[Q]:Generate Unique ID's

[Mel Wilson]

In article <mailman.1054097983.30587.python-list at python.org>,
Tim Peters <tim.one at comcast.net> wrote:
>The latter for me.  If you're worried about the inconsequentially unikely,
>then as Knuth points out, if you have a truly random source and suck random
>bits out of it, every now and again you're going to get a billion zeroes in
>a row.  Most applications of RNGs would be devastated by such an occurrence
>(e.g., trying xor'ing a billion zeroes into plaintext as a means of
>encryption).  OTOH, for most PRNGs it's possible to prove that will never
>happen.  Excepting bugs, of course, and again the HW and SW going into
>physical RNGs isn't immune to bugs either.

   But you have to consider your attackers' point of view.
There are lots of sequences that will make ciphertext that
looks just like unaltered plaintext but, taken naively at
face value, says things that are not true.  By the time your
random source produces a billion zeroes, it will probably
already have treated the attackers to several of these other
sequences, and they'll be very wary about believing what
they see.

        Regards.        Mel.