better random numbers for bash

bash_aliases.sh

random () {
    # note: $RANDOM only gives 15 bits of entropy, and the apparently
    # commonly used $RANDOM$RANDOM is non-uniform as it misses such
    # numbers as 4294967295.  This command will grab 4 bytes from
    # /dev/urandom, interpret them as a 4-byte unsigned integer, and
    # format them in decimal representation.  It can be used as a
    # replacement for $RANDOM when you want a full 32 bits of entropy.
    od -An -t u4 -N4 < /dev/urandom | tr -d '[[:space:]]'
}
export -f random

Use od -An -t u4 -N4 < /dev/urandom | tr -d '[[:space:]]' if you find the additional whitespace annoying.

Thanks, good point! Might as well throw that in.