Format values as bytes

With numeric values in a gt table, we can transform those to values of bytes with human readable units. fmt_bytes() allows for the formatting of byte sizes to either of two common representations: (1) with decimal units (powers of 1000, examples being "kB" and "MB"), and (2) with binary units (powers of 1024, examples being "KiB" and "MiB").

It is assumed the input numeric values represent the number of bytes and automatic truncation of values will occur. The numeric values will be scaled to be in the range of 1 to <1000 and then decorated with the correct unit symbol according to the standard chosen. For more control over the formatting of byte sizes, we can use the following options:

decimals: choice of the number of decimal places, option to drop trailing zeros, and a choice of the decimal symbol
digit grouping separators: options to enable/disable digit separators and provide a choice of separator symbol
pattern: option to use a text pattern for decoration of the formatted values
locale-based formatting: providing a locale ID will result in number formatting specific to the chosen locale

Usage

fmt_bytes(
  data,
  columns = everything(),
  rows = everything(),
  standard = c("decimal", "binary"),
  decimals = 1,
  n_sigfig = NULL,
  drop_trailing_zeros = TRUE,
  drop_trailing_dec_mark = TRUE,
  use_seps = TRUE,
  min_sep_threshold = 1,
  pattern = "{x}",
  sep_mark = ",",
  dec_mark = ".",
  force_sign = FALSE,
  incl_space = TRUE,
  locale = NULL
)

Arguments

data

The gt table data object

obj:<gt_tbl> // required

This is the gt table object that is commonly created through use of the gt() function.

columns

Columns to target

<column-targeting expression> // default: everything()

Can either be a series of column names provided in c(), a vector of column indices, or a select helper function (e.g. starts_with(), ends_with(), contains(), matches(), num_range() and everything()).

rows

Rows to target

<row-targeting expression> // default: everything()

In conjunction with columns, we can specify which of their rows should undergo formatting. The default everything() results in all rows in columns being formatted. Alternatively, we can supply a vector of row captions within c(), a vector of row indices, or a select helper function (e.g. starts_with(), ends_with(), contains(), matches(), num_range(), and everything()). We can also use expressions to filter down to the rows we need (e.g., [colname_1] > 100 & [colname_2] < 50).

standard

Standard used to express byte sizes

singl-kw:[decimal|binary] // default: "decimal"

The form of expressing large byte sizes is divided between: (1) decimal units (powers of 1000; e.g., "kB" and "MB"), and (2) binary units (powers of 1024; e.g., "KiB" and "MiB").

decimals

Number of decimal places

scalar<numeric|integer>(val>=0) // default: 1

This corresponds to the exact number of decimal places to use. A value such as 2.34 can, for example, be formatted with 0 decimal places and it would result in "2". With 4 decimal places, the formatted value becomes "2.3400". The trailing zeros can be removed with drop_trailing_zeros = TRUE.

n_sigfig

Number of significant figures

scalar<numeric|integer>(val>=1) // default: NULL (optional)

A option to format numbers to n significant figures. By default, this is NULL and thus number values will be formatted according to the number of decimal places set via decimals. If opting to format according to the rules of significant figures, n_sigfig must be a number greater than or equal to 1. Any values passed to the decimals and drop_trailing_zeros arguments will be ignored.

drop_trailing_zeros

Drop any trailing zeros

scalar<logical> // default: FALSE

A logical value that allows for removal of trailing zeros (those redundant zeros after the decimal mark).

drop_trailing_dec_mark

Drop the trailing decimal mark

scalar<logical> // default: TRUE

A logical value that determines whether decimal marks should always appear even if there are no decimal digits to display after formatting (e.g., 23 becomes 23. if FALSE). By default trailing decimal marks are not shown.

use_seps

Use digit group separators

scalar<logical> // default: TRUE

An option to use digit group separators. The type of digit group separator is set by sep_mark and overridden if a locale ID is provided to locale. This setting is TRUE by default.

min_sep_threshold

Minimum digit threshold for grouping separators

scalar<numeric|integer>(val>=1) // default: 1

The minimum number of digits required in the integer part of a number for grouping separators to be applied. This parameter determines when digit grouping begins based on the magnitude of values. The value 1 (the default) applies separators starting at 4-digit numbers (e.g., 1,000 and above). A value of 2 starts grouping at 5-digit numbers (10,000 and above), while 3 begins at 6-digit numbers (100,000 and above).

pattern

Specification of the formatting pattern

scalar<character> // default: "{x}"

A formatting pattern that allows for decoration of the formatted value. The formatted value is represented by the {x} (which can be used multiple times, if needed) and all other characters will be interpreted as string literals.

sep_mark

Separator mark for digit grouping

scalar<character> // default: ","

The string to use as a separator between groups of digits. For example, using sep_mark = "," with a value of 1000 would result in a formatted value of "1,000". This argument is ignored if a locale is supplied (i.e., is not NULL).

dec_mark

Decimal mark

scalar<character> // default: "."

The string to be used as the decimal mark. For example, using dec_mark = "," with the value 0.152 would result in a formatted value of "0,152"). This argument is ignored if a locale is supplied (i.e., is not NULL).

force_sign

Forcing the display of a positive sign

scalar<logical> // default: FALSE

Should the positive sign be shown for positive numbers (effectively showing a sign for all numbers except zero)? If so, use TRUE for this option. The default is FALSE, where only negative numbers will display a minus sign.

incl_space

Include a space between the value and the units

scalar<logical> // default: TRUE

An option for whether to include a space between the value and the units. The default is to use a space character for separation.

locale

Locale identifier

scalar<character> // default: NULL (optional)

An optional locale identifier that can be used for formatting values according to the locale's rules. Examples include "en" for English (United States) and "fr" for French (France). We can call info_locales() for a useful reference for all of the locales that are supported. A locale ID can be also set in the initial gt() function call (where it would be used automatically by any function with a locale argument) but a locale value provided here will override that global locale.

Value

An object of class gt_tbl.

Compatibility of formatting function with data values

fmt_bytes() is compatible with body cells that are of the "numeric" or "integer" types. Any other types of body cells are ignored during formatting. This is to say that cells of incompatible data types may be targeted, but there will be no attempt to format them.

Compatibility of arguments with the `from_column()` helper function

from_column() can be used with certain arguments of fmt_bytes() to obtain varying parameter values from a specified column within the table. This means that each row could be formatted a little bit differently. These arguments provide support for from_column():

standard
decimals
n_sigfig
drop_trailing_zeros
drop_trailing_dec_mark
use_seps
pattern
sep_mark
dec_mark
force_sign
incl_space
locale

Please note that for each of the aforementioned arguments, a from_column() call needs to reference a column that has data of the correct type (this is different for each argument). Additional columns for parameter values can be generated with cols_add() (if not already present). Columns that contain parameter data can also be hidden from final display with cols_hide(). Finally, there is no limitation to how many arguments the from_column() helper is applied so long as the arguments belong to this closed set.

Adapting output to a specific `locale`

This formatting function can adapt outputs according to a provided locale value. Examples include "en" for English (United States) and "fr" for French (France). The use of a valid locale ID here means separator and decimal marks will be correct for the given locale. Should any values be provided in sep_mark or dec_mark, they will be overridden by the locale's preferred values.

Note that a locale value provided here will override any global locale setting performed in gt()'s own locale argument (it is settable there as a value received by all other functions that have a locale argument). As a useful reference on which locales are supported, we can call info_locales() to view an info table.

Examples

Use a single column from the exibble dataset and create a simple gt table. We'll use fmt_bytes() to format the num column to display as byte sizes in the decimal standard.

exibble |>
  dplyr::select(num) |>
  gt() |>
  fmt_bytes()

This image of a table was generated from the first code example in the `fmt_bytes()` help file.

Let's create an analogous table again by using fmt_bytes(), this time showing byte sizes as binary values by using standard = "binary".

exibble |>
  dplyr::select(num) |>
  gt() |>
  fmt_bytes(standard = "binary")

This image of a table was generated from the second code example in the `fmt_bytes()` help file.

Function ID

3-13

Function Introduced

v0.3.0 (May 12, 2021)

Usage

Arguments

Value

Compatibility of formatting function with data values

Compatibility of arguments with the from_column() helper function

Adapting output to a specific locale

Examples

Function ID

Function Introduced

See also

Compatibility of arguments with the `from_column()` helper function

Adapting output to a specific `locale`