Reservoir sampling
AssessTechniques
A one-pass algorithm for selecting a random item from an iterator or stream.
Why it's here
Placed in Assess: 1 article(s) of evidence from 1 source(s), led by research-stage coverage, with 1 in the last 30 days. Confidence 24%. Low accumulated evidence, so it defaults conservatively pending more signal.
Evidence (1)
- 3Hacker News·9/10/2026researchHow Windows XP Picked the Default User Picture
The post explains that Windows XP selected the initial user picture from the default pictures folder using RtlRandomEx seeded with GetTickCount(). It also describes a one-pass reservoir-sampling-style selection method, which avoids an extra filesystem pass and handles directory changes more gracefully.