Quantitative estimates for finite mean values of multiplicative functions are highly applicable tools in analytic and probabilistic number theory. Extending a result of Hall [4], Halberstam and Richert[3] proved a useful inequality valid for real, non-negative g satisfying for instance a Wirsing type condition, viz for all primes p , with constants λ 1 ≥ 0, 0 ≤ λ 2 < 2. Their upper bound is sharp to within a factor (l + o (l)), but even a weaker and easier to prove estimate, such as (where the implied constants depend on λ 1 and λ 2 ), may become a surprisingly strong device. For instance, setting g ( p ) = l ± ε, where ε is an arbitrarily small positive number, provides immediately a proof of the famous Hardy–Ramanujan theorem on the normal order of the number of prime factors of an integer. This example, and many others, are discussed in detail in our book [5] where we make extensive use of (2) for various problems connected with the structure of the set of divisors of a normal number.
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Hall et al. (1991) studied this question.