Questions tagged [language-agnostic]

Use this tag for PROGRAMMING QUESTIONS that are independent of any particular programming language.

Questions that are independent of programming language. These questions are typically more abstract than other categories.


A typical usage scenario with this tag is that you have a problem and you don't know how to solve much less what to write in a specific programming language.

So you would first ask a how type question with the tag and usually . Then when you get an acceptable answer you would code it in a specific programming language. If you have problems then you can refer back to the related question with the tag then in the new what question add the specific programming language, e.g. ,


Free Language Agnostic Programming Books


References:

Dictionary of Algorithms and Data Structures (NIST)

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Alpha and Gamma parameters in QLearning

What difference to the algorithm does it make having a big or small gamma value? In my optic, as long as it is neither 0 or 1, it should work exactly the same. On the other side, whatever gamma I choose, it seems the Qvalues get pretty close to zero…
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What exactly does the word Patch mean when referring to 'submitting a patch'?

What exactly does the word patch mean when referring to 'submitting a patch'? I've seen this used a lot, especially in the open source world. What what does it mean and what exactly is involved in submitting a patch?
Gary Willoughby
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What is a better algorithm than brute force to separate items in overlapping categories?

I have an arbitrary set of items (dots below), and some number of categories overlapping in an arbitrary way (A-C below). The test is to determine whether it's possible for each item to be assigned to a single category, among the ones it already…
Shep
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How would I get started writing my own firewall?

There is previous little on the google on this subject other than people asking this very same question. How would I get started writing my own firewall? I'm looking to write one for the windows platform but I would also be interested in this…
HoboBen
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can it be solved in linear time, did this in n^2 time

the problem goes like this suggest a data structure and write a program to count the number of employees referred by an employee(directly or indirectly) in linear time. for example A B C D E F G A 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 A referred 4 (A referred B, B…
Saqib
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Business Objects - Containers or functional?

Where I work, we've gone back and forth on this subject a number of times and are looking for a sanity check. Here's the question: Should Business Objects be data containers (more like DTOs) or should they also contain logic that can perform some…
Walter
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Can coordinates of constructable points be represented exactly?

I'd like to write a program that lets users draw points, lines, and circles as though with a straightedge and compass. Then I want to be able to answer the question, "are these three points collinear?" To answer correctly, I need to avoid rounding…
Jason Orendorff
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What are the uses of recurrent neural networks when using them with Reinforcement Learning?

I do know that feedforward multi-layer neural networks with backprop are used with Reinforcement Learning as to help it generalize the actions our agent does. This is, if we have a big state space, we can do some actions, and they will help…
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How to implement a safe Facebook login/register/connect web service for a mobile application?

I have a web REST API for a mobile application which supports classic signup/signin with user/password and token authentication. Since the signup is without email confirmation how could I implement a safe signup/signin/connect with facebook…
user1236048
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How to make your web framework popular?

I am developing open source web framework, it's almost ready but I still do not know how to promote it. What would you advice ? (except spamming stackoverflow, of course:) )
Alex Ilyin
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Can inheritance be replaced completely by composition?

This question is NOT question like "inheritence vs composition". I understand completely how inheritance differs from composition, I know the Liskov substitution principle, the diamond problem, advantages and disadvantages both of them and both…
Wojciech Danilo
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3d bin packing algorithm

I am looking for a deterministic implementation for any 3d bin packing algorithm, i.e. for packing many small and different cuboids inside one or many bigger ones. The solution could vary from the optimal one. It should be written in C, C++, Java,…
Mouk
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Where is the source for Niman's 13 Minimally Sufficient Commandments?

I have a page (page 1), dated February 2, 1989 that my former boss presented to me, outlining Niman's 13 Minimally Sufficient Commandments for programming. (He recognized that they were dated, making this more of an archaeology piece than a modern…
Robert P
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Hiding sensitive/confidential information in log files

How would you go about hiding sensitive information from going into log files? Yes, you can consciously choose not to log sensitive bits of information in the first place, but there can be general cases where you blindly log error messages upon…
Ates Goral
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How does a copying garbage collector ensure objects are not accessed while copied?

On collection, the garbage collector copies all live objects into another memory space, thus discarding all garbage objects in the process. A forward pointer to the copied object in new space is installed into the 'old' version of an object to…
Askaga
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