[datatable-help] (no subject)

[Steve Lianoglou]

Hi,

On Sun, Nov 18, 2012 at 3:17 PM, Thell Fowler <tbfowler4 at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi all!
>
> Two quick questions:
>
> 1) What is called by data.table during print to determine the format of the
> printed output?  Looking at the print method didn't reveal any formatting
> being applied that I could see.

See the data.table:::print.data.table function, which also uses
data.table:::format.data.table

Neither of these are exported in the NAMESPACE, hence the need for the
triple :::

> 2) Would a method of attaching a 'format' attribute to a var list , such
> that the data.table print method could apply it, be worth-while?
>
> I'm thinking that this would have no effect on actual calculation times, and
> if a flag (similar to by, group, .SDcols) could be utilized then it wouldn't
> delay perceived response time unless desired, but could be there as a
> forwardable attribute when sub-setting and messaging data; and therefore be
> a useful tool in visual inspection and sharing of results.  I'm thinking of
> a 'format' attribute in the form of an expression taking a singular list as
> an argument that can then be applied.

Perhaps others will have more luck, but I don't think I quite follow
... maybe a concrete example could help (as in, an example of how you
would add this flag and how the output would look like?)

-steve

-- 
Steve Lianoglou
Graduate Student: Computational Systems Biology
 | Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
 | Weill Medical College of Cornell University
Contact Info: http://cbio.mskcc.org/~lianos/contact