[Numpy-discussion] Documentation error in numpy.random.logseries

[josef.pktd at gmail.com]

On Sat, Jun 26, 2010 at 4:58 PM, David Goldsmith
<d.l.goldsmith at gmail.com> wrote:
> On Sat, Jun 26, 2010 at 1:41 PM, Vincent Davis <vincent at vincentdavis.net>
> wrote:
>>
>> numpy.random.logseries(p, size=None)
>>
>> but the parameters section,
>> Parameters:
>> loc : float
>> scale : float > 0.
>> size : {tuple, int}
>> Output shape. If the given shape is, e.g., (m, n, k), then m * n * k
>> samples are drawn.
>>
>> Notice that p <> loc and what about scale.
>>
>> I'll file a ticket unless I am mission something,
>> Which should it be loc or p
>> What about scale.
>
> The source is opaque (to me; Cython?) so unless you can decipher it, test
> actual behavior and document that - my guess is that p is short for
> "parameters" and is intended to be a two-element array_like containing both
> the loc and scale parameters, but that's the way it should be documented,
> not with some unprecedented reference to loc and scale when the signature
> specifies p, but as I said, check that first.

>>> np.source(stats.distributions.logser_gen)

class logser_gen(rv_discrete):
    def _rvs(self, pr):
        return mtrand.logseries(pr,size=self._size)
    def _argcheck(self, pr):
        return (pr > 0) & (pr < 1)
    def _pmf(self, k, pr):
        return -pr**k * 1.0 / k / log(1-pr)

p is a probability between in (0,1), just a mistake in the documentation.

>
>> There is no numpy-dev list right? Should this list be used or the
>> scipy-dev list>
>
> That's a good Q: this is definitely a "bug" in the doc (loc and scale
> shouldn't be documented as such when they're not explicitly in the function
> signature), in which case scipy-dev is the proper place to post, but if it
> turns out to be a bug in the code also, then this is the proper place, since
> all numpy devs are subscribed here, and numpy users should know about
> potential bugs (numpy devs will correct me if I'm wrong).

I think question about the substance/content of the docstrings should
always go to the mailing list of the corresponding function.

Josef

>
> DG
>>
>> Vincent
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>
>
>
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