I just started learning coding with swift, and was trying TwoSum.
"Given an array of integers, return indices of the two numbers such that they add up to a specific target.
You may assume that each input would have exactly one solution, and you may not use the same element twice.
Example:
Given nums = [2, 7, 11, 15], target = 9,
Because nums[0] + nums[1] = 2 + 7 = 9,
return [0, 1]."
I found some solutions from GitHub that I cannot understand.
code is from https://github.com/soapyigu/LeetCode-Swift/blob/master/Array/TwoSum.swift
class TwoSum {
func twoSum(_ nums: [Int], _ target: Int) -> [Int] {
var dict = [Int: Int]()
for (i, num) in nums.enumerated() {
if let lastIndex = dict[target - num] {
return [lastIndex, i]
}
dict[num] = i
}
fatalError("No valid outputs")
}
}
Could someone be so kind to explain to codes. Thanks a lot.
The dict initialised in the method stores the numbers in the input as keys, and their indices as values. The program uses this to remember which number is where. The dict can tell you things like "the number 2 is at index 0".
For each number num at index i in the input array, we subtract num from the target to find the other number that we need, in order for them to add up to target.
Now we have the other number we need, we check to see if we have seen such a number before, by searching dict. This is what the if let lastIndex = dict[target - num] part is doing. If the dict knows what index the other number is at, we return that index, and i.
If we haven't seen that number before, we record i into the dictionary under the key num, hoping that in later iterations, we can find a number that when added to num, makes 9.
Given an array of integers, return indices of the two numbers such that they add up to a specific target.
var arr:[Int] = []
func twoSum(_ nums: [Int], _ target: Int) -> [Int] {
var toggle = false
for i in 0..<nums.count {
for j in i+1..<nums.count {
if toggle == false {
if(nums[i]+nums[j]==target){
toggle = true
arr.insert(i, at: 0)
arr.insert(j, at: 1)
break
}
}
}
}
return arr
}
Example:
Given nums = [2, 7, 11, 15], target = 9,
Because nums[0] + nums[1] = 2 + 7 = 9,
return [0, 1].
In Sweeper's excellent answer, he explained what dict is used for: It lets you use a value from the array to find that value's index. It would be more obvious what the dictionary was used for if we called it indexes, and this code builds the same dictionary in a more explicit way:
var indexes = [Int: Int]()
for index in 0..<array.count {
let value = array[index]
indexes[value] = index
}
After that, you get a dictionary:
[2:0, 7:1, 11:2, 15:3]
You could write the function this way:
func twoSum(_ array: [Int], _ target: Int) -> [Int] {
var indexes = [Int: Int]()
for index in 0..<array.count {
let value = array[index]
indexes[value] = index
}
for index in 0..<array.count {
let value = array[index]
if let otherIndex = indexes[target - value],
index != otherIndex {
return [index, otherIndex]
}
}
fatalError("Unable to match values")
}
That is a much more long-winded (and less efficient) way of doing the same thing. It loops through the array twice instead of once, but the results should be the same.
func twoSum(array: [Int], target: Int) -> [Int] {
var dict = [Int:Int]()
for (index, number) in array.enumerated() {
let value = target - number
if let sum = dict[value] {
return [sum, index]
}
dict[number] = index
}
return [0,0]
}
/*
array=[1, 2, 3] -> target=4
enumerated() => [0,1], [1,2], [2,3]
(i, n)
v4 - 1 = 3
s[3:0]
s[3:0]
v4 - 2 = 2
s[2:0]
s[2:1]
v4 - 3 = 1
s[1:1]
s[1:2]
output [0,2]
*/
var numbers: [Int] = [1, 3, 6, 7, 7, 14, 12]
var target = 26
var result = [Int]()
for i in 0..<numbers.count {
for j in i+1..<numbers.count {
if numbers[i] + numbers[j] == target {
print(numbers[i],numbers[j])
result.append(i)
result.append(j)
}
}
}
print(Array(Set(result)))
func twoSum(_ nums: [Int], _ target: Int) -> [Int] {
var dict:[Int:Int] = [:]
for i in 0..<nums.count {
if dict[target - nums[i]] != nil {
return [dict[target - nums[i]] ?? 0, i]
} else {
dict[nums[i]] = i
}
}
return [0]
}
Here is a link to the discussion section of the TwoSum problem on Leetcode.
Lots of great Swift solutions there.
https://leetcode.com/problems/two-sum/discuss/?currentPage=1&orderBy=most_votes&query=swift.
My personal two cents -
func twoSumA(_ nums: [Int], _ target: Int) -> [Int] {
var numsHashMap: Dictionary<Int, Int> = [:]
var outputArr: [Int] = []
for index in 0..<nums.count {
let currentNum = nums[index]
if numsHashMap.keys.contains(target-currentNum) {
outputArr.append(numsHashMap[target-currentNum] ?? -1)
outputArr.append(index)
return outputArr
}
numsHashMap[currentNum] = index
}
return !outputArr.isEmpty ? outputArr : [-1, -1]
}
I would like to write a function which should return list of integer. Integer list size and max Random number will be defined by user, which user will pass through function parameter. My special requirement is, integer into list can not be redundant.
My approach using Array:
func getRandomNumbers(maxNumber: Int, listSize: Int)-> [Int]{
var randomNumbers = [Int]()
for _ in 1...listSize{
let randomNumber = Int(arc4random_uniform(UInt32(listSize)))
randomNumbers.append(randomNumber)
}
return randomNumbers
}
Problem: Sometimes i am getting duplicate values with this approach.
I know swift Set doesn't hold duplicate value.
My approach using Set:
func getRandomNumbers(maxNumber: Int, listSize: Int)-> Set<Int>{
var randomNumbers = Set<Int>()
for _ in 1...listSize{
let randomNumber = Int(arc4random_uniform(UInt32(listSize)))
randomNumbers.insert(randomNumber)
}
return randomNumbers
}
Problem: Sometimes Set size is less then user defined size.
Swift 5 version implementation
extension Int {
static func getUniqueRandomNumbers(min: Int, max: Int, count: Int) -> [Int] {
var set = Set<Int>()
while set.count < count {
set.insert(Int.random(in: min...max))
}
return Array(set)
}
}
For example:
let uniqueNumbers = Int.getUniqueRandomNumbers(min: 1000, max: 1500, count: 10)
An example result:
[1454, 1105, 1305, 1176, 1498, 1127, 1310, 1209, 1373, 1198]
There are 2 problems here:
You don't generate enough numbers. You need to keep generating random numbers until your set is large enough:
func getRandomNumbers(maxNumber: Int, listSize: Int)-> [Int] {
var randomNumbers = Set<Int>()
while randomNumbers.count < listSize {
let randomNumber = Int(arc4random_uniform(UInt32(maxNumber+1)))
randomNumbers.insert(randomNumber)
}
return randomNumbers
}
You're biasing your random numbers by putting them in the ordering Set chooses, which is highly predictable. You should append your numbers to an array (to keep them in order that they are generated), while still leveraging a set in parallel, for its fast deduplication:
func getRandomNumbers(maxNumber: Int, listSize: Int)-> [Int] {
precondition(listSize < maxNumber, "Cannot generate a list of \(listSize) unique numbers, if they all have to be less than \(maxNumber)")
var randomNumbers = (array: [Int](), set: Set<Int>())
while randomNumbers.set.count < listSize {
let randomNumber = Int(arc4random_uniform(UInt32(maxNumber+1)))
if randomNumbers.set.insert(randomNumber).inserted { // If the number is unique
randomNumbers.array.append(randomNumber) // then also add it to the arary
}
}
return randomNumbers.array
}
This happens when you get a duplicate random number. Instead of generating listSize random numbers, you could check randomNumbers.count and generate random numbers until it reaches listSize.
You just need to use while count is less than listSize instead of a for loop, not e that you need to pass maxNumber plus one instead of listSize to arc4random_uniform:
func getRandomNumbers(maxNumber: Int, listSize: Int)-> Set<Int> {
var randomNumbers = Set<Int>()
while randomNumbers.count < listSize {
let randomNumber = Int(arc4random_uniform(UInt32(maxNumber+1)))
randomNumbers.insert(randomNumber)
}
return randomNumbers
}
getRandomNumbers(maxNumber: 10, listSize: 3) // {5, 7, 0}
Here's yet another possibility. I don't claim this is the best, but it seemed to me that IndexSet could be a good way to solve the problem (basically, this idea nerd-sniped me and I had to find an answer), and this is what I came up with.
func getRandomNumbers(maxNumber: Int, listSize: Int)-> [Int]{
guard maxNumber < listSize else { return [] }
var indexSet = IndexSet(integersIn: 0...listSize)
var randomInts = [Int]()
while randomInts.count < maxNumber {
guard let currentInt = indexSet.integerLessThanOrEqualTo(Int(arc4random_uniform(UInt32(listSize)))) else {
continue
}
randomInts.append(currentInt)
indexSet.remove(currentInt)
}
return randomInts
}
The idea is to create an IndexSet covering 0 to the requested max value, and then randomly remove elements from that set until you have enough of them. It avoids duplication by removing integers from the set as they are used. IndexSet is not actually a Set, it's an efficient way of storing a bunch of unique integers, so it gets the uniqueness of a Set without actually creating a Set containing all integers in the range.
I have a function in Swift that computes the hamming distance of two strings and then puts them into a connected graph if the result is 1.
For example, read to hear returns a hamming distance of 2 because read[0] != hear[0] and read[3] != hear[3].
At first, I thought my function was taking a long time because of the quantity of input (8,000+ word dictionary), but I knew that several minutes was too long. So, I rewrote my same algorithm in Java, and the computation took merely 0.3s.
I have tried writing this in Swift two different ways:
Way 1 - Substrings
extension String {
subscript (i: Int) -> String {
return self[Range(i ..< i + 1)]
}
}
private func getHammingDistance(w1: String, w2: String) -> Int {
if w1.length != w2.length { return -1 }
var counter = 0
for i in 0 ..< w1.length {
if w1[i] != w2[i] { counter += 1 }
}
return counter
}
Results: 434 seconds
Way 2 - Removing Characters
private func getHammingDistance(w1: String, w2: String) -> Int {
if w1.length != w2.length { return -1 }
var counter = 0
var c1 = w1, c2 = w2 // need to mutate
let length = w1.length
for i in 0 ..< length {
if c1.removeFirst() != c2.removeFirst() { counter += 1 }
}
return counter
}
Results: 156 seconds
Same Thing in Java
Results: 0.3 seconds
Where it's being called
var graph: Graph
func connectData() {
let verticies = graph.canvas // canvas is Array<Node>
// Node has key that holds the String
for vertex in 0 ..< verticies.count {
for compare in vertex + 1 ..< verticies.count {
if getHammingDistance(w1: verticies[vertex].key!, w2: verticies[compare].key!) == 1 {
graph.addEdge(source: verticies[vertex], neighbor: verticies[compare])
}
}
}
}
156 seconds is still far too inefficient for me. What is the absolute most efficient way of comparing characters in Swift? Is there a possible workaround for computing hamming distance that involves not comparing characters?
Edit
Edit 1: I am taking an entire dictionary of 4 and 5 letter words and creating a connected graph where the edges indicate a hamming distance of 1. Therefore, I am comparing 8,000+ words to each other to generate edges.
Edit 2: Added method call.
Unless you chose a fixed length character model for your strings, methods and properties such as .count and .characters will have a complexity of O(n) or at best O(n/2) (where n is the string length). If you were to store your data in an array of character (e.g. [Character] ), your functions would perform much better.
You can also combine the whole calculation in a single pass using the zip() function
let hammingDistance = zip(word1.characters,word2.characters)
.filter{$0 != $1}.count
but that still requires going through all characters of every word pair.
...
Given that you're only looking for Hamming distances of 1, there is a faster way to get to all the unique pairs of words:
The strategy is to group words by the 4 (or 5) patterns that correspond to one "missing" letter. Each of these pattern groups defines a smaller scope for word pairs because words in different groups would be at a distance other than 1.
Each word will belong to as many groups as its character count.
For example :
"hear" will be part of the pattern groups:
"*ear", "h*ar", "he*r" and "hea*".
Any other word that would correspond to one of these 4 pattern groups would be at a Hamming distance of 1 from "hear".
Here is how this can be implemented:
// Test data 8500 words of 4-5 characters ...
var seenWords = Set<String>()
var allWords = try! String(contentsOfFile: "/usr/share/dict/words")
.lowercased()
.components(separatedBy:"\n")
.filter{$0.characters.count == 4 || $0.characters.count == 5}
.filter{seenWords.insert($0).inserted}
.enumerated().filter{$0.0 < 8500}.map{$1}
// Compute patterns for a Hamming distance of 1
// Replace each letter position with "*" to create patterns of
// one "non-matching" letter
public func wordH1Patterns(_ aWord:String) -> [String]
{
var result : [String] = []
let fullWord : [Character] = aWord.characters.map{$0}
for index in 0..<fullWord.count
{
var pattern = fullWord
pattern[index] = "*"
result.append(String(pattern))
}
return result
}
// Group words around matching patterns
// and add unique pairs from each group
func addHamming1Edges()
{
// Prepare pattern groups ...
//
var patternIndex:[String:Int] = [:]
var hamming1Groups:[[String]] = []
for word in allWords
{
for pattern in wordH1Patterns(word)
{
if let index = patternIndex[pattern]
{
hamming1Groups[index].append(word)
}
else
{
let index = hamming1Groups.count
patternIndex[pattern] = index
hamming1Groups.append([word])
}
}
}
// add edge nodes ...
//
for h1Group in hamming1Groups
{
for (index,sourceWord) in h1Group.dropLast(1).enumerated()
{
for targetIndex in index+1..<h1Group.count
{ addEdge(source:sourceWord, neighbour:h1Group[targetIndex]) }
}
}
}
On my 2012 MacBook Pro, the 8500 words go through 22817 (unique) edge pairs in 0.12 sec.
[EDIT] to illustrate my first point, I made a "brute force" algorithm using arrays of characters instead of Strings :
let wordArrays = allWords.map{Array($0.unicodeScalars)}
for i in 0..<wordArrays.count-1
{
let word1 = wordArrays[i]
for j in i+1..<wordArrays.count
{
let word2 = wordArrays[j]
if word1.count != word2.count { continue }
var distance = 0
for c in 0..<word1.count
{
if word1[c] == word2[c] { continue }
distance += 1
if distance > 1 { break }
}
if distance == 1
{ addEdge(source:allWords[i], neighbour:allWords[j]) }
}
}
This goes through the unique pairs in 0.27 sec. The reason for the speed difference is the internal model of Swift Strings which is not actually an array of equal length elements (characters) but rather a chain of varying length encoded characters (similar to the UTF model where special bytes indicate that the following 2 or 3 bytes are part of a single character. There is no simple Base+Displacement indexing of such a structure which must always be iterated from the beginning to get to the Nth element.
Note that I used unicodeScalars instead of Character because they are 16 bit fixed length representations of characters that allow a direct binary comparison. The Character type isn't as straightforward and take longer to compare.
Try this:
extension String {
func hammingDistance(to other: String) -> Int? {
guard self.characters.count == other.characters.count else { return nil }
return zip(self.characters, other.characters).reduce(0) { distance, chars in
distance + (chars.0 == chars.1 ? 0 : 1)
}
}
}
print("read".hammingDistance(to: "hear")) // => 2
The following code executed in 0.07 secounds for 8500 characters:
func getHammingDistance(w1: String, w2: String) -> Int {
if w1.characters.count != w2.characters.count {
return -1
}
let arr1 = Array(w1.characters)
let arr2 = Array(w2.characters)
var counter = 0
for i in 0 ..< arr1.count {
if arr1[i] != arr2[i] { counter += 1 }
}
return counter
}
After some messing around, I found a faster solution to #Alexander's answer (and my previous broken answer)
extension String {
func hammingDistance(to other: String) -> Int? {
guard !self.isEmpty, !other.isEmpty, self.characters.count == other.characters.count else {
return nil
}
var w1Iterator = self.characters.makeIterator()
var w2Iterator = other.characters.makeIterator()
var distance = 0;
while let w1Char = w1Iterator.next(), let w2Char = w2Iterator.next() {
distance += (w1Char != w2Char) ? 1 : 0
}
return distance
}
}
For comparing strings with a million characters, on my machine it's 1.078 sec compared to 1.220 sec, so roughly a 10% improvement. My guess is this is due to avoiding .zip and the slight overhead of .reduce and tuples
As others have noted, calling .characters repeatedly takes time. If you convert all of the strings once, it should help.
func connectData() {
let verticies = graph.canvas // canvas is Array<Node>
// Node has key that holds the String
// Convert all of the keys to utf16, and keep them
let nodesAsUTF = verticies.map { $0.key!.utf16 }
for vertex in 0 ..< verticies.count {
for compare in vertex + 1 ..< verticies.count {
if getHammingDistance(w1: nodesAsUTF[vertex], w2: nodesAsUTF[compare]) == 1 {
graph.addEdge(source: verticies[vertex], neighbor: verticies[compare])
}
}
}
}
// Calculate the hamming distance of two UTF16 views
func getHammingDistance(w1: String.UTF16View, w2: String.UTF16View) -> Int {
if w1.count != w2.count {
return -1
}
var counter = 0
for i in w1.startIndex ..< w1.endIndex {
if w1[i] != w1[i] {
counter += 1
}
}
return counter
}
I used UTF16, but you might want to try UTF8 depending on the data. Since I don't have the dictionary you are using, please let me know the result!
*broken*, see new answer
My approach:
private func getHammingDistance(w1: String, w2: String) -> Int {
guard w1.characters.count == w2.characters.count else {
return -1
}
let countArray: Int = w1.characters.indices
.reduce(0, {$0 + (w1[$1] == w2[$1] ? 0 : 1)})
return countArray
}
comparing 2 strings of 10,000 random characters took 0.31 seconds
To expand a bit: it should only require one iteration through the strings, adding as it goes.
Also it's way more concise 🙂.
I realize the Swift book provided an implementation of a random number generator. Is the best practice to copy and paste this implementation? Or is there a library that does this that we can use now?
Swift 4.2+
Swift 4.2 shipped with Xcode 10 introduces new easy-to-use random functions for many data types.
You simply call the random() method on numeric types.
let randomInt = Int.random(in: 0..<6)
let randomDouble = Double.random(in: 2.71828...3.14159)
let randomBool = Bool.random()
Use arc4random_uniform(n) for a random integer between 0 and n-1.
let diceRoll = Int(arc4random_uniform(6) + 1)
Cast the result to Int so you don't have to explicitly type your vars as UInt32 (which seems un-Swifty).
Edit: Updated for Swift 3.0
arc4random works well in Swift, but the base functions are limited to 32-bit integer types (Int is 64-bit on iPhone 5S and modern Macs). Here's a generic function for a random number of a type expressible by an integer literal:
public func arc4random<T: ExpressibleByIntegerLiteral>(_ type: T.Type) -> T {
var r: T = 0
arc4random_buf(&r, MemoryLayout<T>.size)
return r
}
We can use this new generic function to extend UInt64, adding boundary arguments and mitigating modulo bias. (This is lifted straight from arc4random.c)
public extension UInt64 {
public static func random(lower: UInt64 = min, upper: UInt64 = max) -> UInt64 {
var m: UInt64
let u = upper - lower
var r = arc4random(UInt64.self)
if u > UInt64(Int64.max) {
m = 1 + ~u
} else {
m = ((max - (u * 2)) + 1) % u
}
while r < m {
r = arc4random(UInt64.self)
}
return (r % u) + lower
}
}
With that we can extend Int64 for the same arguments, dealing with overflow:
public extension Int64 {
public static func random(lower: Int64 = min, upper: Int64 = max) -> Int64 {
let (s, overflow) = Int64.subtractWithOverflow(upper, lower)
let u = overflow ? UInt64.max - UInt64(~s) : UInt64(s)
let r = UInt64.random(upper: u)
if r > UInt64(Int64.max) {
return Int64(r - (UInt64(~lower) + 1))
} else {
return Int64(r) + lower
}
}
}
To complete the family...
private let _wordSize = __WORDSIZE
public extension UInt32 {
public static func random(lower: UInt32 = min, upper: UInt32 = max) -> UInt32 {
return arc4random_uniform(upper - lower) + lower
}
}
public extension Int32 {
public static func random(lower: Int32 = min, upper: Int32 = max) -> Int32 {
let r = arc4random_uniform(UInt32(Int64(upper) - Int64(lower)))
return Int32(Int64(r) + Int64(lower))
}
}
public extension UInt {
public static func random(lower: UInt = min, upper: UInt = max) -> UInt {
switch (_wordSize) {
case 32: return UInt(UInt32.random(UInt32(lower), upper: UInt32(upper)))
case 64: return UInt(UInt64.random(UInt64(lower), upper: UInt64(upper)))
default: return lower
}
}
}
public extension Int {
public static func random(lower: Int = min, upper: Int = max) -> Int {
switch (_wordSize) {
case 32: return Int(Int32.random(Int32(lower), upper: Int32(upper)))
case 64: return Int(Int64.random(Int64(lower), upper: Int64(upper)))
default: return lower
}
}
}
After all that, we can finally do something like this:
let diceRoll = UInt64.random(lower: 1, upper: 7)
Edit for Swift 4.2
Starting in Swift 4.2, instead of using the imported C function arc4random_uniform(), you can now use Swift’s own native functions.
// Generates integers starting with 0 up to, and including, 10
Int.random(in: 0 ... 10)
You can use random(in:) to get random values for other primitive values as well; such as Int, Double, Float and even Bool.
Swift versions < 4.2
This method will generate a random Int value between the given minimum and maximum
func randomInt(min: Int, max: Int) -> Int {
return min + Int(arc4random_uniform(UInt32(max - min + 1)))
}
I used this code:
var k: Int = random() % 10;
As of iOS 9, you can use the new GameplayKit classes to generate random numbers in a variety of ways.
You have four source types to choose from: a general random source (unnamed, down to the system to choose what it does), linear congruential, ARC4 and Mersenne Twister. These can generate random ints, floats and bools.
At the simplest level, you can generate a random number from the system's built-in random source like this:
GKRandomSource.sharedRandom().nextInt()
That generates a number between -2,147,483,648 and 2,147,483,647. If you want a number between 0 and an upper bound (exclusive) you'd use this:
GKRandomSource.sharedRandom().nextIntWithUpperBound(6)
GameplayKit has some convenience constructors built in to work with dice. For example, you can roll a six-sided die like this:
let d6 = GKRandomDistribution.d6()
d6.nextInt()
Plus you can shape the random distribution by using things like GKShuffledDistribution. That takes a little more explaining, but if you're interested you can read my tutorial on GameplayKit random numbers.
You can do it the same way that you would in C:
let randomNumber = arc4random()
randomNumber is inferred to be of type UInt32 (a 32-bit unsigned integer)
Use arc4random_uniform()
Usage:
arc4random_uniform(someNumber: UInt32) -> UInt32
This gives you random integers in the range 0 to someNumber - 1.
The maximum value for UInt32 is 4,294,967,295 (that is, 2^32 - 1).
Examples:
Coin flip
let flip = arc4random_uniform(2) // 0 or 1
Dice roll
let roll = arc4random_uniform(6) + 1 // 1...6
Random day in October
let day = arc4random_uniform(31) + 1 // 1...31
Random year in the 1990s
let year = 1990 + arc4random_uniform(10)
General form:
let number = min + arc4random_uniform(max - min + 1)
where number, max, and min are UInt32.
What about...
arc4random()
You can also get a random number by using arc4random(), which produces a UInt32 between 0 and 2^32-1. Thus to get a random number between 0 and x-1, you can divide it by x and take the remainder. Or in other words, use the Remainder Operator (%):
let number = arc4random() % 5 // 0...4
However, this produces the slight modulo bias (see also here and here), so that is why arc4random_uniform() is recommended.
Converting to and from Int
Normally it would be fine to do something like this in order to convert back and forth between Int and UInt32:
let number: Int = 10
let random = Int(arc4random_uniform(UInt32(number)))
The problem, though, is that Int has a range of -2,147,483,648...2,147,483,647 on 32 bit systems and a range of -9,223,372,036,854,775,808...9,223,372,036,854,775,807 on 64 bit systems. Compare this to the UInt32 range of 0...4,294,967,295. The U of UInt32 means unsigned.
Consider the following errors:
UInt32(-1) // negative numbers cause integer overflow error
UInt32(4294967296) // numbers greater than 4,294,967,295 cause integer overflow error
So you just need to be sure that your input parameters are within the UInt32 range and that you don't need an output that is outside of that range either.
Example for random number in between 10 (0-9);
import UIKit
let randomNumber = Int(arc4random_uniform(10))
Very easy code - simple and short.
I've been able to just use rand() to get a random CInt. You can make it an Int by using something like this:
let myVar: Int = Int(rand())
You can use your favourite C random function, and just convert to value to Int if needed.
#jstn's answer is good, but a bit verbose. Swift is known as a protocol-oriented language, so we can achieve the same result without having to implement boilerplate code for every class in the integer family, by adding a default implementation for the protocol extension.
public extension ExpressibleByIntegerLiteral {
public static func arc4random() -> Self {
var r: Self = 0
arc4random_buf(&r, MemoryLayout<Self>.size)
return r
}
}
Now we can do:
let i = Int.arc4random()
let j = UInt32.arc4random()
and all other integer classes are ok.
Updated: June 09, 2022.
Swift 5.7
Let's assume we have an array:
let numbers: [Int] = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]
For iOS and macOS you can use system-wide random source in Xcode's framework GameKit. Here you can find GKRandomSource class with its sharedRandom() class method:
import GameKit
private func randomNumberGenerator() -> Int {
let rand = GKRandomSource.sharedRandom().nextInt(upperBound: numbers.count)
return numbers[rand]
}
randomNumberGenerator()
Also you can use a randomElement() method that returns a random element of a collection:
let randomNumber = numbers.randomElement()!
print(randomNumber)
Or use arc4random_uniform(). Pay attention that this method returns UInt32 type.
let generator = Int(arc4random_uniform(11))
print(generator)
And, of course, we can use a makeIterator() method that returns an iterator over the elements of the collection.
let iterator: Int = (1...10).makeIterator().shuffled().first!
print(iterator)
The final example you see here returns a random value within the specified range with a help of static func random(in range: ClosedRange<Int>) -> Int.
let randomizer = Int.random(in: 1...10)
print(randomizer)
Pseudo-random Double number generator drand48() returns a value between 0.0 and 1.0.
import Foundation
let randomInt = Int(drand48() * 10)
In Swift 4.2 you can generate random numbers by calling the random() method on whatever numeric type you want, providing the range you want to work with. For example, this generates a random number in the range 1 through 9, inclusive on both sides
let randInt = Int.random(in: 1..<10)
Also with other types
let randFloat = Float.random(in: 1..<20)
let randDouble = Double.random(in: 1...30)
let randCGFloat = CGFloat.random(in: 1...40)
Since Swift 4.2
There is a new set of APIs:
let randomIntFrom0To10 = Int.random(in: 0 ..< 10)
let randomDouble = Double.random(in: 1 ... 10)
All numeric types now have the random(in:) method that takes range.
It returns a number uniformly distributed in that range.
TL;DR
Well, what is wrong with the "good" old way?
You have to use imported C APIs (They are different between platforms).
And moreover...
What if I told you that the random is not that random?
If you use arc4random() (to calculate the remainder) like arc4random() % aNumber, the result is not uniformly distributed between the 0 and aNumber. There is a problem called the Modulo bias.
Modulo bias
Normally, the function generates a random number between 0 and MAX (depends on the type etc.). To make a quick, easy example, let's say the max number is 7 and you care about a random number in the range 0 ..< 2 (or the interval [0, 3) if you prefer that).
The probabilities for individual numbers are:
0: 3/8 = 37.5%
1: 3/8 = 37.5%
2: 2/8 = 25%
In other words, you are more likely to end up with 0 or 1 than 2.
Of course, bare in mind that this is extremely simplified and the MAX number is much higher, making it more "fair".
This problem is addressed by SE-0202 - Random unification in Swift 4.2
Here is a library that does the job well
https://github.com/thellimist/SwiftRandom
public extension Int {
/// SwiftRandom extension
public static func random(lower: Int = 0, _ upper: Int = 100) -> Int {
return lower + Int(arc4random_uniform(UInt32(upper - lower + 1)))
}
}
public extension Double {
/// SwiftRandom extension
public static func random(lower: Double = 0, _ upper: Double = 100) -> Double {
return (Double(arc4random()) / 0xFFFFFFFF) * (upper - lower) + lower
}
}
public extension Float {
/// SwiftRandom extension
public static func random(lower: Float = 0, _ upper: Float = 100) -> Float {
return (Float(arc4random()) / 0xFFFFFFFF) * (upper - lower) + lower
}
}
public extension CGFloat {
/// SwiftRandom extension
public static func random(lower: CGFloat = 0, _ upper: CGFloat = 1) -> CGFloat {
return CGFloat(Float(arc4random()) / Float(UINT32_MAX)) * (upper - lower) + lower
}
}
let MAX : UInt32 = 9
let MIN : UInt32 = 1
func randomNumber()
{
var random_number = Int(arc4random_uniform(MAX) + MIN)
print ("random = ", random_number);
}
I would like to add to existing answers that the random number generator example in the Swift book is a Linear Congruence Generator (LCG), it is a severely limited one and shouldn't be except for the must trivial examples, where quality of randomness doesn't matter at all. And a LCG should never be used for cryptographic purposes.
arc4random() is much better and can be used for most purposes, but again should not be used for cryptographic purposes.
If you want something that is guaranteed to be cryptographically secure, use SecCopyRandomBytes(). Note that if you build a random number generator into something, someone else might end up (mis)-using it for cryptographic purposes (such as password, key or salt generation), then you should consider using SecCopyRandomBytes() anyway, even if your need doesn't quite require that.
Swift 4.2
Bye bye to import Foundation C lib arc4random_uniform()
// 1
let digit = Int.random(in: 0..<10)
// 2
if let anotherDigit = (0..<10).randomElement() {
print(anotherDigit)
} else {
print("Empty range.")
}
// 3
let double = Double.random(in: 0..<1)
let float = Float.random(in: 0..<1)
let cgFloat = CGFloat.random(in: 0..<1)
let bool = Bool.random()
You use random(in:) to generate random digits from ranges.
randomElement() returns nil if the range is empty, so you unwrap the returned Int? with if let.
You use random(in:) to generate a random Double, Float or CGFloat and random() to return a random Bool.
More # Official
var randomNumber = Int(arc4random_uniform(UInt32(5)))
Here 5 will make sure that the random number is generated through zero to four. You can set the value accordingly.
Without arc4Random_uniform() in some versions of Xcode(in 7.1 it runs but doesn't autocomplete for me). You can do this instead.
To generate a random number from 0-5.
First
import GameplayKit
Then
let diceRoll = GKRandomSource.sharedRandom().nextIntWithUpperBound(6)
The following code will produce a secure random number between 0 and 255:
extension UInt8 {
public static var random: UInt8 {
var number: UInt8 = 0
_ = SecRandomCopyBytes(kSecRandomDefault, 1, &number)
return number
}
}
You call it like this:
print(UInt8.random)
For bigger numbers it becomes more complicated.
This is the best I could come up with:
extension UInt16 {
public static var random: UInt16 {
let count = Int(UInt8.random % 2) + 1
var numbers = [UInt8](repeating: 0, count: 2)
_ = SecRandomCopyBytes(kSecRandomDefault, count, &numbers)
return numbers.reversed().reduce(0) { $0 << 8 + UInt16($1) }
}
}
extension UInt32 {
public static var random: UInt32 {
let count = Int(UInt8.random % 4) + 1
var numbers = [UInt8](repeating: 0, count: 4)
_ = SecRandomCopyBytes(kSecRandomDefault, count, &numbers)
return numbers.reversed().reduce(0) { $0 << 8 + UInt32($1) }
}
}
These methods use an extra random number to determine how many UInt8s are going to be used to create the random number. The last line converts the [UInt8] to UInt16 or UInt32.
I don't know if the last two still count as truly random, but you can tweak it to your likings :)
Swift 4.2
Swift 4.2 has included a native and fairly full-featured random number API in the standard library. (Swift Evolution proposal SE-0202)
let intBetween0to9 = Int.random(in: 0...9)
let doubleBetween0to1 = Double.random(in: 0...1)
All number types have the static random(in:) which takes the range and returns the random number in the given range
Xcode 14, swift 5
public extension Array where Element == Int {
static func generateNonRepeatedRandom(size: Int) -> [Int] {
guard size > 0 else {
return [Int]()
}
return Array(0..<size).shuffled()
}
}
How to use:
let array = Array.generateNonRepeatedRandom(size: 15)
print(array)
Output
You can use GeneratorOf like this:
var fibs = ArraySlice([1, 1])
var fibGenerator = GeneratorOf{
_ -> Int? in
fibs.append(fibs.reduce(0, combine:+))
return fibs.removeAtIndex(0)
}
println(fibGenerator.next())
println(fibGenerator.next())
println(fibGenerator.next())
println(fibGenerator.next())
println(fibGenerator.next())
println(fibGenerator.next())
I use this code to generate a random number:
//
// FactModel.swift
// Collection
//
// Created by Ahmadreza Shamimi on 6/11/16.
// Copyright © 2016 Ahmadreza Shamimi. All rights reserved.
//
import GameKit
struct FactModel {
let fun = ["I love swift","My name is Ahmadreza","I love coding" ,"I love PHP","My name is ALireza","I love Coding too"]
func getRandomNumber() -> String {
let randomNumber = GKRandomSource.sharedRandom().nextIntWithUpperBound(fun.count)
return fun[randomNumber]
}
}
Details
xCode 9.1, Swift 4
Math oriented solution (1)
import Foundation
class Random {
subscript<T>(_ min: T, _ max: T) -> T where T : BinaryInteger {
get {
return rand(min-1, max+1)
}
}
}
let rand = Random()
func rand<T>(_ min: T, _ max: T) -> T where T : BinaryInteger {
let _min = min + 1
let difference = max - _min
return T(arc4random_uniform(UInt32(difference))) + _min
}
Usage of solution (1)
let x = rand(-5, 5) // x = [-4, -3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4]
let x = rand[0, 10] // x = [0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]
Programmers oriented solution (2)
Do not forget to add Math oriented solution (1) code here
import Foundation
extension CountableRange where Bound : BinaryInteger {
var random: Bound {
return rand(lowerBound-1, upperBound)
}
}
extension CountableClosedRange where Bound : BinaryInteger {
var random: Bound {
return rand[lowerBound, upperBound]
}
}
Usage of solution (2)
let x = (-8..<2).random // x = [-8, -7, -6, -5, -4, -3, -2, -1, 0, 1]
let x = (0..<10).random // x = [0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]
let x = (-10 ... -2).random // x = [-10, -9, -8, -7, -6, -5, -4, -3, -2]
Full Sample
Do not forget to add solution (1) and solution (2) codes here
private func generateRandNums(closure:()->(Int)) {
var allNums = Set<Int>()
for _ in 0..<100 {
allNums.insert(closure())
}
print(allNums.sorted{ $0 < $1 })
}
generateRandNums {
(-8..<2).random
}
generateRandNums {
(0..<10).random
}
generateRandNums {
(-10 ... -2).random
}
generateRandNums {
rand(-5, 5)
}
generateRandNums {
rand[0, 10]
}
Sample result