Re: A factoring algorithm

Phil Carmody wrote:
>"Pubkeybreaker" <Robert_silverman@raytheon.com> writes:
>> The world does not need another O(N^1/4) algorithm.
>
>It also doesn't need knee-jerk gainsayers.
>
>If you'd like to get some stuff of your chest, did the world
>need Dixon's algorithm? Or Lehman's? Anyone more recent that
>you'd like to condescendingly trash at the same time, while
>you're at it?

I'm with Bob. At the time, yes, the world needed Dixon's algorithm,
both because it had some new ideas and an interesting runtime. But as
for right now? Nope, the world wouldn't need another Dixon's algorithm,
and it wouldn't need another O(N^1/4) algorithm, unless it had some very
interesting new ideas.

In other words, what was novel 50 years ago is not the same as what
is novel today. And the state of the art in factoring is not the same
today as it once was.
Received on Tue Jan 17 16:49:16 2006