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afnix-sps

NAME

sps - standard spreadsheet module

FUNDAMENTALS

This chapter covers the spreadsheet fundamentals available in the standard spreadsheet module. The spreadsheet module provides a great interface to structure data in the form of record and sheets. Once structured, these data can be indexed, manipulated and exported into various formats. All AFNIX spreadsheet objects are located in the afnix-sps module. This module must be loaded prior any operation. Multiple calls to the module initialization routine are harmless. The interpreter method module loads a specific module by name. When the module has been loaded, the object are available in the afnix:sps nameset.

 interp:library "afnix-sps"
 

Spreadsheet concepts
The sole purpose of using a spreadsheet is to collect various data and store them in such a way that they can be accessed later. Unlike standard spreadsheet system, the AFNIX standard spreadsheet module does not place restrictions on the data organization. The spreadsheet module stores data in a hierarchical fashion. The basic data element is called a cell. A set of cells is a record. A set of records is a sheet. A set of sheets and records is a folio.

Cell and data
A cell is a data container. There is only one data element per cell. Eventually a name can be associated with a cell. The cell data can be any kind of literals. Such literals are integer, real, boolean, character or strings.

Record
A record is a vector of cells. A record can be created by adding cell or simply by adding data. If the record has a predefined size, the cell or data can be set by indexing.

Sheet
A sheet is a vector of records. A sheet can be created by adding record. Similarly, if the sheet has a predefined size, record cell or data can be added by indexing. A sheet can also be seen as a 2 dimensional array of cells. For the purpose of managing extra information, the sheet carry also several extra records, namely, the marker record, the header record and footer record as well as the tag vector and the signature.

Folio
A folio is a set of sheets and/or records. A folio of sheets permits to structure data in the form of tables. Since cell, record and table can have a name, it is possible to create link between various elements, thus creating a collection of structured data.

Storage model
There are several ways to integrate data. In the simplest form, data are integrated in a record list. A complex model can be built with a sheet. More complex models can also be designed by using a folio.

Single record model
With a single record model, the data are accumulated in a single array. This kind of data storing is particularly adapted for single list recording. As a single record, the basic search and sorting algorithm can be applied. For instance, a list name can be stored as a single record. With this view, there is no difference between a list, a vector and a record. The record can also be named.

Record importation
Data are imported into the record, either by construction, list or stream. Since the record object is a serializeable object, the importation process is also performed automatically in the collection. The base record importation class implements a simple importation model based on blank separated literals. Complex importation models can be devised by derivation. A special case with a cons cell is also supported where the car is the cell name and the cadr is the cell object.

 # an example of file importation
 1   "a string" 'a'
 

The previous example shows the file structure that can be used to import cell data. The fist line defines a record with 3 cells. The second line defines also a record with 3 cells. The second cell is a named cell.

Record exportation
A record is an object that can be serialized. It can therefore be exported easily. However, in the serialized form, the record is in a binary form. It is also possible to walk through the record and exports, for each cell its literal form.

Folio indexation
There are various ways to access a folio by reference. Since a folio can contain several sheets, it seems natural to access them by tag. The other method is to index the cells in a cross-reference album in order to access rapidly.

Sheet access model
The sheet access model uses a tag to access one or several sheets in a folio. A tag is a string attached to a sheet. It is possible in a folio to have several sheet with the same tag. It is also possible to attach several tags to a sheet. When a folio is searched by tag, the first sheet that matches the tag is said to be the valid one. If all sheets that match the requested tag are needed, it is possible to create a derived folio with all sheets that match the requested tag.

Cell access model
The cell access model operates with a cross-reference table built with an index. An index is a multiple entry record that stores the cell location. A cell coordinate comprises the cell index in the record, the record index in the sheet and the sheet index in the folio. If an index contains multiple entries, this indicates that several cells are indexed. A cell cross-reference table is a collection of index. Generally the index name is the cell name. When the cross-reference table is built, all cell of interests are scanned and if a cell name exists, the cell is indexed in the cross-reference table. If there are several cells with the same name, the index length associated with the name is the number of cells with that name.

Search and access
The methodology for searching is to decide whether a sheet or a cell should be accessible. If a sheet access is desired, the search by tag method is the preferred way. This method assumes that the requested sheet is structured in a particular way, known to the user. If a cell access seems more appropriate, a cross-reference table should be built first, and the search done from it. In the case of search by tag, the method is dynamic and operates well when sheets are added in a folio. When a cross-reference table is used, proper care should be taken to rebuild the cross-reference table when some sheets are added unless the user knows that there is no need for it.

SERVICES

This chapter covers the spreadsheet objects available in the standard spreadsheet module. All functions and objects are part of the afnix-sps module and bounded in the afnix:sps nameset.

Folio object
The Folio object is the primary object used for storing data. Although, a folio is a collection of sheets, it the primary object that should be created when manipulating such collection.

Creating a folio
The Folio object is built without argument. In this case, the folio is empty. A predicate is available for testing the Folio object.

 const sps (afnix:sps:Folio)
 afnix:sps:folio-p sps # true
 

The constructor can operate also by name or by input stream. With a string, a new folio those name is the argument is created. By stream, a new folio is created and loaded with the input stream data. Eventually, the folio name can be set with the set-name command and retrieved with the get-name command.

 const sps (afnix:sps:Folio)
 sps:set-name "planets"
 

Sheet object
The Sheet object is the primary object used to store data in a folio. Since a Folio object is a collection of sheets, a sheet can be manipulated either by getting getting it from the folio or by creating it independently and adding it into the folio.

Creating a sheet
An empty sheet can be created simply with or without name. Without argument, an unnamed sheet is created. Similar to the Folio class, the sheet name can be passed at construction or set with the set-name method. As usual a predicate is provided.

 const sht (afnix:sps:Sheet)
 afnix:sps:sheet-p sht # true
 

When the sheet is created, it can be added to the folio spreadsheet with the add method.

 const sht (afnix:sps:Sheet "data")
 sps:add sht
 

Adding data to the sheet
The process of adding data to a sheet is a straightforward operation with the add-data method or the add method. With the add-data method, data are added as literals. With the add method, data are added with the help of a record object.

 sht:add-data "Mercury"   4840 "1407:36"
 sht:add-data "Venus"    12400 "5819:51"
 sht:add-data "Earth"    12756 "23:56"
 sht:add-data "Mars"      6800 "24:37"
 sht:add-data "Jupiter" 142800 "9:50"
 sht:add-data "Saturn"  120800 "10:14"
 sht:add-data "Uranus"   47600 "10:49"
 sht:add-data "Neptune"  44600 "15:40"
 sht:add-data "Pluto"     5850 "153:17"
 sht:add-data "Sedna"     1800 "960:00"
 

Data can be imported in a sheet by importation with an input stream. During the importation, the serialized data are decoded and placed sequentially in the stream.

Sheet sorting
A sheet can be sorted with the sort method. The sort method uses the first integer argument as the column number. The second optional argument is a boolean argument that selects the sorting method which can be ascending (by default) or descending if the flag is false.

 sht:sort 0
 sht:sort 1 false
 

Record object
The Record object is an alternative to the sheet data filling. With the help of the add method, a record can be added to a sheet.

Creating a record
A record is a named object that acts as a vector of cells. The record name can be set either by construction or with the set-name method. As usual a predicate is provided.

 const rcd (afnix:sps:Record)
 afnix:sps:record-p # true
 

Filling a record
A record can be filled either with literal data or Cell objects. In the first case, the cell is automatically created for each literal added to the record. The add method add a cell or literal to the record.

 const rcd (Record)
 rcd:add "Mercury" 4840 "1407:36"
 

For data extraction, the length method returns the record length. Data can be extracted by index with either the get or map method. The get method returns the record cell while the map method returns the cell literal.

Object search
The search methodology is divided either by sheet or cells. In a folio, the search is done in terms of sheets while the construction of a cross-reference table is required for searching cells.

Searching in a folio
The Folio object provides the primary mean to search for sheet. The find and lookup methods return a sheet by tag. The first sheet that matches the tag is returned by these methods. The find method returns nil if the sheet cannot be found while the lookup method throws an exception.

 # get a sheet by tag
 const sheet (folio:lookup "the tag")
 

If there are several sheets that matched the tag, the filter method is more appropriate. The filter method returns a new folio that contains the sheet that matches the requested tag.

 # get a sub-folio by tag
 const sf (folio:filter "the tag")
 

Searching for a cell
The Folio object also provides the method for building a cross-reference table. The cross-reference table is represented by the Xref object. By default, a complete Xref object table is built with the getxref folio method. Such method, scan all cells in the folio and add them in the cross-reference table if the cell has a name.

 # get a default xref table 
 const xref (folio:getxref)
 

The cross-reference table can also be built by searching for sheet tags. With a string argument, the getxref search for all sheets that matches the tag and then build a cross-reference table. This method is equivalent to the operation of building a new folio by tag with the filter method and then building the cross-reference table.

 # get a xref table by tag
 const xref (folio:getxref "the tag")
 # another method
 const sf   (folio:filter "the tag")
 const xref (sf:getxref)
 

A cross-reference table can also be built by cell index and/or record index. With a cell index, the cross-reference table is built by indexing the sheet column. With both the cell and record indexes, the cross-reference table is built by indexing all cells at the coordinate for all sheets.

 # get a xref table by cell index
 const xref (folio:getxref 0)
 # get a xref table by cell and record index
 const xref (folio:getxref 0 1)
 

STANDARD SPREADSHEET REFERENCE

This appendix is a reference of the AFNIX standard spreadsheet module.

Symbol	Description
afnix-sps	module
afnix:sps	nameset

Cell
The Cell class is a data container. There is only one data element per cell. Eventually a name can be associated with a cell. The cell data can be any kind of literals. Such literals are integer, real, boolean, character or strings. A cell is the basic block used to build a spreadsheet.

Predicate

cell-p

Inheritance

Object

Constructors

Cell (none)
The Cell constructor create a default cell with no name and no value. When evaluated, the cell returns nil.

Cell (Literal)
The Cell constructor create a default cell by value. The argument is a literal object which can be viewed with its string representation.

Cell (String Literal)
The Cell constructor create a default cell by name and value. The first argument is the cell name. The second argument is a literal object which can be viewed with its string representation.

Methods

get -> Literal (none)
The get method returns the cell literal value.

set -> none (Literal)
The set method sets the cell literal value.

get-name -> String (none)
The get-name method returns the cell name.

set-name -> none (String)
The set-name method sets the cell name.

Record
The Record class is a cell container. A record can be created by adding cell or simply by adding data. If the record has a predefined size, the cell or data can be set by indexing. A name can be attached to the record. Facilities are provided to access directly the cell associated with the record. A record can also be created by name.

Predicate

record-p

Inheritance

Object

Constructors

Record (none)
The Record constructor create an empty record with no name and no cell.

Record (String)
The Record constructor create an empty record by name name. The argument is the record name to use.

Methods

add -> none (Cell|Literal...)
The add method adds one or several cell objects to the record. In the first form, the argument is a cell that is added in the record. In the second form, the argument is a literal that is used to create a cell by value.

get -> Cell (Integer)
The get method returns a record cell by index. The index must be within the record range or an exception is raised.

map -> Literal (Integer)
The map method map a record cell by index. The index must be within the record range or an exception is raised. The cell is mapped to a literal object.

set -> none (Integer Cell|Literal)
The set method sets the record cell by index. The record index must be valid in order to succeed. A new cell is created prior the record update. The previous cell data is lost including its name.

sort -> none (none|Boolean)
The sort method sorts a record in place. Without argument, the record is sorted in ascending order. The optional boolean argument specifies the sorting mode. If true, the record is sorting in ascending order and in descending order if false.

find -> Cell (String)
The find method finds a cell by name. If the cell is not found, the nil object is returned. This method is similar to the lookup method.

get-index -> Integer (String)
The get-index method finds a cell index by name. If the cell is not found, an exception is raised. The index is the cell position in the record.

lookup -> Cell (String)
The lookup method finds a cell by name. If the cell is not found, an exception is raised. This method is similar to the find method.

length -> Integer (none)
The length method returns the record length.

get-name -> String (none)
The get-name method returns the record name.

reset -> none (none)
The reset method rest the record. The record name is not changed but all record cells are removed.

set-name -> none (String)
The set-name method sets the record name.

Sheet
The Sheet class is a record container. A sheet can be created by adding records. Similarly, if the sheet has a predefined size, record cell or data can be added by indexing. A sheet can be also seen as a 2 dimensional array of cells. Like a record, a sheet can be named. Without argument, a default sheet is created. With a string argument, the sheet is created with an initial name.

Predicate

sheet-p

Inheritance

Object

Constructors

Sheet (none)
The Sheet constructor create an empty sheet with no name and no cell.

Sheet (String)
The Sheet constructor create an empty sheet by name. The argument is the sheet name to use.

Sheet (String String)
The Sheet constructor create an empty sheet by name and info. The first argument is the sheet name to use. The second argument is the sheet information string.

Methods

add -> none (Record)
The add method adds a record to the sheet.

get -> Record (Integer)
The get method returns a sheet record by index. The index must be within the sheet range or an exception is raised.

set -> none (Integer Record)
The set method sets the sheet record by index. The sheet index must be valid in order to succeed.

sort -> none (none|Integer|Boolean|Integer Boolean)
The sort method sorts the sheet in place. By default, the sheet is sorted in ascending order with column 0. With one argument, the argument can be either the sorting mode or the column number. If the mode is true, the sheet is sorted in ascending mode. If the mode is false, the sheet is sorted in descending mode. With two arguments, the first argument is the column number and the second is the sorting mode.

length -> Integer (none)
The length method returns the sheet length.

convert -> PrintTable ([Integer [Integer [Boolean]]])
The convert method converts the sheet into a print-table representation. Without argument, the whole sheet is converted. With one argument, the sheet is converted unto a maximum of rows. The second optional argument is the start index that default to 0. The third optional argument is the literal format. By default, the literal is formatted as a string. If the flag is true, the literal is formatted as a literal string representation.

add-data -> none ([Cell|Literal]+)
The add-data method adds one or several cell object to a sheet record. The sheet record is initially created and the object elements are added sequentially to the record. In the first form, the argument is a cell that is added in the record. In the second form, the argument is a literal that is used to create a cell by value.

add-marker -> none ([Literal]+)
The add-marker method adds one or several literal objects to a sheet marker record.

marker-length -> Integer (none)
The marker-length method returns the number of markers defined for this sheet.

get-marker -> Cell (Integer)
The get-marker method returns a marker cell by index from the sheet marker record.

set-marker -> none (Integer Literal)
The set-marker method set the sheet marker record by index and literal.

find-marker -> Integer (String)
The find-marker method find the marker index. The argument is the marker string value.

add-sign -> none ([Literal]+)
The add-sign method adds one or several literal objects to a sheet sign record.

signature-length -> Integer (none)
The signature-length method returns the number of signs defined for this sheet.

get-sign -> Cell (Integer)
The get-sign method returns a sign cell by index from the sheet sign record.

set-sign -> none (Integer Literal)
The set-sign method set the sheet sign record by index and literal.

find-sign -> Integer (String)
The find-sign method find the sign index. The argument is the sign string value.

add-header -> none (Cell|Literal...)
The add-header method adds one or several cell object to a sheet header record. In the first form, the argument is a cell that is added in the record. In the second form, the argument is a literal that is used to create a cell by value.

get-header -> Cell (Integer)
The get-header method returns a header cell by index from the sheet header record.

map-header -> Literal (Integer)
The map-header method maps to a literal object a header cell by index from the sheet header record.

set-header -> none (Integer Literal)
The set-header method set the header record by index and literal. The cell associated with the header record is updated with the literal value.

add-footer -> none ([Cell|Literal]+)
The add-footer method adds one or several cell object to a sheet footer record. In the first form, the argument is a cell that is added in the record. In the second form, the argument is a literal that is used to create a cell by value.

get-footer -> Cell (Integer)
The get-footer method returns a footer cell by index from the sheet footer record.

map-footer -> Literal (Integer)
The map-footer method maps to a literal object an footer cell by index from the sheet footer record.

set-footer -> none (Integer Literal)
The set-footer method set the footer record by index and literal. The cell associated with the footer record is updated with the literal value.

get-name -> String (none)
The get-name method returns the sheet name.

set-name -> none (String)
The set-name method sets the sheet name.

get-info -> String (none)
The get-info method returns the sheet info.

set-info -> none (String)
The set-info method sets the sheet info.

add-tag -> none ([String]+)
The add-tag method adds a tag into the tags vector. The tag can be used to mark a sheet in a folio.

tag-p -> Boolean (string)
The tag-p method returns true if the given tag is defined for this sheet.

tag-length -> Integer (none)
The tag-length method returns the number of tags defined for this sheet.

get-tag -> String (Integer)
The get-tag method returns a tag by index.

set-tag -> none (Integer Literal)
The set-tag method set the sheet tag record by index and literal.

find-tag -> Integer (String)
The find-tag method find the tag index. The argument is the tag string value.

reset -> none (none)
The reset method resets the sheet. The name and information is unchanged during this operation.

Folio
The Folio class is a sheet container. A folio of sheets can be structured to handle various data organization. Since all objects are named, it is possible to index them for fast data search. An empty folio can be created by name or filled with an input stream.

Predicate

folio-p

Inheritance

Object

Constructors

Folio (none)
The Folio constructor create an empty folio with no name and no cell.

Folio (String)
The Folio constructor create an empty folio by name. The argument is the folio name to use.

Folio (String String)
The Folio constructor create an empty folio by name and info. The first argument is the folio name to use. The second argument is the folio information string.

Folio (Input)
The Folio constructor create an empty folio and fill it by reading the data from the input stream. The input stream must have the data in a serialized form.

Methods

write -> none (Output)
The write method write the folio contents to an output stream. The written form is a serialized form.

add -> none (Sheet)
The add method adds a sheet to the folio.

get -> Sheet (Integer)
The get method returns a sheet by index. The index must be within the folio range or an exception is raised.

set -> none (Integer Sheet)
The set method sets the folio by index and sheet. The index must be within the folio range or an exception is raised.

tag-p -> Boolean (String)
The tag-p method returns true if a sheet with the tag argument exists in the folio.

find -> Sheet (String)
The find method finds a sheet by tag. The first found sheet those tag is matched is returned. In the case that multiple sheet share the same tag, the filter should be used. If no sheet is found the method return the nil object.

lookup -> Sheet (String)
The lookup method finds a sheet by tag. The first found sheet those tag is matched is returned. In the case that multiple sheet share the same tag, the filter should be used. If no sheet is found the method throws an exception. This method is similar to the find method.

filter -> Folio (String)
The filter method return a new folio with sheets that match the argument tag. If no sheet is found, the folio is empty.

reset -> none (none)
The reset method resets the folio. The name and information is unchanged during this operation.

length -> Integer (none)
The length method returns the folio length.

get-name -> String (none)
The get-name method returns the folio name.

set-name -> none (String)
The set-name method sets the folio name.

get-info -> String (none)
The get-info method returns the folio info.

set-info -> none (String)
The set-info method sets the folio info.

get-xref -> Xref (none|Integer|String|Integer Integer)
The get-xref method returns a cross-reference table from the folio. Without argument, the whole folio is scanned and all named cells are added in the cross-reference table. With an integer argument, all cells that matches the cell index argument are added in the cross-reference table. With a string argument, all cells that have the same name are added in the table. Finally, with two arguments that represents the cell index and the record index are used, all cells are added in the table with these two coordinates.

Index
The Index class is a class that maintain a cell index at the folio level. A cell index is composed of the sheet index, the record index and the cell index. The index object can be used to access in a generic way a particular cell. Additionally, the folio name can also be stored in the index. It is possible to have multiple records that represents the same cell.

Predicate

index-p

Inheritance

Object

Constructors

Index (none)
The Index constructor creates an empty index.

Index (Integer)
The Index constructor creates an index with a cell index as its coordinate.

Index (Integer Integer)
The Integer constructor creates an index with a cell and record indexes as its coordinate. The first argument is the cell index. The second argument is the record index.

Index (Integer Integer Integer)
The Index constructor creates an index with a cell, record and sheet indexes as its coordinate. The first argument is the cell index. The second argument is the record index. The third argument is the sheet index.

Methods

add -> none (Integer|Integer Integer|Integer Integer Integer)
The add method adds a new index coordinate in the index object. In the first form, the cell index is used as the coordinate. In the second form, the cell and record indexes are used as the coordinate. In the third form, the cell, record and sheet indexes are used as the coordinate.

reset -> none (none)
The reset method reset the index by removing all attached coordinates.

length -> Integer (none)
The length method returns the index length. The index length is the number of coordinate entries in the index.

exists-p -> Boolean (Integer|Integer Integer|Integer Integer Integer)
The exists-p predicate returns true if a coordinate entry exists in the index. In the first form, the cell index is used as the coordinate. In the second form, the cell and record indexes are used as the coordinate. In the third form, the cell, record and sheet indexes are used as the coordinate.

set-index-cell -> none (Integer Integer)
The set-index-cell method sets the cell index by position. The first argument is the coordinate position. The second argument is the cell index to use.

update-index-cell -> none (Integer)
The update-index-cell method updates the cell index for all entries in the index. The argument is the new cell index to use for the update process.

get-index-cell -> Integer (Integer)
The get-index-cell method returns the cell index for a particular entry. The argument is the entry position.

set-index-record -> none (Integer Integer)
The set-index-record method sets the record index by position. The first argument is the coordinate position. The second argument is the record index to use.

update-index-record -> none (Integer)
The update-index-record method updates the record index for all entries in the index. The argument is the new record index to use for the update process.

get-index-record -> Integer (Integer)
The get-index-record method returns the record index for a particular entry. The argument is the entry position.

set-index-sheet -> none (Integer Integer)
The set-index-sheet method sets the sheet index by position. The first argument is the coordinate position. The second argument is the cell sheet to use.

update-index-sheet -> none (Integer)
The update-index-sheet method updates the sheet index for all entries in the index. The argument is the new sheet index to use for the update process.

get-index-sheet -> Integer (Integer)
The get-index-sheet method returns the sheet index for a particular entry. The argument is the entry position.

Xref
The Xref class is a cross-reference class. The class maintains the association between a name and an index. with a particular name, an index entry is created if it does not exists. Such entry can be later used to access the cell content by index.

Predicate

xref-p

Inheritance

Object

Constructors

Xref (none)
The Xref constructor creates an empty cross-reference object.

Methods

add -> none (String [Integer|Integer Integer|Integer Integer Integer])
The add method adds a new reference in the table. The first argument is always the index name. In the first form, the cell index is used as the coordinate. In the second form, the cell and record indexes are used as the coordinate. In the third form, the cell, record and sheet indexes are used as the coordinate.

get -> Index (Integer|String)
The get method returns an Index object either by name or position. With an integer argument, the index is obtained by position. With a string argument, the index with the matching name is returned.

reset -> none (none)
The reset method resets the cross-reference table.

length -> Integer (none)
The length method returns the length of the cross-reference table.

lookup -> Index (String)
The lookup method returns an index those name is the matching argument. If the index cannot be found, an exception is raised.

exists-p -> Boolean (String)
The exists-p predicate returns true if an index those name is the matching argument exists in the cross-reference table.

get-name -> String (Integer)
The get-name method returns the index name by position.