From WordNet (r) 2.0 (August 2003) [wn]:
random
adj 1: lacking any definite plan or order or purpose; governed by
or depending on chance; "a random choice"; "bombs fell
at random"; "random movements" [ant: nonrandom]
2: taken haphazardly; "a random choice"
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Random \Ran"dom\ (r[a^]n"d[u^]m), n. [OE. randon, OF. randon
force, violence, rapidity, [`a] randon, de randon, violently,
suddenly, rapidly, prob. of German origin; cf. G. rand edge,
border, OHG. rant shield, edge of a shield, akin to E. rand,
n. See Rand, n.]
1. Force; violence. [Obs.]
[1913 Webster]
For courageously the two kings newly fought with
great random and force. --E. Hall.
[1913 Webster]
2. A roving motion; course without definite direction; want
of direction, rule, or method; hazard; chance; -- commonly
used in the phrase at random, that is, without a settled
point of direction; at hazard.
[1913 Webster]
Counsels, when they fly
At random, sometimes hit most happily. --Herrick.
[1913 Webster]
O, many a shaft, at random sent,
Finds mark the archer little meant! --Sir W.
Scott.
[1913 Webster]
3. Distance to which a missile is cast; range; reach; as, the
random of a rifle ball. --Sir K. Digby.
[1913 Webster]
4. (Mining) The direction of a rake-vein. --Raymond.
[1913 Webster]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Random \Ran"dom\, a.
1. Going at random or by chance; done or made at hazard, or
without settled direction, aim, or purpose; hazarded
without previous calculation; left to chance; haphazard;
as, a random guess.
[1913 Webster]
Some random truths he can impart. --Wordsworth.
[1913 Webster]
So sharp a spur to the lazy, and so strong a bridle
to the random. --H. Spencer.
[1913 Webster]
2. (Statistics) Of, pertaining to, or resulting from a
process of selection from a starting set of items, in
which the probability of selecting any one object in the
starting set is equal to the probability of selecting any
other.
[PJC]
3. (Construction) of unequal size or shape; made from
components of unequal size or shape.
[PJC]
at random in a manner so that all possible results have an
equal probability of occurrence; for processes, each
possible result is counted separately although the same
type of result may occur more than once .
Random courses (Masonry), courses of stone of unequal
thickness.
Random shot, a shot not directed or aimed toward any
particular object, or a shot with the muzzle of the gun
much elevated.
Random work (Masonry), stonework consisting of stones of
unequal sizes fitted together, but not in courses nor
always with flat beds.
[1913 Webster]
From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (19 Sep 2003) [foldoc]:
random
1. Unpredictable (closest to mathematical definition); weird.
"The system's been behaving pretty randomly."
2. Assorted; undistinguished. "Who was at the conference?"
"Just a bunch of random business types."
3. (pejorative) Frivolous; unproductive; undirected. "He's
just a random loser."
4. Incoherent or inelegant; poorly chosen; not well organised.
"The program has a random set of misfeatures." "That's a
random name for that function." "Well, all the names were
chosen pretty randomly."
5. In no particular order, though deterministic. "The I/O
channels are in a pool, and when a file is opened one is
chosen randomly."
6. Arbitrary. "It generates a random name for the scratch
file."
7. Gratuitously wrong, i.e. poorly done and for no good
apparent reason. For example, a program that handles file
name defaulting in a particularly useless way, or an assembler
routine that could easily have been coded using only three
registers, but redundantly uses seven for values with
non-overlapping lifetimes, so that no one else can invoke it
without first saving four extra registers. What randomness!
8. A random hacker; used particularly of high-school students
who soak up computer time and generally get in the way.
9. Anyone who is not a hacker (or, sometimes, anyone not
known to the hacker speaking). "I went to the talk, but the
audience was full of randoms asking bogus questions".
10. (occasional MIT usage) One who lives at Random Hall. See
also J. Random, some random X.
[Jargon File]
(1995-12-05)
From Jargon File (4.4.4, 14 Aug 2003) [jargon]:
random
adj.
1. Unpredictable (closest to mathematical definition); weird. "The
system's been behaving pretty randomly."
2. Assorted; undistinguished. "Who was at the conference?" "Just a
bunch of random business types."
3. (pejorative) Frivolous; unproductive; undirected. "He's just a
random loser."
4. Incoherent or inelegant; poorly chosen; not well organized. "The
program has a random set of misfeatures." "That's a random name for
that function." "Well, all the names were chosen pretty randomly."
5. In no particular order, though deterministic. "The I/O channels
are in a pool, and when a file is opened one is chosen randomly."
6. Arbitrary. "It generates a random name for the scratch file."
7. Gratuitously wrong, i.e., poorly done and for no good apparent
reason. For example, a program that handles file name defaulting in a
particularly useless way, or an assembler routine that could easily
have been coded using only three registers, but redundantly uses
seven for values with non-overlapping lifetimes, so that no one else
can invoke it without first saving four extra registers. What
randomness!
8. n. A random hacker; used particularly of high-school students who
soak up computer time and generally get in the way.
9. n. Anyone who is not a hacker (or, sometimes, anyone not known to
the hacker speaking); the noun form of sense 2. "I went to the talk,
but the audience was full of randoms asking bogus questions".
10. n. (occasional MIT usage) One who lives at Random Hall. See also
J. Random, some random X.
11. [UK] Conversationally, a non sequitur or something similarly
out-of-the-blue. As in: "Stop being so random!" This sense equates to
`hatstand', taken from the Viz comic character "Roger Irrelevant -
He's completely Hatstand."