Alpha Particles and One Time Pads

[pmetzger@shearson.com (Perry E. Metzger)]

>From: Peter Shipley <shipley@tfs.com>

>why doesn't someone set up a random number source on a internet host
>avalible on a tcp/udp socket? thus if I want some numbers all I have to
>do is:

>	telnet random_host rand_port > ./random_data_file


>the use a pseudo-random generater to select from my random number stream
>for a unique random number set.

Consider that most people who want to use their random numbers for
cryptographic purposes don't want everyone in the free world able to
read them as they pass through the internet...

In anycase, there is a CALmos device out there that is fairly easy to
use and produces about 20kbits of good random data per second -- not
fast enough for many purposes, but far better than nothing. I suspect
there are other devices on the market, but I haven't researched it
carefully. I can get information on this particular device out to
anyone who is willing to design it into a simple to build RS232
interfaceable box to generate random bits.

Perry