Selecting a hashing algorithm
B. McKenzie, R. Harries and T. Bell
Department of Computer Science
University of Canterbury
Abstract
Hashing is so commonly used in computing that one might expect hash functions to be well understood, and that choosing a suitable function should not be difficult. The results of investigations into the performance of some widely used hashing algorithms are presented and it is shown that some of these algorithms are far from optimal. Recommendations are made for choosing a hashing algorithm and measuring its performance.