Datagen FAQ

datagen - Data Generator
Copyright (C) 1999-2005 dondalah@ripco.com (Dondalah)

This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.

You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 675 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.


How do you create a duplicate field in Datagen?

Two identical fields in datagen with the fldseed option create identical data. See the datagen manual for more information on fldseed.

Example: create identical alpha fields.

    record
    totrcds = 100
    fldsep = ":"
    field len = 10 alpha fldseed = "abcdefghijkl" endfld
    endrcd

    record
    totrcds = 100
    fldsep = ":"
    field len = 10 alpha fldseed = "abcdefghijkl" endfld
    endrcd
    end

  • The two alpha fields in this example have the same values within each record type.
  • This feature allows you to join two files or tables with identical key fields.


    Does Datagen create derived fields?

    Datagen doesn't create derived fields based on other fields in the same record or in previous records.

    Use the following procedure to create derived fields:


    How is the term "record" used in
    Datagen?

    In datagen, the term record is used to mean a line of data terminated with an end of line character.

    In the datagen source language, a record starts with record and ends with endrcd.


    How much data does Datagen have to generate
    before the overall data pattern repeats?

    The overall data pattern should not repeat. If it does, please let me know at what generation the seed repeated.


    How random is the data generated by
    Datagen?

    The random data generated should approximate a truly random data pattern.

    If your test shows that the data is not random, the problem is most likely in the way datagen creates the data. Please let me know about the problem if it occurs.


    Is Datagen a useful tool for Monte Carlo solutions?

    Datagen should not be used to solve high precision engineering problems and integrals using Monte Carlo methods.

    The ran2 generator in Numerical Recipes in C, Chapter 7.1, can be used for this purpose.

    You may also want to look at the Scalable Parallel Random Number Generators Library, SPRNG.


    Is Datagen a useful tool for secure applications?

    datagen would be easy to break in a secure application.

    To implement a secure application, you may want to look at the latest version of the Advanced Encryption Standard or an equivalent means of securing your data.


    Datagen Manual     GNU General Public License