There are several ways to conveniently generate random data on Unix systems. One popular way is to make use of Perl’s rand function. Another is to employ the /dev/random or /dev/urandom pseudodevice ...

Even though rand() may be a good enough random number generator for making a video game, the patterns of random bits it spits out may not be sufficient for applications requiring truly random data.

On Unix systems, random numbers are generated in a number of ways and random data can serve many purposes. From simple commands to fairly complex processes, the question “How random is random?” is ...