Is there any particular reason for `Random` to not...

# announcements

[LeoColman]

Is there any particular reason for Random to not have range-based float generation?

[Vsevolod Tolstopyatov [JB]]

Mostly to keep API simple and not bloated with every possible overload.

Basically, once you have nextBits you can implement every other method as extension on top of nextBits, but it can be ineffective and complicates delegation to platform-specific implementations. So only essential and common (for some definition of “essential” and “common” 🙂) API was introduced

[LeoColman]

But I mean... All the others were implemented

[LeoColman]

It looks like Float was forgotten hahah

[LeoColman]

I tried to use it now

[jkbbwr]

Most people don't need random floats in all fairness

[louiscad]

I think it's also because floats are not evenly distributed across their possible values: You have more values between 0 and 1 than between max value and max value minus one, so it could be confusing to have less randomness because of an offset of the range.

[Alexey Belkov [JB]]

See also https://youtrack.jetbrains.com/issue/KT-29306 for updates on this.

[LeoColman]

Thanks all!