rstudio/gt

`cols_align_decimal()` does not work for scientific numbers

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#1,672 opened on May 21, 2024

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Difficulty: [2] IntermediateEffort: [2] MediumFocus: HTML OutputGood First IssuePriority: [3] HighType: ☹︎ Bug

Description

When I apply cols_align_decimal() to a column that was formated using fmt_scientific(), the decimal point is not aligned (for rows where the power of 10 part is missing).

Reprex:

library(gt)
exibble["num"] |>
  gt() |>
  fmt_scientific() |>
  cols_align_decimal()

image

Contributor guide

Tech stack
None
Domain
data
Issue type
bug
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
3
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
1-3 hours
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
blocked
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
clear
Prerequisites
R programminggt package basics
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
30
Research direction
Investigate how `cols align decimal()` determines the position of the decimal point in formatted strings. Compare the output of `fmt scientific()` for numbers with and without an exponent part. The issue is that numbers without an exponent (e.g., 1.23) are not aligned because the function likely only looks for a decimal point and does not account for missing exponent padding. Examine the source files `R/cols align decimal.R` and `R/fmt scientific.R` to understand the logic. Consider adding a fallback to pad the string with spaces for the missing exponent part or adjust the text processing to handle both cases.
`cols_align_decimal()` does not work for scientific numbers · rstudio/gt#1672 | Good First Issue