# Missing libraries?

**URL:** <https://rubytalk.org/t/missing-libraries/4278>\
**Category:** ruby-talk\
**Created:** [23 January 2003 04:15 UTC](https://rubytalk.org/t/missing-libraries/4278 "2003-01-23T04:15:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Hiroharu\_Sugawara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8c91f0/32.png) [@Hiroharu\_Sugawara](https://rubytalk.org/u/Hiroharu_Sugawara)\
**Post date:** [24 January 2003 02:19 UTC](https://rubytalk.org/t/missing-libraries/4278/21 "2003-01-24T02:19:26Z")

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FYI,

Japanese-based “Dennou Ruby Project” is running,  
whose aim is to create Ruby libraries for multidimensional data analysis.

[http://dennou-t.ms.u-tokyo.ac.jp/arch/ruby/index.htm](http://dennou-t.ms.u-tokyo.ac.jp/arch/ruby/index.htm)

A wrapper for GNU Scientific library has been also prepared.

[http://www.ruby-lang.org/en/raa-list.rhtml?name=Ruby%2FGSL](http://www.ruby-lang.org/en/raa-list.rhtml?name=Ruby%2FGSL)

> **···**
>
> On Fri, 24 Jan 2003 09:05:45 +0900 ahoward [ahoward@fsl.noaa.gov](mailto:ahoward@fsl.noaa.gov) wrote:
> 
> > On Fri, 24 Jan 2003, Daniel Carrera wrote:
> > 
> > > On Thu, Jan 23, 2003 at 03:43:12PM +0900, ahoward wrote:
> > > 
> > > > 1. Scientific Library (like python has)
> > > 
> > > What do people think of just wrapping the GNU Scientific Library?
> > 
> > i have had this exact same idea. i think it would be an excellent start!
> > 
> > -a
> 
> * * *
> 
> Susu

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**Author:** ![Chalmers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a87d85/32.png) [@Chalmers](https://rubytalk.org/u/Chalmers)\
**Post date:** [24 January 2003 08:00 UTC](https://rubytalk.org/t/missing-libraries/4278/22 "2003-01-24T08:00:39Z")

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> > I disagree if it only contains symmetric ciphers according to  
> > [http://mcrypt.hellug.gr/](http://mcrypt.hellug.gr/).
> 
> Agreed, only symmetric ciphers are available in that library. Do you see  
> any glaring omissions in libmcrypt?

Not when it comes to symmetric ciphers.

What we need now is public key method (I’ll have RSA et al packed up  
shortly) and then Yarrow for secure random numbers. I think I have some C  
code for that also so lets see what we can do.

> > Having symmetric ciphers (AES, Blowfish et al) in pure Ruby would be  
> > almost meaningless imho…
> 
> That’s what I had figured, but I hadn’t seen any hard numbers.

I’d say you should expect about 50 times slower compared to C (since there  
will be heavily optimized versions in C available for these kinds of  
algorithms). Maybe even 100 with a straightforward Ruby implementation.

> > I can pack this up and submit to RAA if there is any  
> > interest. \>  
> > I’d love to see those.

Ok, expect them in a week or so…

Regards,

Robert Feldt

> **···**
>
> On Fri, 24 Jan 2003, Brian Smyth wrote:
> 
> > - Robert Feldt (feldt@ce.chalmers.se) wrote:

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