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A program is deterministic, or repeatable, if it produces the very same output when given the same input no matter how many times it is run.

Refining this definition, we should consider whether a program produces the same result on any platform (32 and 64 bits machines, running Windows, Mac OS, Linux, Solaris, etc). Or whether the program is insensitive to the form of its inputs. For example, the problem of generating the shortest route to visit all the capitals of Europe should not depend on how the map of Europe is entered, nor it should depend on which language is used to name the capitals.

Determinism is obviously very desirable. For the user, a non-deterministic program can be confusing and frustrating. For the developer, a non-deterministic program is extremely hard to test and debug, since bugs and specific configuration cannot be easily reproduced.

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