You'd get the same thing using a non-linear function instead of using variable weightings.
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If we're thinking non-linear, then how about considering fuzzy parameters? This would be an opportunity to include some of Berin's thoughts on adaptive rules and add in even more math :)
Is it just me, or are we basically trying to solve an optimization problem? Under this formulation the goal is to find the optimal set of cache entries that maximizes the total cost savings where each element has an associated individual cost savings. The trick is that the cost savings of an entry varies and that there is a fixed cache size.
Unfortunately even with constant cost savings this is a variant of the Knapsack problem, which means it's NP-complete. Stefano's cache would then be a packing heuristic :)
Or maybe I'm completely missing something...
Jason Foster
