Link Stew
The Art of Hashing
Designing a hash function is a black art. As such, it is always
better to use a known good algorithm than to try and invent one.
Hash functions are similar to random number generators in many
ways, and just as with random number generators, it is easier to
design a very poor hash function than to design even a mediocre
one. This tutorial will describe several good hash functions so
that you can avoid the temptation to write an ad hoc algorithm
when the time comes. We will also look at a few not so good hash
functions so that you will be able to recognize them in the real
world.
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Session variables without cookies
've made a small script that let you use JavaScript session
variables without using cookies. It will let you store 2 MB of
data, with much less hassle than a cookie based solution. Embed
sessvars.js 6 Kb in the head section of every web page where you
want to use session variables, before any other scripts that try
to set/get them.
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Dynamic Languages Strike Back
Some guys at Stanford invited me to speak at their EE Computer
Systems Colloquium last week. Pretty cool, eh? It was quite an
honor. I wound up giving a talk on dynamic languages: the tools,
the performance, the history, the religion, everything. It was a
lot of fun, and it went over surprisingly well, all things
considered.
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Distributed Version Control Systems: A Not-So-Quick Guide Through
Since Linus Torvalds presentation at Google about git in May
2007, the adoption and interest for Distributed Version Control
Systems has been constantly rising. We will introduce the
concept of Distributed Version Control, see when to use it, why
it may be better than what you're currently using, and have a
look at three actors in the area: git, Mercurial and Bazaar.
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When Should You Jump? JSR 308. That's When.
Beware: this stuff is like Cthulu rising from the vasty deep.
There's an internal logic here, but if you're not mentally
prepared, it could strip away your sanity like a chill wind
across a foggy moor.
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Scipy - the embarrassing way to code
Ive programmed in many languages before, indeed Ive spent at
least a year working in Basic, C, C++, C#, java, assembler,
modula-2, powerhouse and prolog. One thing Ive never done before
is Matlab, well except a few basic exercises for some course I
did way back. A couple of years ago I started using python and
more recently Ive started to use the scipy libraries which
essentially provide something similar to Matlab. The experience
has been unlike anything Ive coded in before.
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