Book III. The Karma of Algorithms
Algorithms come and go, but the pain of an
ASN.1 parsing erroris eternal.
v3.1 — Fate's Seed
You can control the random number generator, but not the outcome of your fate. Fate has its own seed, and it was set before you.
Probability: 0.95
v3.2 — Key Superposition
If you do not know where the private key is, it is already in superposition between "leaked" and "in backup". Observation collapses the state — and for the worse.
Probability: 0.93
v3.3 — Fingerprint of a Moment
Every digital signature is the fingerprint of a moment when the universe and the hash aligned. That is why signed documents are sacred. At least technically.
Probability: 0.92
v3.4 — PEM, DER, PKCS#12
True enlightenment begins when you understand the difference between PEM, DER, and PKCS#12 — without Google. Until then, you are simply a novice in the temple of OpenSSL.
Probability: 0.91
v3.5 — The First Noble Truth
Algorithms come and go, but the pain of an ASN.1 parsing error is eternal. It is this pain, not the Buddha, that is the first noble truth.
Probability: 0.96
v3.6 — SHA as Memory
SHA is memory: it grinds everything that was into a short fingerprint, and the fingerprint cannot be restored to the source. The past is the same: irreversible, yet it defines you uniquely.
Probability: 0.94
v3.7 — AES as Character
AES is character: simple operations within, unreadable chaos without, for those who hold no key. Be like AES — structured inside, opaque outside.
Probability: 0.90
v3.8 — Three Teachers
RSA is old but reliable. ECDSA is young and terse. Post-quantum does not yet know what it will become when it grows up. All three are your teachers, just at different ages.
Probability: 0.88
v3.9 — The Hash Does Its Job
When the hash matches, you think: lucky. When the hash does not match, you think: the world is to blame. Both times, you are wrong. The hash was simply doing its job.
Probability: 0.93