Hello Peter,
> I think that it would also be nice if there was an option to make
> functions like random_zipfian() actually return a value that has
> undergone perfect hashing. When this option is used, any given value
> that the function returns would actually be taken from a random mapping
> to some other value in the same range. So, you can potentially get a
> Zipfian distribution without the locality.
I definitely agree. This is a standard problem with all non uniform random
generators in pgbench, namely random_{gaussian,exponential}.
However hashing is not a good solution on a finite domain because of the
significant collision rate, so that typically 1/3 of values are empty and
collisions cause spikes. Also, collisions would break PKs.
The solution is to provide a (good) pseudo-random parametric permutation,
which is non trivial especially for non powers of two, so ISTM that it
should be a patch on its own.
The good news is that it is on my todo list and I have some ideas on how
to do it.
The bad news is that given the rate at which I succeed in getting things
committed in pgbench, it might take some years:-( For instance, simplistic
functions and operators to extend the current set have been in the pipe
for 15 months and missed pg10.
--
Fabien.