Can I get prize money using mfaktc-0.21

quantim · 2016-12-07, 23:48

I know it has limitations. Will this keep me from finding a prime worth prize money. I am broke and need the reward. The currently known primes seem to exceed this limit. Also I am using Trial Factoring. I am not sure what that means.

Batalov · 2016-12-08, 01:01

No. There is no prize for factoring.

kladner · 2016-12-08, 01:01

Trial factoring is a means of eliminating non-prime candidates before attempting the LL primality test. Prime95 can do TF, but a GPU is much more efficient. However, there is no prize for TF. The only way to find a Mersenne Prime, at least in this scheme of things, is to run the Lucas-Lehmer test. TF is a way of saving work on the way to running Prime95 or Mprime. Finding a Mersenne Prime is the prize-winning aspect of the process.

EDIT: Don't quit your day job.

Zr40 · 2016-12-08, 15:34

You say you are currently broke. Please don't assume you will win any prize money. The chance of finding a prime is extremely small, and even with the collective effort of all GIMPS participants together, it takes a very long time to discover a new prime. You would be better off by not running mfaktc (or prime95 for that matter) so you're not spending any unnecessary electricity costs.

kladner · 2016-12-08, 15:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zr40

You say you are currently broke. Please don't assume you will win any prize money. The chance of finding a prime is extremely small, and even with the collective effort of all GIMPS participants together, it takes a very long time to discover a new prime. You would be better off by not running mfaktc (or prime95 for that matter) so you're not spending any unnecessary electricity costs.

+1

retina · 2016-12-08, 15:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by quantim

I am broke and need the reward.

If it was so easy to make money then everyone would be doing it. But seriously, the expected cost of the electricity exceeds the expected return of prize money. This is the same kind of estimates for the lottery, in the long term you expect to spend more than you receive back. Of course someone will get lucky and the income far exceeds the spending, just don't expect it to be you. Instead, enjoy the process and consider the electricity cost as part of the process. Any prize money should be considered a bonus, not an expectation.

quantim · 2016-12-08, 21:35

Can you briefly explain how trial factoring works (regarding primenet server). As far as I can tell, I upload the contents of my results.txt file to http://www.mersenne.org/manual_result/. What is stopping me from simply editing the results.txt file manually and submitting this to the server? How does the server know my results are true?

Batalov · 2016-12-08, 22:58

The magic of factors is that they are difficult to find but easy or (in some cases) nearly instantaneous to check. So, yes, they are checked; if you submit nonsense it will be disregarded.

Batalov · 2016-12-08, 22:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by quantim

Can you briefly explain how trial factoring works (regarding primenet server).

http://www.mersenne.org/various/math.php

snme2pm1 · 2016-12-08, 23:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by quantim

What is stopping me from simply editing the results.txt file manually and submitting this to the server?

There have been occasions in the past of people manhandling the content of submitted results, which is frustrating to the accuracy of deemed TF depth where no factor has found.
Such people can be caught out by strange characteristics of their result submissions, that can be observed by alert folk here.

Zr40 · 2016-12-09, 07:35

The purpose of trial factoring is to (hopefully) find a factor using less computational effort than a Lucas-Lehmer primality test would cost. If someone finds a factor for a Mersenne number, that means that the number is definitely not prime, and the effort of the two LL tests (first-time and double-check) that would have been spent on that number can be spent on another number instead.

There is no prize money for finding a factor or for submitting TF results.

Now, what's the effect of submitting false results? I'll tell you. If you submit false factors, that's easily verified by the PrimeNet server and the false factor will not be recorded as being valid. If you submit false 'no factor' results, then the worst that will happen to the project is that the number will still get LL tested one day, and overall progress would be slightly slower if a true factor was missed because of the false 'no factor' result.

2016-12-07, 23:48	#1
quantim Dec 2016 2 Posts	Can I get prize money using mfaktc-0.21 I know it has limitations. Will this keep me from finding a prime worth prize money. I am broke and need the reward. The currently known primes seem to exceed this limit. Also I am using Trial Factoring. I am not sure what that means.

2016-12-08, 01:01	#3
kladner "Kieren" Jul 2011 In My Own Galaxy! 2·3·1,693 Posts	Trial factoring is a means of eliminating non-prime candidates before attempting the LL primality test. Prime95 can do TF, but a GPU is much more efficient. However, there is no prize for TF. The only way to find a Mersenne Prime, at least in this scheme of things, is to run the Lucas-Lehmer test. TF is a way of saving work on the way to running Prime95 or Mprime. Finding a Mersenne Prime is the prize-winning aspect of the process. EDIT: Don't quit your day job. Last fiddled with by kladner on 2016-12-08 at 01:03

2016-12-08, 15:34	#4
Zr40 Dec 2013 3² Posts	You say you are currently broke. Please don't assume you will win any prize money. The chance of finding a prime is extremely small, and even with the collective effort of all GIMPS participants together, it takes a very long time to discover a new prime. You would be better off by not running mfaktc (or prime95 for that matter) so you're not spending any unnecessary electricity costs. Last fiddled with by Zr40 on 2016-12-08 at 15:50

2016-12-09, 07:35	#11
Zr40 Dec 2013 9₁₆ Posts	The purpose of trial factoring is to (hopefully) find a factor using less computational effort than a Lucas-Lehmer primality test would cost. If someone finds a factor for a Mersenne number, that means that the number is definitely not prime, and the effort of the two LL tests (first-time and double-check) that would have been spent on that number can be spent on another number instead. There is no prize money for finding a factor or for submitting TF results. Now, what's the effect of submitting false results? I'll tell you. If you submit false factors, that's easily verified by the PrimeNet server and the false factor will not be recorded as being valid. If you submit false 'no factor' results, then the worst that will happen to the project is that the number will still get LL tested one day, and overall progress would be slightly slower if a true factor was missed because of the false 'no factor' result. Last fiddled with by Zr40 on 2016-12-09 at 07:46

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2016-12-08, 01:01	#2
Batalov "Serge" Mar 2008 San Diego, Calif. 3²·7·163 Posts	No. There is no prize for factoring.

2016-12-08, 21:35	#7
quantim Dec 2016 2 Posts	Can you briefly explain how trial factoring works (regarding primenet server). As far as I can tell, I upload the contents of my results.txt file to http://www.mersenne.org/manual_result/. What is stopping me from simply editing the results.txt file manually and submitting this to the server? How does the server know my results are true?

2016-12-08, 22:58	#8
Batalov "Serge" Mar 2008 San Diego, Calif. 3²·7·163 Posts	The magic of factors is that they are difficult to find but easy or (in some cases) nearly instantaneous to check. So, yes, they are checked; if you submit nonsense it will be disregarded.