alphaString;
}
This allows for more combinations, but you're still rather limited with only 5 characters.
Edit: If you're not using Laravel, native array methods work too, as the Collection class is basically just a fancy array anyway:
$values = array_merge(range('a', 'z'), range('A', 'Z'));
$characters = [];
while (count($characters) < 5) {
shuffle($values);
$characters[] = $values[0];
}
$alphaString = implode($characters);
And, bonus, an interactive version to verify:
https://3v4l.org/tR5IF#v8.1.13
The answers to this question say that unset() doesn't work, but weren't clear on what does. I have a recursive function, which uses static variables, however after the recursion has finished and the value has been returned, I need to reset those variables or subsequent calls (the recursive function is currently been called within a loop) would return wrong values.
In the linked question some people suggested trying $var = NULL outside the function which I did, but to seemingly no effect.
The reason why I used static variables and didn't just write them as parameters to the function is that I don't want a situation where the user can pass in arguments to that function, as the only arguments to the function should be supplied from within it.
My Code
<?
require_once("randX.php"); #"randX()" generates a random floating point number in a specified range.
// require_once("../displayArray.php");
error_reporting(E_ERROR | E_WARNING | E_PARSE);
/*
* Generates a valid, random probability distribution for a given array of elements, that can be used in conjunction with "probSelect()".
* Input:
$arr: An array of elements.
$control: A value that decides how much mass is allowed to be unilaterally dumped onto one element. A high value would permit distributions where most of the mass is concentrated on one element.
If an invalid value is provided, the default is used.
* Output: An associative array where the keys are the elements in the original array, and the values are their probabilities.
* #param array $arr: An array of elements for which the probability distribution would be generated.
* #param float $control: A variable which limits the inequality of the probability distribution.
*/
function probGen(array $arr, float $control = 0.01)
{
$control = ($control <= 1 && $control >= 0)?($control):(0.00001); #Use the default value if an invalid number is supplied.
static $result = []; #Initialises $result with an empty array on first function call.
static $max = 1; #Initialises $max with 1 on first function call.
foreach ($arr as $value)
{
$x = randX(0, $max); #Random probability value.
$result[$value] = ($result[$value] + $x)??0; #Initialise the array with 0 on first call, and on subsequent calls increment by $x to assign probability mass.
$max -= $x; #Ensures that the probability never sums to more than one.
}
/*
* After the execution of the above code, there would be some leftover probability mass.
* The code below adds it to a random element.
*/
$var = array_values($arr);
if($max <= $control) #To limit concentration of most of the probability mass in one variable.
{
$result[$var[rand(0,(count($var)-1))]] += $max; #Selects a random key and adds $max to it.
// print("<br>Sum: ".array_sum($result)."<br>");
return $result;
}
else
{
return probGen($arr, $control);
}
}
$max = NULL;
unset($max);
$result = NULL;
unset($result);
?>
This is always the problem with using static in any circumstances, I would change them to be parameters being passed in and having a default value...
function probGen(array $arr, float $control = 0.01, $result = [], $max = 1 )
(With the appropriate types).
These can then be passed down the chain in your further call...
return probGen($arr, $control, $result, $max);
This allows you better control over what these values start as (you can pass in your own values as a default) as well as being able to reset/adjust them as part of the call.
I'm trying to create a random number generator in PHP. It's supposed to generate three (3) numbers at a time, without repeat. That's to say, the 3 numbers cannot be the same.
Here's what I've tried so far:
$array = [];
$A = mt_rand(1,36);
$array[0] = $A;
$B = mt_rand(1,36);
$array[1] = $B;
if(in_array($B,$array)){
$B = mt_rand(1,36);
$array[1] = $B;
}
$C = mt_rand(1,36);
$array[2] = $C;
if(in_array($C,$array)){
$C = mt_rand(1,36);
$array[2] = $C;
}
$length = count($array);
//display the array values;
for($i = 0; $i < $length; $i++){
echo ($array[$i]."<br>");
}
Can anyone tell me where I'm going wrong?
Like this ( as per my initial comment ),
$array = [];
while( count($array) < 3 ){
$rand = mt_rand(1,36);
$array[$rand] = $rand;
}
print_r( $array );
By setting the "key" to be the random number, we can abuse the fact that associative array keys are unique. Then it's a simple matter of waiting until the array contains the desired amount of unique items.
You can test it here
Outputs: ( your results may vary, it's random )
Array
(
[16] => 16
[20] => 20
[27] => 27
)
UPDATE I was trying to think of a valid way to do it without using a loop ( on my way home from work ), and this way may be even better in some cases.
$a = range(1,36);
shuffle($a);
$array = array_slice($a, 0, 3);
print_r($array);
This will have better performance when the number of items you must find is higher. This is because there is no repetition, no collisions. So if you have a small range but need to find many items for the return, this will preform better. If you have many items and need to return only few, then the first one may be better, if not from speed then from memory use.
You can see it here
For reference this uses
range() - Create an array containing a range of elements.
http://php.net/manual/en/function.range.php
shuffle() - Shuffles (randomizes the order of the elements in) an array. It uses a pseudo random number generator that is not suitable for cryptographic purposes.
http://php.net/manual/en/function.shuffle.php
array_slice() - Returns the sequence of elements from the array as specified by the offset and length parameters.
http://php.net/manual/en/function.array-slice.php
So to explain this last one
First we create an array that contains each of our possible numbers as an element. So for example like this [1,2,3,4,5,6, ...].
Next we shuffle it which randomizes the order of the whole array. Shuffle modifies the array by "reference" so it doesn't return our array and therefor there is no assignment ( I think it returns Boolean, however I'm at a loss as to how it could fail and return false, pretty much it just returns true which we don't want to overwrite our array with ). So our example then becomes this [16,20,27,14,5,1, ...]
Last we cut out the number of items we need to return. Finally we end the example with this [16,20,27];
You can crunch the first one down into one ( really 2) line by assigning the value of the $rand variable in the condition of the loop. Like this:
$array = [];
while( count($array) < 3 && false !== ($rand = mt_rand(1,36))) $array[$rand] = $rand;
Because mt_rand(1,36) will never return boolan false. Also if I remember mt_rand is the same as rand now, or at least in current PHP versions.
Note: As of PHP 7.1.0, rand() uses the same random number generator as mt_rand(). To preserve backwards compatibility rand() allows max to be smaller than min as opposed to returning FALSE as mt_rand(). http://php.net/manual/en/function.rand.php
Hope it helps you, remember to think outside of the box.
I'm trying to generate a unique randomized array with exceptions,
i got this far:
function rand_except($min, $max,$no_numbers, $except) {
//loop until you get a unique randomized array without except number
$end=false;
while (!$end){
$numbers = rand_array($min, $max,$no_numbers);//get unique randomized array
if(!in_array($except,$numbers)){
$end=true;
break;
}
}
return $numbers;
}
but now i want the function to loop until the except parameter isn't in the array
I suspect it would be easier to solve this problem by updating the rand_array function (or writing a modified version of it) to generate the array without the $except value to start with.
If that is not an option, here is one possible solution that doesn't involve calling the rand_array function over and over again:
$numbers = rand_array($min, $max-1, $no_numbers);
for ($i = 0; $i < count($numbers); $i++) {
if ($numbers[$i] >= $except) {
$numbers[$i] += 1;
}
}
You call the rand_array function but specify one less than the actual maximum number you want in the array. Then you loop over the results, and any value that is greater than or equal to the $except value, you increment by 1.
This is assuming that the $except value is in the range $max to $max. If not, you can just return rand_array($min, $max, $no_numbers); as is.
Does anyone know what's the randomness of PHP's shuffle() function? Does it depend on the operating system?
Does it use PHP's own seeder?
Is it possible to use mt_rand() as generator?
shuffle() function is based on the same generator as rand(), which is the system generator based on linear congruential algorithm. This is a fast generator, but with more or less randomness. Since PHP 4.2.0, the random generator is seeded automatically, but you can use srand() function to seed it if you want.
mtrand() is based on Mersenne Twister algorithm, which is one of the best pseudo-random algorithms available. To shuffle an array using that generator, you'd need to write you own shuffle function. You can look for example at Fisher-Yates algorithm. Writing you own shuffle function will yield to better randomness, but will be slower than the builtin shuffle function.
Update for PHP 7.1
Since the rng_fixes rfc was implemented for PHP 7.1, the implementation of shuffle now utilizes the Mersenne Twister PRNG (i.e. it uses mt_rand and is affected by calling mt_srand).
The legacy system PRNG (rand) is no longer available; the functions rand and srand are in fact aliased to their mt_ equivalents.
Based on Mirouf's answer (thank you so much for your contribution)... I refined it a little bit to take out redundant array counting. I also named the variables a little differently for my own understanding.
If you want to use this exactly like shuffle(), you could modify the parameter to be passed by reference, i.e. &$array, then make sure you change the return to simply: "return;" and assign the resulting random array back to $array as such:
$array = $randArr; (Before the return).
function mt_shuffle($array) {
$randArr = [];
$arrLength = count($array);
// while my array is not empty I select a random position
while (count($array)) {
//mt_rand returns a random number between two values
$randPos = mt_rand(0, --$arrLength);
$randArr[] = $array[$randPos];
/* If number of remaining elements in the array is the same as the
* random position, take out the item in that position,
* else use the negative offset.
* This will prevent array_splice removing the last item.
*/
array_splice($array, $randPos, ($randPos == $arrLength ? 1 : $randPos - $arrLength));
}
return $randArr;
}
It's random just like rand();
And as PHP style you don't need to seed
mt_rand()
Generates a random number.
shuffle()
Randomizes an array. It also generates new keys in the array rather than just rearranging the old ones.
If you want to seed in PHP you would have used mt_strand().
However, since PHP 4.2.0 seeding is done automatically in PHP when you call mt_rand.
Works with associative and numeric arrays:
function mt_shuffle_array($array) {
$shuffled_array = [];
$arr_length = count($array);
if($arr_length < 2) {
return $array;
}
while($arr_length) {
--$arr_length;
$rand_key = array_keys($array)[mt_rand(0, $arr_length)];
$shuffled_array[$rand_key] = $array[$rand_key];
unset($array[$rand_key]);
}
return $shuffled_array;
}
$array = [-2, -1, 'a' => '1', 'b' => '2', 'c' => '3', 11, 'd' => '4', 22];
$shuffled_array = mt_shuffle_array($array);
I've created a function who sort my array randomly.
/**
* Build a random array
*
* #param mixed $array
*
* #return array
*/
function random_array($array) {
$random_array = array();
// array start by index 0
$countArray = count($array) - 1;
// while my array is not empty I build a random value
while (count($array) != 0) {
//mt_rand return a random number between two value
$randomValue = mt_rand(0, $countArray);
$random_array[] = $array[$randomValue];
// If my count of my tab is 4 and mt_rand give me the last element,
// array_splice will not unset the last item
if(($randomValue + 1) == count($array)) {
array_splice($array, $randomValue, ($randomValue - $countArray + 1));
} else {
array_splice($array, $randomValue, ($randomValue - $countArray));
}
$countArray--;
}
return $random_array;
}
It's not the best way to do that but when I've used the function shuffle, it was always returning a random array in the same order. If this could help someone, I will be happy !