| What algorithm did Windows XP use to choose your initial user picture?(devblogs.microsoft.com) | |
| 359 points by soheilpro 46 days ago | 177 comments | |
tl;dr: Windows XP picked your initial user picture using reservoir sampling (k=1) over the Default Pictures directory, seeded by GetTickCount() via RtlRandomEx. This one-pass approach avoids a second file-system enumeration and handles directory changes mid-iteration gracefully. A safety cap stops sampling after 100 files to prevent pathological slowdowns. | |
HN Discussion:
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