random number generators for calc

[Kohei Yoshida]

On 11/29/2012 09:12 AM, Andrew Douglas Pitonyak wrote:

> A few thoughts:
>
> Breaking ODF compatibility is probably a bad thing. I did not check, but
> I assume that the normal distribution is either specified or assumed for
> ODF.

I checked, and I don't see any such assumption in the standard.
http://docs.oasis-open.org/office/v1.2/os/OpenDocument-v1.2-os-part2.html#__RefHeading__1018560_715980110

> I assume that introducing new functions "breaks" ODF,

Not necessarily.  As Eike pointed out, as long as the new functions are 
under our own namespace it doesn't "break" the standard.

  or at least means
> that other systems that support ODF will not support what is done.

There is standard ODF and extended one that we support.  We already have 
our own functions that are not yet in ODF proper, and IIRC gnumeric has 
their own.  As with anything else that we do add to LibreOffice that's 
not yet specified in ODF (there are plenty of those), adding something 
new will always runs the risk of degrading interoperability, but IMO 
that's something we cannot avoid.  What's important is if other ODF 
generators find the new idea useful, then we can work toward adding that 
to the standard later on.

As
> such, is there any way that random functions with different
> distributions can be implemented in an addin / extension?

We could add it to scaddins rather than sc, in which case we will 
probably namespace it under ORG.LIBREOFFICE.

Kohei

-- 
Kohei Yoshida, LibreOffice hacker, Calc