Python: How to hash a string into 8 digits?
Question: Is there anyway that I can hash a random string into a 8 digit number without
implementing any algorithms myself? Thanks.


Answer: Yes, you can use the built-in
[_hashlib_](http://docs.python.org/2.7/library/hashlib.html#module-hashlib)
modules or the built-in
[_hash_](http://docs.python.org/2.7/library/functions.html#hash) function.
Then, chop-off the last eight digits using modulo operations or string slicing
operations on the integer form of the hash:

    
    
    >>> s = 'she sells sea shells by the sea shore'
    
    >>> # Use hashlib
    >>> import hashlib
    >>> int(hashlib.sha1(s).hexdigest(), 16) % (10 ** 8)
    58097614L
    
    >>> # Use hash()
    >>> abs(hash(s)) % (10 ** 8)
    82148974
    

