javascript toFixed() - javascript

In many case toFixed() fail cause of floating point in javascript math.
I found this solution:
function toFixed(decimalPlaces) {
var factor = Math.pow(10, decimalPlaces || 0);
var v = (Math.round(Math.round(this * factor * 100) / 100) / factor).toString();
if (v.indexOf('.') >= 0) {
return v + factor.toString().substr(v.length - v.indexOf('.'));
}
return v + '.' + factor.toString().substr(1);
}
and this:
function toFixed(num, fixed) {
var re = new RegExp('^-?\\d+(?:\.\\d{0,' + (fixed || -1) + '})?');
return num.toString().match(re)[0];
}
There are other approaches? I have to be certain that performs well in any case. Also in borderline-cases.
EDIT:
https://github.com/MikeMcl/decimal.js
#Tschallacka
Number.prototype.toFixed = function(fixed) {
x = new Decimal(Number(this));
return x.toFixed(fixed);
};

I suggest you use a library:
https://github.com/MikeMcl/decimal.js
I found it very dependable when working with finanical data.
Working with floating point numbers is always difficult, but there are several solutions out there.
I suggest you use an existin library that is well maintained, which already has had it's baby teeth knocked out.
Assuming you added decimal.js you can do this for financial values.
/**
* #var input float
*/
function toFixed(input) {
var dec = new Decimal(input);
return dec.toFixed(2);
}
console.log("float to fixed 2 decimal places: ",toFixed(200.23546546546));
function toFixed2(decimalPlaces) {
var dec = new Decimal(1);
return dec.toFixed(decimalPlaces);
}
console.log("get a fixed num: ",toFixed2(10));
Number.prototype.toFixed = function(fixed) {
x = new Decimal(Number(this));
return x.toFixed(fixed);
};
var num = new Number(10.4458);
console.log("Number to fixed via prototyped method: ",num.toFixed(2));
var x = 44.456
console.log('Number to fixed via inderect number casting:' ,x.toFixed(2));
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/decimal.js/7.1.1/decimal.min.js"></script>

Related

Round float value with 6 not 5

I need some help on this, I have a big float value (Ex.: 18.235555).
In some countries, rounding up begins from 6, and not from 5.
I know use only 2 decimal, but I need something different:
18.235555 = 18.24
but this
18.23666 = 18.24
$('#val').html( Number(Math.round(1.005+'e2')+'e-2' ) );
Example: now I have this [https://jsfiddle.net/tevez15/ywm8bonp/][1]
var n = 1.665;
(Math.round( n * 100 )/100 ).toString()
Solution: [1]: https://jsfiddle.net/tevez15/ywm8bonp/
Since it is possible again to answer I'd like to formulate my solution in a proper way.
Your way to round numbers can be archieved by the following code:
var myRounding = function(value, decimalplaces) {
var decFac = decimalFactor(decimalplaces);
var facVal = value * decFac;
if(facVal - Math.floor(facVal) < 0.6) {
return Math.floor(facVal) / decFac;
}
return Math.ceil(facVal) / decFac;
}
var decimalFactor = function(decimalplaces) {
if(!decimalplaces)
decimalplaces = 0;
return Math.pow(10,decimalplaces);
}

Javascript rounding failure

This is the rounding function we are using (which is taken from stackoverflow answers on how to round). It rounds half up to 2dp (by default)
e.g. 2.185 should go to 2.19
function myRound(num, places) {
if (places== undefined) {
// default to 2dp
return Math.round(num* 100) / 100;
}
var mult = Math.pow(10,places);
return Math.round(num* mult) / mult;
}
It has worked well but now we have found some errors in it (in both chrome and running as jscript classic asp on IIS 7.5).
E.g.:
alert(myRound(2.185)); // = 2.19
alert (myRound(122.185)); // = 122.19
alert (myRound(511.185)); // = 511.19
alert (myRound(522.185)); // = 522.18 FAIL!!!!
alert (myRound(625.185)); // = 625.18 FAIL!!!!
Does anyone know:
Why this happens.
How we can round half up to 2 dp without random rounding errors like this.
update: OK, the crux of the problem is that in js, 625.185 * 100 = 62518.499999
How can we get over this?
Your problem is not easily resolved. It occurs because IEEE doubles use a binary representation that cannot exactly represent all decimals. The closest internal representation to 625.185 is 625.18499999999994543031789362430572509765625, which is ever so slightly less than 625.185, and for which the correct rounding is downwards.
Depending on your circumstances, you might get away with the following:
Math.round(Math.round(625.185 * 1000) / 10) / 100 // evaluates to 625.19
This isn't strictly correct, however, since, e.g., it will round, 625.1847 upwards to 625.19. Only use it if you know that the input will never have more than three decimal places.
A simpler option is to add a small epsilon before rounding:
Math.round(625.185 * 100 + 1e-6) / 100
This is still a compromise, since you might conceivably have a number that is very slightly less than 625.185, but it's probably more robust than the first solution. Watch out for negative numbers, though.
Try using toFixed function on value.
example is below:
var value = parseFloat(2.185);
var fixed = value.toFixed(2);
alert(fixed);
I tried and it worked well.
EDIT: You can always transform string to number using parseFloat(stringVar).
EDIT2:
function myRound(num, places) {
return parseFloat(num.toFixed(places));
}
EDIT 3:
Updated answer, tested and working:
function myRound(num, places) {
if (places== undefined) {
places = 2;
}
var mult = Math.pow(10,places + 1);
var mult2 = Math.pow(10,places);
return Math.round(num* mult / 10) / mult2;
}
EDIT 4:
Tested on most examples noted in comments:
function myRound(num, places) {
if (places== undefined) {
places = 2;
}
var mult = Math.pow(10,places);
var val = num* mult;
var intVal = parseInt(val);
var floatVal = parseFloat(val);
if (intVal < floatVal) {
val += 0.1;
}
return Math.round(val) / mult;
}
EDIT 5:
Only solution that I managed to find is to use strings to get round on exact decimal.
Solution is pasted below, with String prototype extension method, replaceAt.
Please check and let me know if anyone finds some example that is not working.
function myRound2(num, places) {
var retVal = null;
if (places == undefined) {
places = 2;
}
var splits = num.split('.');
if (splits && splits.length <= 2) {
var wholePart = splits[0];
var decimalPart = null;
if (splits.length > 1) {
decimalPart = splits[1];
}
if (decimalPart && decimalPart.length > places) {
var roundingDigit = parseInt(decimalPart[places]);
var previousDigit = parseInt(decimalPart[places - 1]);
var increment = (roundingDigit < 5) ? 0 : 1;
previousDigit = previousDigit + increment;
decimalPart = decimalPart.replaceAt(places - 1, previousDigit + '').substr(0, places);
}
retVal = parseFloat(wholePart + '.' + decimalPart);
}
return retVal;
}
String.prototype.replaceAt = function (index, character) {
return this.substr(0, index) + character + this.substr(index + character.length);
}
OK, found a "complete" solution to the issue.
Firstly, donwnloaded Big.js from here: https://github.com/MikeMcl/big.js/
Then modified the source so it would work with jscript/asp:
/* big.js v2.1.0 https://github.com/MikeMcl/big.js/LICENCE */
var Big = (function ( global ) {
'use strict';
:
// EXPORT
return Big;
})( this );
Then did my calculation using Big types and used the Big toFixed(dp), then converted back into a number thusly:
var bigMult = new Big (multiplier);
var bigLineStake = new Big(lineStake);
var bigWin = bigLineStake.times(bigMult);
var strWin = bigWin.toFixed(2); // this does the rounding correctly.
var win = parseFloat(strWin); // back to a number!
This basically uses Bigs own rounding in its toFixed, which seems to work correctly in all cases.
Shame Big doesnt have a method to convert back to a number without having to go through a string.

Truncate (not round off) decimal numbers in javascript

I am trying to truncate decimal numbers to decimal places. Something like this:
5.467 -> 5.46
985.943 -> 985.94
toFixed(2) does just about the right thing but it rounds off the value. I don't need the value rounded off. Hope this is possible in javascript.
Dogbert's answer is good, but if your code might have to deal with negative numbers, Math.floor by itself may give unexpected results.
E.g. Math.floor(4.3) = 4, but Math.floor(-4.3) = -5
Use a helper function like this one instead to get consistent results:
truncateDecimals = function (number) {
return Math[number < 0 ? 'ceil' : 'floor'](number);
};
// Applied to Dogbert's answer:
var a = 5.467;
var truncated = truncateDecimals(a * 100) / 100; // = 5.46
Here's a more convenient version of this function:
truncateDecimals = function (number, digits) {
var multiplier = Math.pow(10, digits),
adjustedNum = number * multiplier,
truncatedNum = Math[adjustedNum < 0 ? 'ceil' : 'floor'](adjustedNum);
return truncatedNum / multiplier;
};
// Usage:
var a = 5.467;
var truncated = truncateDecimals(a, 2); // = 5.46
// Negative digits:
var b = 4235.24;
var truncated = truncateDecimals(b, -2); // = 4200
If that isn't desired behaviour, insert a call to Math.abs on the first line:
var multiplier = Math.pow(10, Math.abs(digits)),
EDIT: shendz correctly points out that using this solution with a = 17.56 will incorrectly produce 17.55. For more about why this happens, read What Every Computer Scientist Should Know About Floating-Point Arithmetic. Unfortunately, writing a solution that eliminates all sources of floating-point error is pretty tricky with javascript. In another language you'd use integers or maybe a Decimal type, but with javascript...
This solution should be 100% accurate, but it will also be slower:
function truncateDecimals (num, digits) {
var numS = num.toString(),
decPos = numS.indexOf('.'),
substrLength = decPos == -1 ? numS.length : 1 + decPos + digits,
trimmedResult = numS.substr(0, substrLength),
finalResult = isNaN(trimmedResult) ? 0 : trimmedResult;
return parseFloat(finalResult);
}
For those who need speed but also want to avoid floating-point errors, try something like BigDecimal.js. You can find other javascript BigDecimal libraries in this SO question: "Is there a good Javascript BigDecimal library?" and here's a good blog post about math libraries for Javascript
upd:
So, after all it turned out, rounding bugs will always haunt you, no matter how hard you try to compensate them. Hence the problem should be attacked by representing numbers exactly in decimal notation.
Number.prototype.toFixedDown = function(digits) {
var re = new RegExp("(\\d+\\.\\d{" + digits + "})(\\d)"),
m = this.toString().match(re);
return m ? parseFloat(m[1]) : this.valueOf();
};
[ 5.467.toFixedDown(2),
985.943.toFixedDown(2),
17.56.toFixedDown(2),
(0).toFixedDown(1),
1.11.toFixedDown(1) + 22];
// [5.46, 985.94, 17.56, 0, 23.1]
Old error-prone solution based on compilation of others':
Number.prototype.toFixedDown = function(digits) {
var n = this - Math.pow(10, -digits)/2;
n += n / Math.pow(2, 53); // added 1360765523: 17.56.toFixedDown(2) === "17.56"
return n.toFixed(digits);
}
var a = 5.467;
var truncated = Math.floor(a * 100) / 100; // = 5.46
You can fix the rounding by subtracting 0.5 for toFixed, e.g.
(f - 0.005).toFixed(2)
Nice one-line solution:
function truncate (num, places) {
return Math.trunc(num * Math.pow(10, places)) / Math.pow(10, places);
}
Then call it with:
truncate(3.5636232, 2); // returns 3.56
truncate(5.4332312, 3); // returns 5.433
truncate(25.463214, 4); // returns 25.4632
Consider taking advantage of the double tilde: ~~.
Take in the number. Multiply by significant digits after the decimal so that you can truncate to zero places with ~~. Divide that multiplier back out. Profit.
function truncator(numToTruncate, intDecimalPlaces) {
var numPower = Math.pow(10, intDecimalPlaces); // "numPowerConverter" might be better
return ~~(numToTruncate * numPower)/numPower;
}
I'm trying to resist wrapping the ~~ call in parens; order of operations should make that work correctly, I believe.
alert(truncator(5.1231231, 1)); // is 5.1
alert(truncator(-5.73, 1)); // is -5.7
alert(truncator(-5.73, 0)); // is -5
JSFiddle link.
EDIT: Looking back over, I've unintentionally also handled cases to round off left of the decimal as well.
alert(truncator(4343.123, -2)); // gives 4300.
The logic's a little wacky looking for that usage, and may benefit from a quick refactor. But it still works. Better lucky than good.
I thought I'd throw in an answer using | since it is simple and works well.
truncate = function(number, places) {
var shift = Math.pow(10, places);
return ((number * shift) | 0) / shift;
};
Truncate using bitwise operators:
~~0.5 === 0
~~(-0.5) === 0
~~14.32794823 === 14
~~(-439.93) === -439
#Dogbert's answer can be improved with Math.trunc, which truncates instead of rounding.
There is a difference between rounding and truncating. Truncating is
clearly the behaviour this question is seeking. If I call
truncate(-3.14) and receive -4 back, I would definitely call that
undesirable. – #NickKnowlson
var a = 5.467;
var truncated = Math.trunc(a * 100) / 100; // = 5.46
var a = -5.467;
var truncated = Math.trunc(a * 100) / 100; // = -5.46
I wrote an answer using a shorter method. Here is what I came up with
function truncate(value, precision) {
var step = Math.pow(10, precision || 0);
var temp = Math.trunc(step * value);
return temp / step;
}
The method can be used like so
truncate(132456.25456789, 5)); // Output: 132456.25456
truncate(132456.25456789, 3)); // Output: 132456.254
truncate(132456.25456789, 1)); // Output: 132456.2
truncate(132456.25456789)); // Output: 132456
Or, if you want a shorter syntax, here you go
function truncate(v, p) {
var s = Math.pow(10, p || 0);
return Math.trunc(s * v) / s;
}
I think this function could be a simple solution:
function trunc(decimal,n=2){
let x = decimal + ''; // string
return x.lastIndexOf('.')>=0?parseFloat(x.substr(0,x.lastIndexOf('.')+(n+1))):decimal; // You can use indexOf() instead of lastIndexOf()
}
console.log(trunc(-241.31234,2));
console.log(trunc(241.312,5));
console.log(trunc(-241.233));
console.log(trunc(241.2,0));
console.log(trunc(241));
Number.prototype.trim = function(decimals) {
var s = this.toString();
var d = s.split(".");
d[1] = d[1].substring(0, decimals);
return parseFloat(d.join("."));
}
console.log((5.676).trim(2)); //logs 5.67
I'm a bit confused as to why there are so many different answers to such a fundamentally simple question; there are only two approaches which I saw which seemed to be worth looking at. I did a quick benchmark to see the speed difference using https://jsbench.me/.
This is the solution which is currently (9/26/2020) flagged as the answer:
function truncate(n, digits) {
var re = new RegExp("(\\d+\\.\\d{" + digits + "})(\\d)"),
m = n.toString().match(re);
return m ? parseFloat(m[1]) : n.valueOf();
};
[ truncate(5.467,2),
truncate(985.943,2),
truncate(17.56,2),
truncate(0, 1),
truncate(1.11, 1) + 22];
However, this is doing string and regex stuff, which is usually not very efficient, and there is a Math.trunc function which does exactly what the OP wants just with no decimals. Therefore, you can easily use that plus a little extra arithmetic to get the same thing.
Here is another solution I found on this thread, which is the one I would use:
function truncate(n, digits) {
var step = Math.pow(10, digits || 0);
var temp = Math.trunc(step * n);
return temp / step;
}
[ truncate(5.467,2),
truncate(985.943,2),
truncate(17.56,2),
truncate(0, 1),
truncate(1.11, 1) + 22];
The first method is "99.92% slower" than the second, so the second is definitely the one I would recommend using.
Okay, back to finding other ways to avoid work...
I found a problem: considering the next situation: 2.1 or 1.2 or -6.4
What if you want always 3 decimals or two or wharever, so, you have to complete the leading zeros to the right
// 3 decimals numbers
0.5 => 0.500
// 6 decimals
0.1 => 0.10000
// 4 decimales
-2.1 => -2.1000
// truncate to 3 decimals
3.11568 => 3.115
This is the fixed function of Nick Knowlson
function truncateDecimals (num, digits)
{
var numS = num.toString();
var decPos = numS.indexOf('.');
var substrLength = decPos == -1 ? numS.length : 1 + decPos + digits;
var trimmedResult = numS.substr(0, substrLength);
var finalResult = isNaN(trimmedResult) ? 0 : trimmedResult;
// adds leading zeros to the right
if (decPos != -1){
var s = trimmedResult+"";
decPos = s.indexOf('.');
var decLength = s.length - decPos;
while (decLength <= digits){
s = s + "0";
decPos = s.indexOf('.');
decLength = s.length - decPos;
substrLength = decPos == -1 ? s.length : 1 + decPos + digits;
};
finalResult = s;
}
return finalResult;
};
https://jsfiddle.net/huttn155/7/
function toFixed(number, digits) {
var reg_ex = new RegExp("(\\d+\\.\\d{" + digits + "})(\\d)")
var array = number.toString().match(reg_ex);
return array ? parseFloat(array[1]) : number.valueOf()
}
var test = 10.123456789
var __fixed = toFixed(test, 6)
console.log(__fixed)
// => 10.123456
The answer by #kirilloid seems to be the correct answer, however, the main code needs to be updated. His solution doesn't take care of negative numbers (which someone did mention in the comment section but has not been updated in the main code).
Updating that to a complete final tested solution:
Number.prototype.toFixedDown = function(digits) {
var re = new RegExp("([-]*\\d+\\.\\d{" + digits + "})(\\d)"),
m = this.toString().match(re);
return m ? parseFloat(m[1]) : this.valueOf();
};
Sample Usage:
var x = 3.1415629;
Logger.log(x.toFixedDown(2)); //or use whatever you use to log
Fiddle: JS Number Round down
PS: Not enough repo to comment on that solution.
Here my take on the subject:
convert.truncate = function(value, decimals) {
decimals = (decimals === undefined ? 0 : decimals);
return parseFloat((value-(0.5/Math.pow(10, decimals))).toFixed(decimals),10);
};
It's just a slightly more elaborate version of
(f - 0.005).toFixed(2)
Here is simple but working function to truncate number upto 2 decimal places.
function truncateNumber(num) {
var num1 = "";
var num2 = "";
var num1 = num.split('.')[0];
num2 = num.split('.')[1];
var decimalNum = num2.substring(0, 2);
var strNum = num1 +"."+ decimalNum;
var finalNum = parseFloat(strNum);
return finalNum;
}
The resulting type remains a number...
/* Return the truncation of n wrt base */
var trunc = function(n, base) {
n = (n / base) | 0;
return base * n;
};
var t = trunc(5.467, 0.01);
Lodash has a few Math utility methods that can round, floor, and ceil a number to a given decimal precision. This leaves off trailing zeroes.
They take an interesting approach, using the exponent of a number. Apparently this avoids rounding issues.
(Note: func is Math.round or ceil or floor in the code below)
// Shift with exponential notation to avoid floating-point issues.
var pair = (toString(number) + 'e').split('e'),
value = func(pair[0] + 'e' + (+pair[1] + precision));
pair = (toString(value) + 'e').split('e');
return +(pair[0] + 'e' + (+pair[1] - precision));
Link to the source code
const TO_FIXED_MAX = 100;
function truncate(number, decimalsPrecison) {
// make it a string with precision 1e-100
number = number.toFixed(TO_FIXED_MAX);
// chop off uneccessary digits
const dotIndex = number.indexOf('.');
number = number.substring(0, dotIndex + decimalsPrecison + 1);
// back to a number data type (app specific)
return Number.parseFloat(number);
}
// example
truncate(0.00000001999, 8);
0.00000001
works with:
negative numbers
very small numbers (Number.EPSILON precision)
The one that is mark as the solution is the better solution I been found until today, but has a serious problem with 0 (for example, 0.toFixedDown(2) gives -0.01). So I suggest to use this:
Number.prototype.toFixedDown = function(digits) {
if(this == 0) {
return 0;
}
var n = this - Math.pow(10, -digits)/2;
n += n / Math.pow(2, 53); // added 1360765523: 17.56.toFixedDown(2) === "17.56"
return n.toFixed(digits);
}
Here is what I use:
var t = 1;
for (var i = 0; i < decimalPrecision; i++)
t = t * 10;
var f = parseFloat(value);
return (Math.floor(f * t)) / t;
You can work with strings.
It Checks if '.' exists, and then removes part of string.
truncate (7.88, 1) --> 7.8
truncate (7.889, 2) --> 7.89
truncate (-7.88, 1 ) --> -7.88
function truncate(number, decimals) {
const tmp = number + '';
if (tmp.indexOf('.') > -1) {
return +tmp.substr(0 , tmp.indexOf('.') + decimals+1 );
} else {
return +number
}
}
function trunc(num, dec) {
const pow = 10 ** dec
return Math.trunc(num * pow) / pow
}
// ex.
trunc(4.9634, 1) // 4.9
trunc(4.9634, 2) // 4.96
trunc(-4.9634, 1) // -4.9
You can use toFixed(2) to convert your float to a string with 2 decimal points. Then you can wrap that in floatParse() to convert that string back to a float to make it usable for calculations or db storage.
const truncatedNumber = floatParse(num.toFixed(2))
I am not sure of the potential drawbacks of this answer like increased processing time but I tested edge cases from other comments like .29 which returns .29 (not .28 like other solutions). It also handles negative numbers.
just to point out a simple solution that worked for me
convert it to string and then regex it...
var number = 123.45678;
var number_s = '' + number;
var number_truncated_s = number_s.match(/\d*\.\d{4}/)[0]
var number_truncated = parseFloat(number_truncated_s)
It can be abbreviated to
var number_truncated = parseFloat(('' + 123.4568908).match(/\d*\.\d{4}/)[0])
Here is an ES6 code which does what you want
const truncateTo = (unRouned, nrOfDecimals = 2) => {
const parts = String(unRouned).split(".");
if (parts.length !== 2) {
// without any decimal part
return unRouned;
}
const newDecimals = parts[1].slice(0, nrOfDecimals),
newString = `${parts[0]}.${newDecimals}`;
return Number(newString);
};
// your examples
console.log(truncateTo(5.467)); // ---> 5.46
console.log(truncateTo(985.943)); // ---> 985.94
// other examples
console.log(truncateTo(5)); // ---> 5
console.log(truncateTo(-5)); // ---> -5
console.log(truncateTo(-985.943)); // ---> -985.94
Suppose you want to truncate number x till n digits.
Math.trunc(x * pow(10,n))/pow(10,n);
Number.prototype.truncate = function(places) {
var shift = Math.pow(10, places);
return Math.trunc(this * shift) / shift;
};

How can I pad a value with leading zeros?

What is the recommended way to zerofill a value in JavaScript? I imagine I could build a custom function to pad zeros on to a typecasted value, but I'm wondering if there is a more direct way to do this?
Note: By "zerofilled" I mean it in the database sense of the word (where a 6-digit zerofilled representation of the number 5 would be "000005").
I can't believe all the complex answers on here... Just use this:
var zerofilled = ('0000'+n).slice(-4);
let n = 1
var zerofilled = ('0000'+n).slice(-4);
console.log(zerofilled)
Simple way. You could add string multiplication for the pad and turn it into a function.
var pad = "000000";
var n = '5';
var result = (pad+n).slice(-pad.length);
As a function,
function paddy(num, padlen, padchar) {
var pad_char = typeof padchar !== 'undefined' ? padchar : '0';
var pad = new Array(1 + padlen).join(pad_char);
return (pad + num).slice(-pad.length);
}
var fu = paddy(14, 5); // 00014
var bar = paddy(2, 4, '#'); // ###2
Since ECMAScript 2017 we have padStart:
const padded = (.1 + "").padStart(6, "0");
console.log(`-${padded}`);
Before ECMAScript 2017
With toLocaleString:
var n=-0.1;
var res = n.toLocaleString('en', {minimumIntegerDigits:4,minimumFractionDigits:2,useGrouping:false});
console.log(res);
I actually had to come up with something like this recently.
I figured there had to be a way to do it without using loops.
This is what I came up with.
function zeroPad(num, numZeros) {
var n = Math.abs(num);
var zeros = Math.max(0, numZeros - Math.floor(n).toString().length );
var zeroString = Math.pow(10,zeros).toString().substr(1);
if( num < 0 ) {
zeroString = '-' + zeroString;
}
return zeroString+n;
}
Then just use it providing a number to zero pad:
> zeroPad(50,4);
"0050"
If the number is larger than the padding, the number will expand beyond the padding:
> zeroPad(51234, 3);
"51234"
Decimals are fine too!
> zeroPad(51.1234, 4);
"0051.1234"
If you don't mind polluting the global namespace you can add it to Number directly:
Number.prototype.leftZeroPad = function(numZeros) {
var n = Math.abs(this);
var zeros = Math.max(0, numZeros - Math.floor(n).toString().length );
var zeroString = Math.pow(10,zeros).toString().substr(1);
if( this < 0 ) {
zeroString = '-' + zeroString;
}
return zeroString+n;
}
And if you'd rather have decimals take up space in the padding:
Number.prototype.leftZeroPad = function(numZeros) {
var n = Math.abs(this);
var zeros = Math.max(0, numZeros - n.toString().length );
var zeroString = Math.pow(10,zeros).toString().substr(1);
if( this < 0 ) {
zeroString = '-' + zeroString;
}
return zeroString+n;
}
Cheers!
XDR came up with a logarithmic variation that seems to perform better.
WARNING: This function fails if num equals zero (e.g. zeropad(0, 2))
function zeroPad (num, numZeros) {
var an = Math.abs (num);
var digitCount = 1 + Math.floor (Math.log (an) / Math.LN10);
if (digitCount >= numZeros) {
return num;
}
var zeroString = Math.pow (10, numZeros - digitCount).toString ().substr (1);
return num < 0 ? '-' + zeroString + an : zeroString + an;
}
Speaking of performance, tomsmeding compared the top 3 answers (4 with the log variation). Guess which one majorly outperformed the other two? :)
Modern browsers now support padStart, you can simply now do:
string.padStart(maxLength, "0");
Example:
string = "14";
maxLength = 5; // maxLength is the max string length, not max # of fills
res = string.padStart(maxLength, "0");
console.log(res); // prints "00014"
number = 14;
maxLength = 5; // maxLength is the max string length, not max # of fills
res = number.toString().padStart(maxLength, "0");
console.log(res); // prints "00014"
Here's what I used to pad a number up to 7 characters.
("0000000" + number).slice(-7)
This approach will probably suffice for most people.
Edit: If you want to make it more generic you can do this:
("0".repeat(padding) + number).slice(-padding)
Edit 2: Note that since ES2017 you can use String.prototype.padStart:
number.toString().padStart(padding, "0")
Unfortunately, there are a lot of needless complicated suggestions for this problem, typically involving writing your own function to do math or string manipulation or calling a third-party utility. However, there is a standard way of doing this in the base JavaScript library with just one line of code. It might be worth wrapping this one line of code in a function to avoid having to specify parameters that you never want to change like the local name or style.
var amount = 5;
var text = amount.toLocaleString('en-US',
{
style: 'decimal',
minimumIntegerDigits: 3,
useGrouping: false
});
This will produce the value of "005" for text. You can also use the toLocaleString function of Number to pad zeros to the right side of the decimal point.
var amount = 5;
var text = amount.toLocaleString('en-US',
{
style: 'decimal',
minimumFractionDigits: 2,
useGrouping: false
});
This will produce the value of "5.00" for text. Change useGrouping to true to use comma separators for thousands.
Note that using toLocaleString() with locales and options arguments is standardized separately in ECMA-402, not in ECMAScript. As of today, some browsers only implement basic support, i.e. toLocaleString() may ignore any arguments.
Complete Example
If the fill number is known in advance not to exceed a certain value, there's another way to do this with no loops:
var fillZeroes = "00000000000000000000"; // max number of zero fill ever asked for in global
function zeroFill(number, width) {
// make sure it's a string
var input = number + "";
var prefix = "";
if (input.charAt(0) === '-') {
prefix = "-";
input = input.slice(1);
--width;
}
var fillAmt = Math.max(width - input.length, 0);
return prefix + fillZeroes.slice(0, fillAmt) + input;
}
Test cases here: http://jsfiddle.net/jfriend00/N87mZ/
The quick and dirty way:
y = (new Array(count + 1 - x.toString().length)).join('0') + x;
For x = 5 and count = 6 you'll have y = "000005"
Here's a quick function I came up with to do the job. If anyone has a simpler approach, feel free to share!
function zerofill(number, length) {
// Setup
var result = number.toString();
var pad = length - result.length;
while(pad > 0) {
result = '0' + result;
pad--;
}
return result;
}
ECMAScript 2017:
use padStart or padEnd
'abc'.padStart(10); // " abc"
'abc'.padStart(10, "foo"); // "foofoofabc"
'abc'.padStart(6,"123465"); // "123abc"
More info:
https://github.com/tc39/proposal-string-pad-start-end
https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/String/padStart
I often use this construct for doing ad-hoc padding of some value n, known to be a positive, decimal:
(offset + n + '').substr(1);
Where offset is 10^^digits.
E.g., padding to 5 digits, where n = 123:
(1e5 + 123 + '').substr(1); // => 00123
The hexadecimal version of this is slightly more verbose:
(0x100000 + 0x123).toString(16).substr(1); // => 00123
Note 1: I like #profitehlolz's solution as well, which is the string version of this, using slice()'s nifty negative-index feature.
I really don't know why, but no one did it in the most obvious way. Here it's my implementation.
Function:
/** Pad a number with 0 on the left */
function zeroPad(number, digits) {
var num = number+"";
while(num.length < digits){
num='0'+num;
}
return num;
}
Prototype:
Number.prototype.zeroPad=function(digits){
var num=this+"";
while(num.length < digits){
num='0'+num;
}
return(num);
};
Very straightforward, I can't see any way how this can be any simpler. For some reason I've seem many times here on SO, people just try to avoid 'for' and 'while' loops at any cost. Using regex will probably cost way more cycles for such a trivial 8 digit padding.
In all modern browsers you can use
numberStr.padStart(numberLength, "0");
function zeroFill(num, numLength) {
var numberStr = num.toString();
return numberStr.padStart(numLength, "0");
}
var numbers = [0, 1, 12, 123, 1234, 12345];
numbers.forEach(
function(num) {
var numString = num.toString();
var paddedNum = zeroFill(numString, 5);
console.log(paddedNum);
}
);
Here is the MDN reference https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/String/padStart
I use this snippet to get a five-digits representation:
(value+100000).toString().slice(-5) // "00123" with value=123
The power of Math!
x = integer to pad
y = number of zeroes to pad
function zeroPad(x, y)
{
y = Math.max(y-1,0);
var n = (x / Math.pow(10,y)).toFixed(y);
return n.replace('.','');
}
This is the ES6 solution.
function pad(num, len) {
return '0'.repeat(len - num.toString().length) + num;
}
alert(pad(1234,6));
Not that this question needs more answers, but I thought I would add the simple lodash version of this.
_.padLeft(number, 6, '0')
I didn't see anyone point out the fact that when you use String.prototype.substr() with a negative number it counts from the right.
A one liner solution to the OP's question, a 6-digit zerofilled representation of the number 5, is:
console.log(("00000000" + 5).substr(-6));
Generalizing we'll get:
function pad(num, len) { return ("00000000" + num).substr(-len) };
console.log(pad(5, 6));
console.log(pad(45, 6));
console.log(pad(345, 6));
console.log(pad(2345, 6));
console.log(pad(12345, 6));
Don't reinvent the wheel; use underscore string:
jsFiddle
var numToPad = '5';
alert(_.str.pad(numToPad, 6, '0')); // Yields: '000005'
After a, long, long time of testing 15 different functions/methods found in this questions answers, I now know which is the best (the most versatile and quickest).
I took 15 functions/methods from the answers to this question and made a script to measure the time taken to execute 100 pads. Each pad would pad the number 9 with 2000 zeros. This may seem excessive, and it is, but it gives you a good idea about the scaling of the functions.
The code I used can be found here:
https://gist.github.com/NextToNothing/6325915
Feel free to modify and test the code yourself.
In order to get the most versatile method, you have to use a loop. This is because with very large numbers others are likely to fail, whereas, this will succeed.
So, which loop to use? Well, that would be a while loop. A for loop is still fast, but a while loop is just slightly quicker(a couple of ms) - and cleaner.
Answers like those by Wilco, Aleksandar Toplek or Vitim.us will do the job perfectly.
Personally, I tried a different approach. I tried to use a recursive function to pad the string/number. It worked out better than methods joining an array but, still, didn't work as quick as a for loop.
My function is:
function pad(str, max, padder) {
padder = typeof padder === "undefined" ? "0" : padder;
return str.toString().length < max ? pad(padder.toString() + str, max, padder) : str;
}
You can use my function with, or without, setting the padding variable. So like this:
pad(1, 3); // Returns '001'
// - Or -
pad(1, 3, "x"); // Returns 'xx1'
Personally, after my tests, I would use a method with a while loop, like Aleksandar Toplek or Vitim.us. However, I would modify it slightly so that you are able to set the padding string.
So, I would use this code:
function padLeft(str, len, pad) {
pad = typeof pad === "undefined" ? "0" : pad + "";
str = str + "";
while(str.length < len) {
str = pad + str;
}
return str;
}
// Usage
padLeft(1, 3); // Returns '001'
// - Or -
padLeft(1, 3, "x"); // Returns 'xx1'
You could also use it as a prototype function, by using this code:
Number.prototype.padLeft = function(len, pad) {
pad = typeof pad === "undefined" ? "0" : pad + "";
var str = this + "";
while(str.length < len) {
str = pad + str;
}
return str;
}
// Usage
var num = 1;
num.padLeft(3); // Returns '001'
// - Or -
num.padLeft(3, "x"); // Returns 'xx1'
First parameter is any real number, second parameter is a positive integer specifying the minimum number of digits to the left of the decimal point and third parameter is an optional positive integer specifying the number if digits to the right of the decimal point.
function zPad(n, l, r){
return(a=String(n).match(/(^-?)(\d*)\.?(\d*)/))?a[1]+(Array(l).join(0)+a[2]).slice(-Math.max(l,a[2].length))+('undefined'!==typeof r?(0<r?'.':'')+(a[3]+Array(r+1).join(0)).slice(0,r):a[3]?'.'+a[3]:''):0
}
so
zPad(6, 2) === '06'
zPad(-6, 2) === '-06'
zPad(600.2, 2) === '600.2'
zPad(-600, 2) === '-600'
zPad(6.2, 3) === '006.2'
zPad(-6.2, 3) === '-006.2'
zPad(6.2, 3, 0) === '006'
zPad(6, 2, 3) === '06.000'
zPad(600.2, 2, 3) === '600.200'
zPad(-600.1499, 2, 3) === '-600.149'
The latest way to do this is much simpler:
var number = 2
number.toLocaleString(undefined, {minimumIntegerDigits:2})
output: "02"
Just another solution, but I think it's more legible.
function zeroFill(text, size)
{
while (text.length < size){
text = "0" + text;
}
return text;
}
This one is less native, but may be the fastest...
zeroPad = function (num, count) {
var pad = (num + '').length - count;
while(--pad > -1) {
num = '0' + num;
}
return num;
};
My solution
Number.prototype.PadLeft = function (length, digit) {
var str = '' + this;
while (str.length < length) {
str = (digit || '0') + str;
}
return str;
};
Usage
var a = 567.25;
a.PadLeft(10); // 0000567.25
var b = 567.25;
b.PadLeft(20, '2'); // 22222222222222567.25
With ES6+ JavaScript:
You can "zerofill a number" with something like the following function:
/**
* #param number The number
* #param minLength Minimal length for your string with leading zeroes
* #return Your formatted string
*/
function zerofill(nb, minLength) {
// Convert your number to string.
let nb2Str = nb.toString()
// Guess the number of zeroes you will have to write.
let nbZeroes = Math.max(0, minLength - nb2Str.length)
// Compute your result.
return `${ '0'.repeat(nbZeroes) }${ nb2Str }`
}
console.log(zerofill(5, 6)) // Displays "000005"
With ES2017+:
/**
* #param number The number
* #param minLength Minimal length for your string with leading zeroes
* #return Your formatted string
*/
const zerofill = (nb, minLength) => nb.toString().padStart(minLength, '0')
console.log(zerofill(5, 6)) // Displays "000005"
Use recursion:
function padZero(s, n) {
s = s.toString(); // In case someone passes a number
return s.length >= n ? s : padZero('0' + s, n);
}
Some monkeypatching also works
String.prototype.padLeft = function (n, c) {
if (isNaN(n))
return null;
c = c || "0";
return (new Array(n).join(c).substring(0, this.length-n)) + this;
};
var paddedValue = "123".padLeft(6); // returns "000123"
var otherPadded = "TEXT".padLeft(8, " "); // returns " TEXT"
function pad(toPad, padChar, length){
return (String(toPad).length < length)
? new Array(length - String(toPad).length + 1).join(padChar) + String(toPad)
: toPad;
}
pad(5, 0, 6) = 000005
pad('10', 0, 2) = 10 // don't pad if not necessary
pad('S', 'O', 2) = SO
...etc.
Cheers

Seedable JavaScript random number generator

The JavaScript Math.random() function returns a random value between 0 and 1, automatically seeded based on the current time (similar to Java I believe). However, I don't think there's any way to set you own seed for it.
How can I make a random number generator that I can provide my own seed value for, so that I can have it produce a repeatable sequence of (pseudo)random numbers?
One option is http://davidbau.com/seedrandom which is a seedable RC4-based Math.random() drop-in replacement with nice properties.
If you don't need the seeding capability just use Math.random() and build helper functions around it (eg. randRange(start, end)).
I'm not sure what RNG you're using, but it's best to know and document it so you're aware of its characteristics and limitations.
Like Starkii said, Mersenne Twister is a good PRNG, but it isn't easy to implement. If you want to do it yourself try implementing a LCG - it's very easy, has decent randomness qualities (not as good as Mersenne Twister), and you can use some of the popular constants.
EDIT: consider the great options at this answer for short seedable RNG implementations, including an LCG option.
function RNG(seed) {
// LCG using GCC's constants
this.m = 0x80000000; // 2**31;
this.a = 1103515245;
this.c = 12345;
this.state = seed ? seed : Math.floor(Math.random() * (this.m - 1));
}
RNG.prototype.nextInt = function() {
this.state = (this.a * this.state + this.c) % this.m;
return this.state;
}
RNG.prototype.nextFloat = function() {
// returns in range [0,1]
return this.nextInt() / (this.m - 1);
}
RNG.prototype.nextRange = function(start, end) {
// returns in range [start, end): including start, excluding end
// can't modulu nextInt because of weak randomness in lower bits
var rangeSize = end - start;
var randomUnder1 = this.nextInt() / this.m;
return start + Math.floor(randomUnder1 * rangeSize);
}
RNG.prototype.choice = function(array) {
return array[this.nextRange(0, array.length)];
}
var rng = new RNG(20);
for (var i = 0; i < 10; i++)
console.log(rng.nextRange(10, 50));
var digits = ['0', '1', '2', '3', '4', '5', '6', '7', '8', '9'];
for (var i = 0; i < 10; i++)
console.log(rng.choice(digits));
If you want to be able to specify the seed, you just need to replace the calls to getSeconds() and getMinutes(). You could pass in an int and use half of it mod 60 for the seconds value and the other half modulo 60 to give you the other part.
That being said, this method looks like garbage. Doing proper random number generation is very hard. The obvious problem with this is that the random number seed is based on seconds and minutes. To guess the seed and recreate your stream of random numbers only requires trying 3600 different second and minute combinations. It also means that there are only 3600 different possible seeds. This is correctable, but I'd be suspicious of this RNG from the start.
If you want to use a better RNG, try the Mersenne Twister. It is a well tested and fairly robust RNG with a huge orbit and excellent performance.
EDIT: I really should be correct and refer to this as a Pseudo Random Number Generator or PRNG.
"Anyone who uses arithmetic methods to produce random numbers is in a state of sin."
--- John von Neumann
I use a JavaScript port of the Mersenne Twister:
https://gist.github.com/300494
It allows you to set the seed manually. Also, as mentioned in other answers, the Mersenne Twister is a really good PRNG.
The code you listed kind of looks like a Lehmer RNG. If this is the case, then 2147483647 is the largest 32-bit signed integer, 2147483647 is the largest 32-bit prime, and 48271 is a full-period multiplier that is used to generate the numbers.
If this is true, you could modify RandomNumberGenerator to take in an extra parameter seed, and then set this.seed to seed; but you'd have to be careful to make sure the seed would result in a good distribution of random numbers (Lehmer can be weird like that) -- but most seeds will be fine.
The following is a PRNG that may be fed a custom seed. Calling SeedRandom will return a random generator function. SeedRandom can be called with no arguments in order to seed the returned random function with the current time, or it can be called with either 1 or 2 non-negative inters as arguments in order to seed it with those integers. Due to float point accuracy seeding with only 1 value will only allow the generator to be initiated to one of 2^53 different states.
The returned random generator function takes 1 integer argument named limit, the limit must be in the range 1 to 4294965886, the function will return a number in the range 0 to limit-1.
function SeedRandom(state1,state2){
var mod1=4294967087
var mul1=65539
var mod2=4294965887
var mul2=65537
if(typeof state1!="number"){
state1=+new Date()
}
if(typeof state2!="number"){
state2=state1
}
state1=state1%(mod1-1)+1
state2=state2%(mod2-1)+1
function random(limit){
state1=(state1*mul1)%mod1
state2=(state2*mul2)%mod2
if(state1<limit && state2<limit && state1<mod1%limit && state2<mod2%limit){
return random(limit)
}
return (state1+state2)%limit
}
return random
}
Example use:
var generator1=SeedRandom() //Seed with current time
var randomVariable=generator1(7) //Generate one of the numbers [0,1,2,3,4,5,6]
var generator2=SeedRandom(42) //Seed with a specific seed
var fixedVariable=generator2(7) //First value of this generator will always be
//1 because of the specific seed.
This generator exhibit the following properties:
It has approximately 2^64 different possible inner states.
It has a period of approximately 2^63, plenty more than anyone will ever realistically need in a JavaScript program.
Due to the mod values being primes there is no simple pattern in the output, no matter the chosen limit. This is unlike some simpler PRNGs that exhibit some quite systematic patterns.
It discards some results in order to get a perfect distribution no matter the limit.
It is relatively slow, runs around 10 000 000 times per second on my machine.
Bonus: typescript version
If you program in Typescript, I adapted the Mersenne Twister implementation that was brought in Christoph Henkelmann's answer to this thread as a typescript class:
/**
* copied almost directly from Mersenne Twister implementation found in https://gist.github.com/banksean/300494
* all rights reserved to him.
*/
export class Random {
static N = 624;
static M = 397;
static MATRIX_A = 0x9908b0df;
/* constant vector a */
static UPPER_MASK = 0x80000000;
/* most significant w-r bits */
static LOWER_MASK = 0x7fffffff;
/* least significant r bits */
mt = new Array(Random.N);
/* the array for the state vector */
mti = Random.N + 1;
/* mti==N+1 means mt[N] is not initialized */
constructor(seed:number = null) {
if (seed == null) {
seed = new Date().getTime();
}
this.init_genrand(seed);
}
private init_genrand(s:number) {
this.mt[0] = s >>> 0;
for (this.mti = 1; this.mti < Random.N; this.mti++) {
var s = this.mt[this.mti - 1] ^ (this.mt[this.mti - 1] >>> 30);
this.mt[this.mti] = (((((s & 0xffff0000) >>> 16) * 1812433253) << 16) + (s & 0x0000ffff) * 1812433253)
+ this.mti;
/* See Knuth TAOCP Vol2. 3rd Ed. P.106 for multiplier. */
/* In the previous versions, MSBs of the seed affect */
/* only MSBs of the array mt[]. */
/* 2002/01/09 modified by Makoto Matsumoto */
this.mt[this.mti] >>>= 0;
/* for >32 bit machines */
}
}
/**
* generates a random number on [0,0xffffffff]-interval
* #private
*/
private _nextInt32():number {
var y:number;
var mag01 = new Array(0x0, Random.MATRIX_A);
/* mag01[x] = x * MATRIX_A for x=0,1 */
if (this.mti >= Random.N) { /* generate N words at one time */
var kk:number;
if (this.mti == Random.N + 1) /* if init_genrand() has not been called, */
this.init_genrand(5489);
/* a default initial seed is used */
for (kk = 0; kk < Random.N - Random.M; kk++) {
y = (this.mt[kk] & Random.UPPER_MASK) | (this.mt[kk + 1] & Random.LOWER_MASK);
this.mt[kk] = this.mt[kk + Random.M] ^ (y >>> 1) ^ mag01[y & 0x1];
}
for (; kk < Random.N - 1; kk++) {
y = (this.mt[kk] & Random.UPPER_MASK) | (this.mt[kk + 1] & Random.LOWER_MASK);
this.mt[kk] = this.mt[kk + (Random.M - Random.N)] ^ (y >>> 1) ^ mag01[y & 0x1];
}
y = (this.mt[Random.N - 1] & Random.UPPER_MASK) | (this.mt[0] & Random.LOWER_MASK);
this.mt[Random.N - 1] = this.mt[Random.M - 1] ^ (y >>> 1) ^ mag01[y & 0x1];
this.mti = 0;
}
y = this.mt[this.mti++];
/* Tempering */
y ^= (y >>> 11);
y ^= (y << 7) & 0x9d2c5680;
y ^= (y << 15) & 0xefc60000;
y ^= (y >>> 18);
return y >>> 0;
}
/**
* generates an int32 pseudo random number
* #param range: an optional [from, to] range, if not specified the result will be in range [0,0xffffffff]
* #return {number}
*/
nextInt32(range:[number, number] = null):number {
var result = this._nextInt32();
if (range == null) {
return result;
}
return (result % (range[1] - range[0])) + range[0];
}
/**
* generates a random number on [0,0x7fffffff]-interval
*/
nextInt31():number {
return (this._nextInt32() >>> 1);
}
/**
* generates a random number on [0,1]-real-interval
*/
nextNumber():number {
return this._nextInt32() * (1.0 / 4294967295.0);
}
/**
* generates a random number on [0,1) with 53-bit resolution
*/
nextNumber53():number {
var a = this._nextInt32() >>> 5, b = this._nextInt32() >>> 6;
return (a * 67108864.0 + b) * (1.0 / 9007199254740992.0);
}
}
you can than use it as follows:
var random = new Random(132);
random.nextInt32(); //return a pseudo random int32 number
random.nextInt32([10,20]); //return a pseudo random int in range [10,20]
random.nextNumber(); //return a a pseudo random number in range [0,1]
check the source for more methods.
Here is quite an effective but simple javascript PRNG function that I like to use:
// The seed is the base number that the function works off
// The modulo is the highest number that the function can return
function PRNG(seed, modulo) {
str = `${(2**31-1&Math.imul(48271,seed))/2**31}`
.split('')
.slice(-10)
.join('') % modulo
return str
}
I hope this is what you're looking for.
Thank you, #aaaaaaaaaaaa (Accepted Answer)
I really needed a good non-library solution (easier to embed)
so... i made this class to store the seed and allow a Unity-esque "Next" ... but kept the initial Integer based results
class randS {
constructor(seed=null) {
if(seed!=null) {
this.seed = seed;
} else {
this.seed = Date.now()%4645455524863;
}
this.next = this.SeedRandom(this.seed);
this.last = 0;
}
Init(seed=this.seed) {
if (seed = this.seed) {
this.next = this.SeedRandom(this.seed);
} else {
this.seed=seed;
this.next = this.SeedRandom(this.seed);
}
}
SeedRandom(state1,state2){
var mod1=4294967087;
var mod2=4294965887;
var mul1=65539;
var mul2=65537;
if(typeof state1!="number"){
state1=+new Date();
}
if(typeof state2!="number"){
state2=state1;
}
state1=state1%(mod1-1)+1;
state2=state2%(mod2-1)+1;
function random(limit){
state1=(state1*mul1)%mod1;
state2=(state2*mul2)%mod2;
if(state1<limit && state2<limit && state1<mod1%limit && state2<mod2%limit){
this.last = random;
return random(limit);
}
this.last = (state1+state2)%limit;
return (state1+state2)%limit;
}
this.last = random;
return random;
}
}
And then checked it with these... seems to work well with random (but queryable) seed value (a la Minecraft) and even stored the last value returned (if needed)
var rng = new randS(9005646549);
console.log(rng.next(20)+' '+rng.next(20)+' '+rng.next(20)+' '+rng.next(20)+' '+rng.next(20)+' '+rng.next(20)+' '+rng.next(20));
console.log(rng.next(20) + ' ' + rng.next(20) + ' ' + rng.last);
which should output (for everybody)
6 7 8 14 1 12 6
9 1 1
EDIT: I made the init() work if you ever needed to reseed, or were testing values (this was necessary in my context as well)
Note: This code was originally included in the question above. In the interests of keeping the question short and focused, I've moved it to this Community Wiki answer.
I found this code kicking around and it appears to work fine for getting a random number and then using the seed afterward but I'm not quite sure how the logic works (e.g. where the 2345678901, 48271 & 2147483647 numbers came from).
function nextRandomNumber(){
var hi = this.seed / this.Q;
var lo = this.seed % this.Q;
var test = this.A * lo - this.R * hi;
if(test > 0){
this.seed = test;
} else {
this.seed = test + this.M;
}
return (this.seed * this.oneOverM);
}
function RandomNumberGenerator(){
var d = new Date();
this.seed = 2345678901 + (d.getSeconds() * 0xFFFFFF) + (d.getMinutes() * 0xFFFF);
this.A = 48271;
this.M = 2147483647;
this.Q = this.M / this.A;
this.R = this.M % this.A;
this.oneOverM = 1.0 / this.M;
this.next = nextRandomNumber;
return this;
}
function createRandomNumber(Min, Max){
var rand = new RandomNumberGenerator();
return Math.round((Max-Min) * rand.next() + Min);
}
//Thus I can now do:
var letters = ['a','b','c','d','e','f','g','h','i','j','k','l','m','n','o','p','q','r','s','t','u','v','w','x','y','z'];
var numbers = ['1','2','3','4','5','6','7','8','9','10'];
var colors = ['red','orange','yellow','green','blue','indigo','violet'];
var first = letters[createRandomNumber(0, letters.length)];
var second = numbers[createRandomNumber(0, numbers.length)];
var third = colors[createRandomNumber(0, colors.length)];
alert("Today's show was brought to you by the letter: " + first + ", the number " + second + ", and the color " + third + "!");
/*
If I could pass my own seed into the createRandomNumber(min, max, seed);
function then I could reproduce a random output later if desired.
*/
OK, here's the solution I settled on.
First you create a seed value using the "newseed()" function. Then you pass the seed value to the "srandom()" function. Lastly, the "srandom()" function returns a pseudo random value between 0 and 1.
The crucial bit is that the seed value is stored inside an array. If it were simply an integer or float, the value would get overwritten each time the function were called, since the values of integers, floats, strings and so forth are stored directly in the stack versus just the pointers as in the case of arrays and other objects. Thus, it's possible for the value of the seed to remain persistent.
Finally, it is possible to define the "srandom()" function such that it is a method of the "Math" object, but I'll leave that up to you to figure out. ;)
Good luck!
JavaScript:
// Global variables used for the seeded random functions, below.
var seedobja = 1103515245
var seedobjc = 12345
var seedobjm = 4294967295 //0x100000000
// Creates a new seed for seeded functions such as srandom().
function newseed(seednum)
{
return [seednum]
}
// Works like Math.random(), except you provide your own seed as the first argument.
function srandom(seedobj)
{
seedobj[0] = (seedobj[0] * seedobja + seedobjc) % seedobjm
return seedobj[0] / (seedobjm - 1)
}
// Store some test values in variables.
var my_seed_value = newseed(230951)
var my_random_value_1 = srandom(my_seed_value)
var my_random_value_2 = srandom(my_seed_value)
var my_random_value_3 = srandom(my_seed_value)
// Print the values to console. Replace "WScript.Echo()" with "alert()" if inside a Web browser.
WScript.Echo(my_random_value_1)
WScript.Echo(my_random_value_2)
WScript.Echo(my_random_value_3)
Lua 4 (my personal target environment):
-- Global variables used for the seeded random functions, below.
seedobja = 1103515.245
seedobjc = 12345
seedobjm = 4294967.295 --0x100000000
-- Creates a new seed for seeded functions such as srandom().
function newseed(seednum)
return {seednum}
end
-- Works like random(), except you provide your own seed as the first argument.
function srandom(seedobj)
seedobj[1] = mod(seedobj[1] * seedobja + seedobjc, seedobjm)
return seedobj[1] / (seedobjm - 1)
end
-- Store some test values in variables.
my_seed_value = newseed(230951)
my_random_value_1 = srandom(my_seed_value)
my_random_value_2 = srandom(my_seed_value)
my_random_value_3 = srandom(my_seed_value)
-- Print the values to console.
print(my_random_value_1)
print(my_random_value_2)
print(my_random_value_3)

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