`mutate_obs`: create new vector/table/list if `target` is unknown

[zachary-foster]

Curerntly, mutate_obs can only add columns to tables. I often want to create a variable for plotting that has per-taxon values, but there is not a per-taxon value table, so I cannot add it with mutate_obs.

If target is not present the following could happen:

• If the value given is not named and is a vector, then it is stored as a vector with the name determined by target. EG: mutate_obs(obj, "my_vector", 1:10) is the same as obj$data$my_vector <- 1:10
• If the value is named and is a vector, a new table is made with a single column. EG mutate_obs(obj, "my_table", new_col = 1:10) is the same as obj$data$my_table <- data.frame(new_col = 1:10)

Thoughts @sckott?

[sckott]

That seems reasonable to me.

Does taxmap already know how to deal with a standalone vector, e.g., in your first example abovee there's a new vector - is it clear how to map that to the taxa ?

[zachary-foster]

That seems reasonable to me.

Nice

Does taxmap already know how to deal with a standalone vector, e.g., in your first example abovee there's a new vector - is it clear how to map that to the taxa ?

Yea, it knows how to deal with tables, lists, and vectors, although I usually work with tables so lists and vectors are less well debugged.