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Given any number between 0 and 1, such as 0.84729347293923, is there a simple way to make it into 84729347293923 without string or regex manipulation? I can think of using a loop, which probably is no worse than using a string because it is O(n) with n being the number of digits. But is there a better way?
function getRandom() {
let r = Math.random();
while (Math.floor(r) !== r) r *= 10;
return r;
}
for (let i = 0; i < 10; i++)
console.log(getRandom());
Integers mod 1 = 0, non integers mod 1 != 0.
while ((r*=10) % 1);
Ok, just want to refactor my code (i realized that was bad so this is what i discovered to correctly get the value as you requested).
NOTE: As the question says that "given any number between 0 and 1", this solution only works for values between 0 and 1:
window.onload = ()=>{
function getLen(num){
let currentNumb = num;
let integratedArray = [];
let realLen = 0;
/*While the number is not an integer, we will multiply the copy of the original
*value by ten, and when the loop detects that the number is already an integer
*the while simply breaks, in this process we are storing each transformations
*of the number in an array called integratedArray*/
while(!(Number.isInteger(currentNumb))){
currentNumb *= 10;
integratedArray.push(currentNumb);
}
/*We iterate over the array and compare each value of the array with an operation
*in which the resultant value should be exactly the same as the actual item of the
*array, in the case that both are equal we assign the var realLen to i, and
*in case that the values were not the same, we simply breaks the loop, if the
*values are not the same, this indicates that we found the "trash numbers", so
*we simply skip them.*/
for(let i = 0; i < integratedArray.length; i++){
if(Math.floor(integratedArray[i]) === Math.floor(num * Math.pow(10, i + 1))){
realLen = i;
}else{
break;
}
}
return realLen;
}
//Get the float value of a number between 0 and 1 as an integer.
function getShiftedNumber(num){
//First we need the length to get the float part of the number as an integer
const len = getLen(num);
/*Once we have the length of the number we simply multiply the number by
*(10) ^ numberLength, this eliminates the comma (,), or point (.), and
*automatically transforms the number to an integer in this case a large integer*/
return num * (Math.pow(10, len));
}
console.log(getShiftedNumber(0.84729347293923));
}
So the explanation is the next:
Because we want to convert this number without using any string, regex or any another thing, first we need to get the length of the number, this is a bit hard to do without using string conversions... so i did the function getLen for this purpose.
In the function getLen, we have 3 variables:
currentNumb: This var is a copy of the original value (the original number), this value help us to found the length of the number and we can do some transforms to this value whitout changing the original reference of the number.
We need to multiply this value any times is needed to transform the number to an integer and then multiplyng this value by ten to ten.
with the help of a while (this method makes the number a false integer).
NOTE: I saw "False integer" because when i was making the tests i realized that in the number is being adding more digits than normal... (Very very strange), so this stupid but important thing makes neccesary the filter of these "trash numbers", so later we proccess them.
integratedArray: This array stores the values of the result of the first while operations, so the last number stored in this array is an integer, but this number is one of the "fake integers", so with this array we need to iterate later to compare what of those stored values are different to the original value multiplied by (10 * i + 1), so here is the hint:
In this case the first 12 values of this array are exactly the same with the operation of Math.floor(num * Math.pow(10, i + 1))), but in the 13th value of the array these values are not the same so... yes!, there are those "trash numbers" that we were searching for.
realLen: This is the variable where we will store the real length of the number converting the float part of this number in an integer.
Some binary search approach:
Its useless if avarage length < 8;
It contains floating point issues.
But hey it is O(log n) with tons of wasted side computations - i guess if one counts them its event worse than just plain multiplication.
I prefer #chiliNUT answer. One line stamp.
function floatToIntBinarySearch(number){
const max_safe_int_length = 16;
const powers = [
1,
10,
100,
1000,
10000,
100000,
1000000,
10000000,
100000000,
1000000000,
10000000000,
100000000000,
1000000000000,
10000000000000,
100000000000000,
1000000000000000,
10000000000000000
]
let currentLength = 16
let step = 16
let _number = number * powers[currentLength]
while(_number % 1 != 0 || (_number % 10 | 0) == 0){
step /= 2
if( (_number % 10 | 0) == 0 && !(_number % 1 != 0)){
currentLength = currentLength - step;
} else {
currentLength = step + currentLength;
}
if(currentLength < 1 || currentLength > max_safe_int_length * 2) throw Error("length is weird: " + currentLength)
_number = number * powers[currentLength]
console.log(currentLength, _number)
if(Number.isNaN(_number)) throw Error("isNaN: " + ((number + "").length - 2) + " maybe greater than 16?")
}
return number * powers[currentLength]
}
let randomPower = 10 ** (Math.random() * 10 | 0)
let test = (Math.random() * randomPower | 0) / randomPower
console.log(test)
console.log(floatToIntBinarySearch(test))
I am generating 4 digit random number by using Math.floor(Math.random() * 9999). Now I have another requirement. I have to get the number of random number to be generated in textbox. eg: If they enter 5 in textbox it has to return 5 four-digit random number. Any idea how to do it? any reference?
Simply call the method a couple of times, depending on input. Note that you need to use below random number creation method instead of yours to guarantee 4 digit numbers.
function getRand() {
return Math.floor(Math.random() * (9999 - 1000) + 1000);
}
document.getElementById('btn').addEventListener('click', () => {
const length = document.getElementById('foo').value;
const numbers = Array.from({length}, getRand);
document.getElementById('bar').innerText = numbers.join(', ');
});
<input id="foo" type="number">
<button id="btn">Get</button>
<div id="bar"></div>
You can simply call your 4 digit random number generator function() n time (n is given number in input field) as below:
for(let i=1;i<=this.n;i++) {
this.ara.push(this.random());
}
random() {
return Math.floor(Math.random()*(9999-1000) + 1000);
}
See this typescript implementation (Angular).
Call getRandoms with n = 5, and high = 9999. Handle the 5-element return array as you wish.
// pseudo-randomly generate an integer in the range low to high
function getRandom( high, low ) {
// default low is 0
if ('undefined' == typeof low) low = 0;
var range = high - low + 1;
var r = Math.floor( range*Math.random() + .5);
return Math.min(low + r, high);
};
// get n pseudo-random number in the range low to high
function getRandoms( n, high, low ) {
// default low is 0
if ('undefined' == typeof low) low = 0;
var randoms = new Array(); // initialize return
for (var i = 0; i < n; i++) {
randoms.push(getRandom(high, low));
}
return randoms;
};
I'm trying to generate a random number that must have a fixed length of exactly 6 digits.
I don't know if JavaScript has given below would ever create a number less than 6 digits?
Math.floor((Math.random()*1000000)+1);
I found this question and answer on StackOverflow here. But, it's unclear.
EDIT: I ran the above code a bunch of times, and Yes, it frequently creates numbers less than 6 digits. Is there a quick/fast way to make sure it's always exactly 6 digits?
console.log(Math.floor(100000 + Math.random() * 900000));
Will always create a number of 6 digits and it ensures the first digit will never be 0. The code in your question will create a number of less than 6 digits.
Only fully reliable answer that offers full randomness, without loss. The other ones prior to this answer all looses out depending on how many characters you want. The more you want, the more they lose randomness.
They achieve it by limiting the amount of numbers possible preceding the fixed length.
So for instance, a random number of fixed length 2 would be 10 - 99. For 3, 100 - 999. For 4, 1000 - 9999. For 5 10000 - 99999 and so on. As can be seen by the pattern, it suggests 10% loss of randomness because numbers prior to that are not possible. Why?
For really large numbers ( 18, 24, 48 ) 10% is still a lot of numbers to loose out on.
function generate(n) {
var add = 1, max = 12 - add; // 12 is the min safe number Math.random() can generate without it starting to pad the end with zeros.
if ( n > max ) {
return generate(max) + generate(n - max);
}
max = Math.pow(10, n+add);
var min = max/10; // Math.pow(10, n) basically
var number = Math.floor( Math.random() * (max - min + 1) ) + min;
return ("" + number).substring(add);
}
The generator allows for ~infinite length without lossy precision and with minimal performance cost.
Example:
generate(2)
"03"
generate(2)
"72"
generate(2)
"20"
generate(3)
"301"
generate(3)
"436"
generate(3)
"015"
As you can see, even the zero are included initially which is an additional 10% loss just that, besides the fact that numbers prior to 10^n are not possible.
That is now a total of 20%.
Also, the other options have an upper limit on how many characters you can actually generate.
Example with cost:
var start = new Date(); var num = generate(1000); console.log('Time: ', new Date() - start, 'ms for', num)
Logs:
Time: 0 ms for 7884381040581542028523049580942716270617684062141718855897876833390671831652069714762698108211737288889182869856548142946579393971303478191296939612816492205372814129483213770914444439430297923875275475120712223308258993696422444618241506074080831777597175223850085606310877065533844577763231043780302367695330451000357920496047212646138908106805663879875404784849990477942580056343258756712280958474020627842245866908290819748829427029211991533809630060693336825924167793796369987750553539230834216505824880709596544701685608502486365633618424746636614437646240783649056696052311741095247677377387232206206230001648953246132624571185908487227730250573902216708727944082363775298758556612347564746106354407311558683595834088577220946790036272364740219788470832285646664462382109714500242379237782088931632873392735450875490295512846026376692233811845787949465417190308589695423418373731970944293954443996348633968914665773009376928939207861596826457540403314327582156399232931348229798533882278769760
More hardcore:
generate(100000).length === 100000 -> true
I would go with this solution:
Math.floor(Math.random() * 899999 + 100000)
More generally, generating a random integer with fixed length can be done using Math.pow:
var randomFixedInteger = function (length) {
return Math.floor(Math.pow(10, length-1) + Math.random() * (Math.pow(10, length) - Math.pow(10, length-1) - 1));
}
To answer the question: randomFixedInteger(6);
You can use the below code to generate a random number that will always be 6 digits:
Math.random().toString().substr(2, 6)
Hope this works for everyone :)
Briefly how this works is Math.random() generates a random number between 0 and 1 which we convert to a string and using .toString() and take a 6 digit sample from said string using .substr() with the parameters 2, 6 to start the sample from the 2nd char and continue it for 6 characters.
This can be used for any length number.
If you want to do more reading on this here are some links to the docs to save you some googling:
Math.random(): https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Math/random
.toString(): https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Object/toString
.substr(): https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/String/substr
short with arbitrary precision
below code ALWAYS generate string with n digits - solution in snippet use it
[...Array(n)].map(_=>Math.random()*10|0).join``
let gen = n=> [...Array(n)].map(_=>Math.random()*10|0).join``
// TEST: generate 6 digit number
// first number can't be zero - so we generate it separatley
let sixDigitStr = (1+Math.random()*9|0) + gen(5)
console.log( +(sixDigitStr) ) // + convert to num
100000 + Math.floor(Math.random() * 900000);
will give a number from 100000 to 999999 (inclusive).
Based on link you've provided, right answer should be
Math.floor(Math.random()*899999+100000);
Math.random() returns float between 0 and 1, so minimum number will be 100000, max - 999999. Exactly 6 digits, as you wanted :)
Here is my function I use. n - string length you want to generate
function generateRandomNumber(n) {
return Math.floor(Math.random() * (9 * Math.pow(10, n - 1))) + Math.pow(10, n - 1);
}
This is another random number generator that i use often, it also prevent the first digit from been zero(0)
function randomNumber(length) {
var text = "";
var possible = "123456789";
for (var i = 0; i < length; i++) {
var sup = Math.floor(Math.random() * possible.length);
text += i > 0 && sup == i ? "0" : possible.charAt(sup);
}
return Number(text);
}
let length = 6;
("0".repeat(length) + Math.floor(Math.random() * 10 ** length)).slice(-length);
Math.random() - Returns floating point number between 0 - 1
10 ** length - Multiply it by the length so we can get 1 - 6 length numbers with decimals
Math.floor() - Returns above number to integer(Largest integer to the given number).
What if we get less than 6 digits number?
That's why you have to append 0s with it.
"0".repeat() repeats the given string which is 0
So we may get more than 6 digits right?
That's why we have to use "".slice() method. It returns the array within given indexes. By giving minus values, it counts from the last element.
I created the below function to generate random number of fix length:
function getRandomNum(length) {
var randomNum =
(Math.pow(10,length).toString().slice(length-1) +
Math.floor((Math.random()*Math.pow(10,length))+1).toString()).slice(-length);
return randomNum;
}
This will basically add 0's at the beginning to make the length of the number as required.
npm install --save randomatic
var randomize = require('randomatic');
randomize(pattern, length, options);
Example:
To generate a 10-character randomized string using all available characters:
randomize('*', 10);
//=> 'x2_^-5_T[$'
randomize('Aa0!', 10);
//=> 'LV3u~BSGhw'
a: Lowercase alpha characters (abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz'
A: Uppercase alpha characters (ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ')
0: Numeric characters (0123456789')
!: Special characters (~!##$%^&()_+-={}[];\',.)
*: All characters (all of the above combined)
?: Custom characters (pass a string of custom characters to the options)
NPM repo
I use randojs to make the randomness simpler and more readable. you can pick a random int between 100000 and 999999 like this with randojs:
console.log(rando(100000, 999999));
<script src="https://randojs.com/1.0.0.js"></script>
const generate = n => String(Math.ceil(Math.random() * 10**n)).padStart(n, '0')
// n being the length of the random number.
Use a parseInt() or Number() on the result if you want an integer.
If you don't want the first integer to be a 0 then you could use padEnd() instead of padStart().
I was thinking about the same today and then go with the solution.
var generateOTP = function(otpLength=6) {
let baseNumber = Math.pow(10, otpLength -1 );
let number = Math.floor(Math.random()*baseNumber);
/*
Check if number have 0 as first digit
*/
if (number < baseNumber) {
number += baseNumber;
}
return number;
};
Let me know if it has any bug. Thanks.
"To Generate Random Number Using JS"
console.log(
Math.floor(Math.random() * 1000000)
);
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<body>
<h2>JavaScript Math.random()</h2>
<p id="demo"></p>
</body>
</html>
You can use this module https://www.npmjs.com/package/uid, it generates variable length unique id
uid(10) => "hbswt489ts"
uid() => "rhvtfnt" Defaults to 7
Or you can have a look at this module https://www.npmjs.com/package/shortid
const shortid = require('shortid');
console.log(shortid.generate());
// PPBqWA9
Hope it works for you :)
var number = Math.floor(Math.random() * 9000000000) + 1000000000;
console.log(number);
This can be simplest way and reliable one.
For the length of 6, recursiveness doesn't matter a lot.
function random(len) {
let result = Math.floor(Math.random() * Math.pow(10, len));
return (result.toString().length < len) ? random(len) : result;
}
console.log(random(6));
In case you also want the first digit to be able to be 0 this is my solution:
const getRange = (size, start = 0) => Array(size).fill(0).map((_, i) => i + start);
const getRandomDigit = () => Math.floor(Math.random() * 10);
const generateVerificationCode = () => getRange(6).map(getRandomDigit).join('');
console.log(generateVerificationCode())
generate a random number that must have a fixed length of exactly 6 digits:
("000000"+Math.floor((Math.random()*1000000)+1)).slice(-6)
Generate a random number that will be 6 digits:
console.log(Math.floor(Math.random() * 900000));
Result = 500229
Generate a random number that will be 4 digits:
console.log(Math.floor(Math.random() * 9000));
Result = 8751
This code provides nearly full randomness:
function generator() {
const ran = () => [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 0].sort((x, z) => {
ren = Math.random();
if (ren == 0.5) return 0;
return ren > 0.5 ? 1 : -1
})
return Array(6).fill(null).map(x => ran()[(Math.random() * 9).toFixed()]).join('')
}
console.log(generator())
This code provides complete randomness:
function generator() {
const ran1 = () => [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 0].sort((x, z) => {
ren = Math.random();
if (ren == 0.5) return 0;
return ren > 0.5 ? 1 : -1
})
const ran2 = () => ran1().sort((x, z) => {
ren = Math.random();
if (ren == 0.5) return 0;
return ren > 0.5 ? 1 : -1
})
return Array(6).fill(null).map(x => ran2()[(Math.random() * 9).toFixed()]).join('')
}
console.log(generator())
parseInt(Math.random().toString().slice(2,Math.min(length+2, 18)), 10); // 18 -> due to max digits in Math.random
Update:
This method has few flaws:
- Sometimes the number of digits might be lesser if its left padded with zeroes.
I have a variable that has a number between 1-3.
I need to randomly generate a new number between 1-3 but it must not be the same as the last one.
It happens in a loop hundreds of times.
What is the most efficient way of doing this?
May the powers of modular arithmetic help you!!
This function does what you want using the modulo operator:
/**
* generate(1) will produce 2 or 3 with probablity .5
* generate(2) will produce 1 or 3 with probablity .5
* ... you get the idea.
*/
function generate(nb) {
rnd = Math.round(Math.random())
return 1 + (nb + rnd) % 3
}
if you want to avoid a function call, you can inline the code.
Here is a jsFiddle that solves your problem : http://jsfiddle.net/AsMWG/
I've created an array containing 1,2,3 and first I select any number and swap it with the last element. Then I only pick elements from position 0 and 1, and swap them with last element.
var x = 1; // or 2 or 3
// this generates a new x out of [1,2,3] which is != x
x = (Math.floor(2*Math.random())+x) % 3 + 1;
You can randomly generate numbers with the random number generator built in to javascript. You need to use Math.random().
If you're push()-ing into an array, you can always check if the previously inserted one is the same number, thus you regenerate the number. Here is an example:
var randomArr = [];
var count = 100;
var max = 3;
var min = 1;
while (randomArr.length < count) {
var r = Math.floor(Math.random() * (max - min) + min);
if (randomArr.length == 0) {
// start condition
randomArr.push(r);
} else if (randomArr[randomArr.length-1] !== r) {
// if the previous value is not the same
// then push that value into the array
randomArr.push(r);
}
}
As Widor commented generating such a number is equivalent to generating a number with probability 0.5. So you can try something like this (not tested):
var x; /* your starting number: 1,2 or 3 */
var y = Math.round(Math.random()); /* generates 0 or 1 */
var i = 0;
var res = i+1;
while (i < y) {
res = i+1;
i++;
if (i+1 == x) i++;
}
The code is tested and it does for what you are after.
var RandomNumber = {
lastSelected: 0,
generate: function() {
var random = Math.floor(Math.random()*3)+1;
if(random == this.lastSelected) {
generateNumber();
}
else {
this.lastSelected = random;
return random;
}
}
}
RandomNumber.generate();
I need to generate a set of unique (no duplicate) integers, and between 0 and a given number.
That is:
var limit = 10;
var amount = 3;
How can I use Javascript to generate 3 unique numbers between 1 and 10?
Use the basic Math methods:
Math.random() returns a random number between 0 and 1 (including 0, excluding 1).
Multiply this number by the highest desired number (e.g. 10)
Round this number downward to its nearest integer
Math.floor(Math.random()*10) + 1
Example:
//Example, including customisable intervals [lower_bound, upper_bound)
var limit = 10,
amount = 3,
lower_bound = 1,
upper_bound = 10,
unique_random_numbers = [];
if (amount > limit) limit = amount; //Infinite loop if you want more unique
//Natural numbers than exist in a
// given range
while (unique_random_numbers.length < limit) {
var random_number = Math.floor(Math.random()*(upper_bound - lower_bound) + lower_bound);
if (unique_random_numbers.indexOf(random_number) == -1) {
// Yay! new random number
unique_random_numbers.push( random_number );
}
}
// unique_random_numbers is an array containing 3 unique numbers in the given range
Math.floor(Math.random() * (limit+1))
Math.random() generates a floating point number between 0 and 1, Math.floor() rounds it down to an integer.
By multiplying it by a number, you effectively make the range 0..number-1. If you wish to generate it in range from num1 to num2, do:
Math.floor(Math.random() * (num2-num1 + 1) + num1)
To generate more numbers, just use a for loop and put results into an array or write them into the document directly.
function generateRange(pCount, pMin, pMax) {
min = pMin < pMax ? pMin : pMax;
max = pMax > pMin ? pMax : pMin;
var resultArr = [], randNumber;
while ( pCount > 0) {
randNumber = Math.round(min + Math.random() * (max - min));
if (resultArr.indexOf(randNumber) == -1) {
resultArr.push(randNumber);
pCount--;
}
}
return resultArr;
}
Depending on range needed the method of returning the integer can be changed to: ceil (a,b], round [a,b], floor [a,b), for (a,b) is matter of adding 1 to min with floor.
Math.floor(Math.random()*limit)+1
for(i = 0;i <amount; i++)
{
var randomnumber=Math.floor(Math.random()*limit)+1
document.write(randomnumber)
}
Here’s another algorithm for ensuring the numbers are unique:
generate an array of all the numbers from 0 to x
shuffle the array so the elements are in random order
pick the first n
Compared to the method of generating random numbers until you get a unique one, this method uses more memory, but it has a more stable running time – the results are guaranteed to be found in finite time. This method works better if the upper limit is relatively low or if the amount to take is relatively high.
My answer uses the Lodash library for simplicity, but you could also implement the algorithm described above without that library.
// assuming _ is the Lodash library
// generates `amount` numbers from 0 to `upperLimit` inclusive
function uniqueRandomInts(upperLimit, amount) {
var possibleNumbers = _.range(upperLimit + 1);
var shuffled = _.shuffle(possibleNumbers);
return shuffled.slice(0, amount);
}
Something like this
var limit = 10;
var amount = 3;
var nums = new Array();
for(int i = 0; i < amount; i++)
{
var add = true;
var n = Math.round(Math.random()*limit + 1;
for(int j = 0; j < limit.length; j++)
{
if(nums[j] == n)
{
add = false;
}
}
if(add)
{
nums.push(n)
}
else
{
i--;
}
}
var randomNums = function(amount, limit) {
var result = [],
memo = {};
while(result.length < amount) {
var num = Math.floor((Math.random() * limit) + 1);
if(!memo[num]) { memo[num] = num; result.push(num); };
}
return result; }
This seems to work, and its constant lookup for duplicates.
These answers either don't give unique values, or are so long (one even adding an external library to do such a simple task).
1. generate a random number.
2. if we have this random already then goto 1, else keep it.
3. if we don't have desired quantity of randoms, then goto 1.
function uniqueRandoms(qty, min, max){
var rnd, arr=[];
do { do { rnd=Math.floor(Math.random()*max)+min }
while(arr.includes(rnd))
arr.push(rnd);
} while(arr.length<qty)
return arr;
}
//generate 5 unique numbers between 1 and 10
console.log( uniqueRandoms(5, 1, 10) );
...and a compressed version of the same function:
function uniqueRandoms(qty,min,max){var a=[];do{do{r=Math.floor(Math.random()*max)+min}while(a.includes(r));a.push(r)}while(a.length<qty);return a}
/**
* Generates an array with numbers between
* min and max randomly positioned.
*/
function genArr(min, max, numOfSwaps){
var size = (max-min) + 1;
numOfSwaps = numOfSwaps || size;
var arr = Array.apply(null, Array(size));
for(var i = 0, j = min; i < size & j <= max; i++, j++) {
arr[i] = j;
}
for(var i = 0; i < numOfSwaps; i++) {
var idx1 = Math.round(Math.random() * (size - 1));
var idx2 = Math.round(Math.random() * (size - 1));
var temp = arr[idx1];
arr[idx1] = arr[idx2];
arr[idx2] = temp;
}
return arr;
}
/* generating the array and using it to get 3 uniques numbers */
var arr = genArr(1, 10);
for(var i = 0; i < 3; i++) {
console.log(arr.pop());
}
I think, this is the most human approach (with using break from while loop), I explained it's mechanism in comments.
function generateRandomUniqueNumbersArray (limit) {
//we need to store these numbers somewhere
const array = new Array();
//how many times we added a valid number (for if statement later)
let counter = 0;
//we will be generating random numbers until we are satisfied
while (true) {
//create that number
const newRandomNumber = Math.floor(Math.random() * limit);
//if we do not have this number in our array, we will add it
if (!array.includes(newRandomNumber)) {
array.push(newRandomNumber);
counter++;
}
//if we have enought of numbers, we do not need to generate them anymore
if (counter >= limit) {
break;
}
}
//now hand over this stuff
return array;
}
You can of course add different limit (your amount) to the last 'if' statement, if you need less numbers, but be sure, that it is less or equal to the limit of numbers itself - otherwise it will be infinite loop.
Just as another possible solution based on ES6 Set ("arr. that can contain unique values only").
Examples of usage:
// Get 4 unique rnd. numbers: from 0 until 4 (inclusive):
getUniqueNumbersInRange(4, 0, 5) //-> [5, 0, 4, 1];
// Get 2 unique rnd. numbers: from -1 until 2 (inclusive):
getUniqueNumbersInRange(2, -1, 2) //-> [1, -1];
// Get 0 unique rnd. numbers (empty result): from -1 until 2 (inclusive):
getUniqueNumbersInRange(0, -1, 2) //-> [];
// Get 7 unique rnd. numbers: from 1 until 7 (inclusive):
getUniqueNumbersInRange(7, 1, 7) //-> [ 3, 1, 6, 2, 7, 5, 4];
The implementation:
function getUniqueNumbersInRange(uniqueNumbersCount, fromInclusive, untilInclusive) {
// 0/3. Check inputs.
if (0 > uniqueNumbersCount) throw new Error('The number of unique numbers cannot be negative.');
if (fromInclusive > untilInclusive) throw new Error('"From" bound "' + fromInclusive
+ '" cannot be greater than "until" bound "' + untilInclusive + '".');
const rangeLength = untilInclusive - fromInclusive + 1;
if (uniqueNumbersCount > rangeLength) throw new Error('The length of the range is ' + rangeLength + '=['
+ fromInclusive + '…' + untilInclusive + '] that is smaller than '
+ uniqueNumbersCount + ' (specified count of result numbers).');
if (uniqueNumbersCount === 0) return [];
// 1/3. Create a new "Set" – object that stores unique values of any type, whether primitive values or object references.
// MDN - https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Set
// Support: Google Chrome 38+(2014.10), Firefox 13+, IE 11+
const uniqueDigits = new Set();
// 2/3. Fill with random numbers.
while (uniqueNumbersCount > uniqueDigits.size) {
// Generate and add an random integer in specified range.
const nextRngNmb = Math.floor(Math.random() * rangeLength) + fromInclusive;
uniqueDigits.add(nextRngNmb);
}
// 3/3. Convert "Set" with unique numbers into an array with "Array.from()".
// MDN – https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Array/from
// Support: Google Chrome 45+ (2015.09+), Firefox 32+, not IE
const resArray = Array.from(uniqueDigits);
return resArray;
}
The benefits of the current implementation:
Have a basic check of input arguments – you will not get an unexpected output when the range is too small, etc.
Support the negative range (not only from 0), e. g. randoms from -1000 to 500, etc.
Expected behavior: the current most popular answer will extend the range (upper bound) on its own if input bounds are too small. An example: get 10000 unique numbers with a specified range from 0 until 10 need to throw an error due to too small range (10-0+1=11 possible unique numbers only). But the current top answer will hiddenly extend the range until 10000.
I wrote this C# code a few years back, derived from a Wikipedia-documented algorithm, which I forget now (feel free to comment...). Uniqueness is guaranteed for the lifetime of the HashSet. Obviously, if you will be using a database, you could store the generated numbers there. Randomness was ok for my needs, but probably can be improved using a different RNG. Note: count must be <= max - min (duh!) and you can easily modify to generate ulongs.
private static readonly Random RndGen = new Random();
public static IEnumerable<int> UniqueRandomIntegers(int count, int min, int max)
{
var rv = new HashSet<int>();
for (var i = max - min - count + 1; i <= max - min; i++)
{
var r = (int)(RndGen.NextDouble() * i);
var v = rv.Contains(r) ? i : r;
rv.Add(v);
yield return v;
}
}
Randomized Array, Sliced
Similar to #rory-okane's answer, but without lodash.
Both Time Complexity and Space Complexity = O(n) where n=limit
Has a consistent runtime
Supports a positive or negative range of numbers
Theoretically, this should support a range from 0 to ±2^32 - 1
This limit is due to Javascript arrays only supporting 2^32 - 1 indexes as per the ECMAScript specification
I stopped testing it at 10^8 because my browser got weird around here and strangely only negative numbers to -10^7 - I got an Uncaught RangeError: Invalid array length error (shrug)
Bonus feature: Generate a randomized array of n length 0 to limit if you pass only one argument
let uniqueRandomNumbers = (limit, amount = limit) => {
let array = Array(Math.abs(limit));
for (let i = 0; i < array.length; i++) array[i] = i * Math.sign(limit);
let currentIndex = array.length;
let randomIndex;
while(currentIndex > 0) {
randomIndex = Math.floor(Math.random() * currentIndex--);
[array[currentIndex], array[randomIndex]] = [array[randomIndex], array[currentIndex]];
}
return array.slice(0, Math.abs(amount));
}
console.log(uniqueRandomNumbers(10, 3));
console.log(uniqueRandomNumbers(-10, 3));
//bonus feature:
console.log(uniqueRandomNumbers(10));
Credit:
I personally got here because I was trying to generate random arrays of n length. Other SO questions that helped me arrive at this answer for my own use case are below. Thank you everyone for your contributions, you made my life better today.
Most efficient way to create a zero filled JavaScript array?
How to randomize (shuffle) a JavaScript array?
Also the answer from #ashleedawg is where I started, but when I discovered the infinite loop issues I ended up at the sliced randomized array approach.
const getRandomNo = (min, max) => {
min = Math.ceil(min);
max = Math.floor(max);
return Math.floor(Math.random() * (max - min + 1)) + min;
}
This function returns a random integer between the specified values. The value is no lower than min (or the next integer greater than min if min isn't an integer) and is less than (but not equal to) max.
Example
console.log(`Random no between 0 and 10 ${getRandomNo(0,10)}`)
Here's a simple, one-line solution:
var limit = 10;
var amount = 3;
randoSequence(1, limit).slice(0, amount);
It uses randojs.com to generate a randomly shuffled array of integers from 1 through 10 and then cuts off everything after the third integer. If you want to use this answer, toss this within the head tag of your HTML document:
<script src="https://randojs.com/1.0.0.js"></script>