R devel - Nov 2008 - Wishlist: fix error in documentation for body<- (PR#13318)

Full_Name: Fabian Scheipl
Version: 2.8.0
OS: Windows, Linux
Submission from: (NULL) (138.246.7.150)


It seems to me that the documentation for body<- is wrong.
The help file for  

body(fun, envir = environment(fun)) <- value

says that:

value can be an expression or a list of R expressions.

This produces errors however:

################################
> f <- function(x){}
> body(f) <- list(expression(res <- x^2),expression(return(x)))
Fehler in as.function.default(c(formals(fun), value), envir) : 
  ung?ltiges formales Argument f?r "function"

################################


The only way to assign multiple statements to a function body
that I could get to work is to put all the statements into a single expression,
(separated by ';' and in curly brackets):

################################

body(f) <- expression({res <- x^2; return(x)})

################################

I think the words 'or a list of R expressions.' should be removed.

fabian.scheipl at stat.uni-muenchen.de wrote:
> Full_Name: Fabian Scheipl
> Version: 2.8.0
> OS: Windows, Linux
> Submission from: (NULL) (138.246.7.150)
> 
> 
> It seems to me that the documentation for body<- is wrong.
> The help file for  
> 
> body(fun, envir = environment(fun)) <- value
> 
> says that:
> 
> value can be an expression or a list of R expressions.
> 
> This produces errors however:
> 
> ################################
> 
>> f <- function(x){}
>> body(f) <- list(expression(res <- x^2),expression(return(x)))
> Fehler in as.function.default(c(formals(fun), value), envir) : 
>   ung?ltiges formales Argument f?r "function"
> 
> ################################
> 
> 
> The only way to assign multiple statements to a function body
> that I could get to work is to put all the statements into a single
expression,
> (separated by ';' and in curly brackets):
> 
> ################################
> 
> body(f) <- expression({res <- x^2; return(x)})
> 
> ################################
> 
> I think the words 'or a list of R expressions.' should be removed.
It's slightly trickier than that. The value _can_ be a list, but only 
one of length 1. The same actually goes for expressions, but in that 
case there is explicit code to take only the first element. Also, the 
distinction between objects of mode "expression" and unevaluated 
expressions is unclear (here and elsewhere).

 > body(f) <- expression(x,y,z)
 > f
function ()
x
 > body(f) <- list(quote(2+2))
 > f
function ()
2 + 2
 > body(f) <- list(expression(2+2))
 > f
function ()
expression(2 + 2)


BTW: Don't use 'wishlist' on things that are real errors.

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