Format Numbers in FlexTable

FlexTable is a powerful tool for creating tables in R, and it offers many features that make it easy to customize the appearance of your tables. However, one common issue that users encounter when using FlexTable is how to format numbers in a way that makes sense for their specific use case.

In this article, we will explore how to format numbers in FlexTable, including how to apply different formats to each row and how to avoid unwanted padding.

Understanding FlexTable

Before we dive into the details of formatting numbers in FlexTable, it’s helpful to understand the basics of the package. FlexTable is a part of the ReporteRs library in R, which provides a set of tools for generating reports.

FlexTable allows you to create tables that can be customized with various features such as padding, alignment, and formatting options. The flextable package is used to generate FlexTables, and it offers many functions for customizing the appearance of your tables.

Setting Up Your Environment

To get started with FlexTable, you will need to install the necessary packages. In this example, we are using the ReporteRs, flextable, and tidyverse packages.

library(ReporteRs)
library(flextable)
library(tidyverse)

Creating a FlexTable

To create a FlexTable, you can use the FlexTable() function. This function takes several arguments that allow you to customize the appearance of your table. For example, you can set the padding, alignment, and formatting options using the body.cell.props and body.par.props arguments.

baseCellProp <- cellProperties(padding = 2)
baseParProp <- parProperties(text.align = "center")

ft.data <- t(data.frame(mua = 1, mub = 2, mug = 1e-7))

ft.FlexTable <- FlexTable(data = ft.data,
                          add.rownames = TRUE,
                          header.columns = FALSE,
                          body.cell.props = baseCellProp,
                          body.par.props = baseParProp)

Applying Different Formats to Each Row

One common issue that users encounter when using FlexTable is how to apply different formats to each row. In this section, we will explore how to use the set_formatter_type function to apply different formats to each row.

results <- as.tibble(read.csv("D:/ALLRESULTS.csv", header = TRUE))
results %>% na.omit() %>% filter(grepl("KEY-K", Alignment)) %>% 
  arrange(Year, Source) %>% 
  select(Source, Question, Year, Target, Actual, Highest, n) %>% 
  regulartable() %>% 
  set_formatter_type(fmt_double = "%.01f") %>% 
  align(part = "header", align = "center") %>% 
  align(align = "left") %>% autofit()

In this example, we are using the set_formatter_type function to apply a format of “%.01f” to all double values in our table. However, this can sometimes result in unwanted padding.

How to Avoid Unwanted Padding

Unwanted padding can occur when you apply different formats to each row. In this section, we will explore how to avoid unwanted padding and ensure that your numbers are formatted consistently.

One solution is to use the set_formatter_type function with a more flexible format option. For example, you can use the fmt_double argument to specify a custom format for double values.

results <- as.tibble(read.csv("D:/ALLRESULTS.csv", header = TRUE))
results %>% na.omit() %>% filter(grepl("KEY-K", Alignment)) %>% 
  arrange(Year, Source) %>% 
  select(Source, Question, Year, Target, Actual, Highest, n) %>% 
  regulartable() %>% 
  set_formatter_type(fmt_double = "%.01f") %>% 
  align(part = "header", align = "center") %>% 
  align(align = "left") %>% autofit()

In this example, we are using the fmt_double argument to specify a custom format of “%.01f” for double values. This can help avoid unwanted padding and ensure that your numbers are formatted consistently.

Conclusion

FlexTable is a powerful tool for creating tables in R, and it offers many features that make it easy to customize the appearance of your tables. However, formatting numbers can sometimes be tricky. In this article, we explored how to format numbers in FlexTable, including how to apply different formats to each row and how to avoid unwanted padding.

We also discussed some common solutions for formatting numbers in FlexTable, including using the set_formatter_type function with a custom format option. By following these tips and tricks, you can create tables that are both functional and visually appealing.

Last modified on 2024-05-20