Generalising class names

When defining classes of individuals in the system, their names must be of the form "Class <i>" where i is an integer. For example:

>>> import ciw
>>> N = ciw.create_network(
...     arrival_distributions={
...         "child": [ciw.dists.Exponential(0.2)],
...         "adult": [ciw.dists.Exponential(0.3)],
...     },
...     service_distributions={
...         "child": [ciw.dists.Exponential(0.3)],
...         "adult": [ciw.dists.Exponential(0.3)],
...     },
...     number_of_servers=[5],
... )

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
ValueError                                Traceback (most recent call last)
<ipython-input-93-0eddbdb2b06e> in <module>
      8         "adult": [ciw.dists.Exponential(0.3)],
      9     },
---> 10     number_of_servers=[5],
     11 )

~/anaconda3/lib/python3.7/site-packages/ciw/import_params.py in create_network(arrival_distributions, baulking_functions, class_change_matrices, number_of_servers, priority_classes, queue_capacities, service_distributions, routing, batching_distributions)
     68         params['batching_distributions'] = batching_distributions
     69 
---> 70     return create_network_from_dictionary(params)
     71 
     72 

~/anaconda3/lib/python3.7/site-packages/ciw/import_params.py in create_network_from_dictionary(params_input)
    109     """
    110     params = fill_out_dictionary(params_input)
--> 111     validify_dictionary(params)
    112     # Then make the Network object
    113     arrivals = [params['arrival_distributions']['Class ' + str(clss)]

~/anaconda3/lib/python3.7/site-packages/ciw/import_params.py in validify_dictionary(params)
    266             set(['Class ' + str(i) for i in range(params['number_of_classes'])]))
    267     if not consistant_class_names:
--> 268         raise ValueError('Ensure correct names for customer classes.')
    269     if all(isinstance(f, types.FunctionType) for f in params['routing']):
    270         num_nodes_count = [

ValueError: Ensure correct names for customer classes.

Is this a necessary condition for ciw to function as it stands? If not, I don’t see why the class names can’t be recorded when the network is created and then placed when a record is created.

It isn’t a major problem except when you have a number of external classes that you’d like to extract from ciw.

[daffidwilde]

it could be possible to do this in such a way where you could pass lists without it actually needing special consideration.

That would be jolly nice to have both. I suspect that my suggestion would be implemented in a very similar way.

[geraintpalmer]

Internally, if the names are just being treated like indices then I imagine the dictionary could be iterated over in another way so ciw is completely class name invariant.

Yes I like this. Shouldn’t be too many changes - and would still be back compatible 👍