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Re: Where is the Mathematica Book in Documentation Center?

• To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
• Subject: [mg76206] Re: [mg75987] Where is the Mathematica Book in Documentation Center?
• From: Mark Adler <madler at alumni.caltech.edu>
• Date: Thu, 17 May 2007 06:57:06 -0400 (EDT)
• References: <200705140749.DAA23216@smc.vnet.net> <464BE4E2.5020508@wolf-ram.com>

Igor,

Here's an example.

One of the dead ends I ran into was the Documentation Center entry  
for ToPackedArray (Developer/ref/ToPackedArray in the little window  
at the top).  Nothing in there told me what the actual name of the  
package was, i.e. with an executable example showing the Get or a  
Needs to access the function.  There was no testable example at all.   
Since the Needs["Developer`"] wasn't working, which is why I went to  
help in the first place, I had reason to suspect that perhaps the  
name had changed.  The page does say DEVELOPER PACKAGE SYMBOL in fine  
print at the top.  But that's hardly a testable example of how to  
access the function, and the name is wrong anyway, being all caps.

Looking for another way out, there were no links to anything covering  
the Developer package itself.  What else is in there?  At the bottom  
are links for only FromPackedArray, ByteCount, and Compress.  Why  
those?  Why not PackedArrayQ?  Uncompress?  Why no link up to some  
sort of overall description of the Developer package?

Poking around some more, I click on "Search for all pages containing  
ToPackedArray".  I see in the list "Developer Utilities Package".   
Aha!  I click on that.  Now I get a list of what's in there.  Still  
no example of how to access those functions.  In fact, none of the  
functions in there have even one executable example when I click on  
them one by one.  I'm still wondering what I should use in Needs[].   
Is the name Developer`?  Developer`Utilities`?   
Utilities`Developer`?  None of the above?

In Documentation Center, it's all a mystery.

Mark

• References:
  • Where is the Mathematica Book in Documentation Center?
    • From: Mark Adler <madler@alumni.caltech.edu>