I understand that in Swift 3 there have been some changes from typical C Style for-loops. I've been working around it, but it seems like I'm writing more code than before in many cases. Maybe someone can steer me in the right direction because this is what I want:
let names : [String] = ["Jim", "Jenny", "Earl"]
for var i = 0; i < names.count - 1; i+=1 {
NSLog("%# loves %#", names[i], names[i+1])
}
Pretty simple stuff. I like to be able to get the index I'm on, and I like the for-loop to not run if names.count == 0. All in one go.
But it seems like my options in Swift 3 aren't allowing me this. I would have to do something like:
let names : [String] = ["Jim", "Jenny", "Earl"]
if names.count > 0 {
for i in 0...(names.count - 1) {
NSLog("%# loves %#", names[i], names[i+1])
}
}
The if statement at the start is needed because my program will crash in the situation where it reads: for i in 0...0 { }
I also like the idea of being able to just iterate through everything without explicitly setting the index:
// Pseudocode
for name in names.exceptLastOne {
NSLog("%# loves %#", name, name.plus(1))
}
I feel like there is some sort of syntax that mixes all my wants, but I haven't come across it yet. Does anyone know of a way? Or at least a way to make my code more compact?
UPDATE: Someone suggested that this question has already been asked, citing a SO post where the solution was to use something to the degree of:
for (index, name) in names.enumerated {}
The problem with this when compared to Hamish's answer is that I only am given the index of the current name. That doesn't allow me to get the value at index without needing to do something like:
names[index + 1]
That's just one extra variable to keep track of. I prefer Hamish's which is:
for i in names.indices.dropLast() {
print("\(names[i]) loves \(names[i + 1])")
}
Short, simple, and only have to keep track of names and i, rather than names, index, and name.
One option would be to use dropLast() on the array's indices, allowing you to iterate over a CountableRange of all but the last index of the array.
let names = ["Jim", "Jenny", "Earl"]
for i in names.indices.dropLast() {
print("\(names[i]) loves \(names[i + 1])")
}
If the array has less than two elements, the loop won't be entered.
Another option would be to zip the array with the array where the first element has been dropped, allowing you to iterate through the pairs of elements with their successor elements:
for (nameA, nameB) in zip(names, names.dropFirst()) {
print("\(nameA) loves \(nameB)")
}
This takes advantage of the fact that zip truncates the longer of the two sequences if they aren't of equal length. Therefore if the array has less than two elements, again, the loop won't be entered.
Related
So lets say we have an array a = [20,50,100,200,500,1000]
Generally speaking we could do for number in a { print(a) } if we wanted to check the entirety of a.
How can you limit what indexes are checked? As in have a set beginning and end index (b, and e respectively), and limit the values of number that are checked to between b and e?
For an example, in a, if b is set to 1, and e is set to 4, then only a1 through a[4] are checked.
I tried doing for number in a[b...e] { print(number) }, I also saw here someone do this,
for j in 0..<n { x[i] = x[j]}, which works if we want just a ending.
This makes me think I can do something like for number in b..<=e { print(a[number]) }
Is this correct?
I'm practicing data structures in Swift and this is one of the things I've been struggling with. Would really appreciate an explanation!
Using b..<=e is not the correct syntax. You need to use Closed Range Operator ... instead, i.e.
for number in b...e {
print(a[number])
}
And since you've already tried
for number in a[b...e] {
print(number)
}
There is nothing wrong with the above syntax as well. You can use it either way.
An array has a subscript that accepts a Range: array[range] and returns a sub-array.
A range of integers can be defined as either b...e or b..<e (There are other ways as well), but not b..<=e
A range itself is a sequence (something that supports a for-in loop)
So you can either do
for index in b...e {
print(a[index])
}
or
for number in a[b...e] {
print(number)
}
In both cases, it is on you to ensure that b...e are valid indices into the array.
just wondering, what's the big o of this function,
let say the initial value of the parameters is as following:
numOfCourseIndex = 0
maximumScheduleCount = 1000
schedule = [[Section]]()
result = [[[Section]]]()
orderdGroupOfSections = n
.
func foo(numOfCourseIndex: Int, orderdGroupOfSections: [[[Section]]], maximumScheduleCount: Int) {
if (result.count >= maximumScheduleCount) {
return
}
for n in 0..<orderdGroupOfSections[numOfCourseIndex].count {
for o in 0..<orderdGroupOfSections[numOfCourseIndex][n].count {
for p in 0..<orderdGroupOfSections[numOfCourseIndex][n][o].sectionTime!.count {
for q in 0..<orderdGroupOfSections[numOfCourseIndex][n][o].sectionTime![p].day!.count {
///do something
}
}
}
if (numOfCourseIndex == orderdGroupOfSections.count - 1) {
result.append(schedule)
}
else {
foo(numOfCourseIndex: numOfCourseIndex + 1, orderdGroupOfSections: orderdGroupOfSections, maximumScheduleCount: maximumScheduleCount)
}
}
}
I'm saying it's a Big-O of (n!) as the worst case, but I'm not sure.
There are two simple things that you can do to help you analyze the complexity of your function. The first is to simplify the input and see how the function behaves. Instead of running the function for a large number of courses or schedules or whatever, look at what it does for just one. How many steps does it take to process one course? How many for two? Three? Four? Make a table with the results, and then look at the difference between one and two courses, two and three, three and four, etc. Can you see a pattern?
The second thing you can do is break the function down into parts and analyze the parts separately. You're probably not going to be able to just see the complexity of the whole thing because it's, well, complex. So simplify it... what's the complexity of the innermost loop? How about the second innermost loop, ignoring the innermost one? What's the complexity of the two together? Rinse and repeat.
What I want to do is populate an Array (sequence) by appending in the elements of another Array (availableExercises), one by one. I want to do it one by one because the sequence has to hold a given number of items. The available exercises list is in nature finite, and I want to use its elements as many times as I want, as opposed to a multiple number of the available list total.
The current code included does exactly that and works. It is possible to just paste that in a Playground to see it at work.
My question is: Is there a better Swift3 way to achieve the same result? Although the code works, I'd like to not need the variable i. Swift3 allows for structured code like closures and I'm failing to see how I could use them better. It seems to me there would be a better structure for this which is just out of reach at the moment.
Here's the code:
import UIKit
let repTime = 20 //seconds
let restTime = 10 //seconds
let woDuration = 3 //minutes
let totalWOTime = woDuration * 60
let sessionTime = repTime + restTime
let totalSessions = totalWOTime / sessionTime
let availableExercises = ["push up","deep squat","burpee","HHSA plank"]
var sequence = [String]()
var i = 0
while sequence.count < totalSessions {
if i < availableExercises.count {
sequence.append(availableExercises[i])
i += 1
}
else { i = 0 }
}
sequence
You can overcome from i using modulo of sequence.count % availableExercises.count like this way.
var sequence = [String]()
while(sequence.count < totalSessions) {
let currentIndex = sequence.count % availableExercises.count
sequence.append(availableExercises[currentIndex])
}
print(sequence)
//["push up", "deep squat", "burpee", "HHSA plank", "push up", "deep squat"]
You can condense your logic by using map(_:) and the remainder operator %:
let sequence = (0..<totalSessions).map {
availableExercises[$0 % availableExercises.count]
}
map(_:) will iterate from 0 up to (but not including) totalSessions, and for each index, the corresponding element in availableExercises will be used in the result, with the remainder operator allowing you to 'wrap around' once you reach the end of availableExercises.
This also has the advantage of preallocating the resultant array (which map(_:) will do for you), preventing it from being needlessly re-allocated upon appending.
Personally, Nirav's solution is probably the best, but I can't help offering this solution, particularly because it demonstrates (pseudo-)infinite lazy sequences in Swift:
Array(
repeatElement(availableExercises, count: .max)
.joined()
.prefix(totalSessions))
If you just want to iterate over this, you of course don't need the Array(), you can leave the whole thing lazy. Wrapping it up in Array() just forces it to evaluate immediately ("strictly") and avoids the crazy BidirectionalSlice<FlattenBidirectionalCollection<Repeated<Array<String>>>> type.
This question already has answers here:
How to sort an array of custom objects by property value in Swift
(20 answers)
Closed 7 years ago.
I am trying to sort an array of structure depending on its property.
Lets say I want to sort an array of NSViews by the x coordinate.
How can I achive this?
Its a very pretty solution for that, and its called Closure Expression Syntax.
What you need to do is:
let sortedArray = sorted(allViewsArray, { (p1: NSView, p2: NSView) -> Bool in
return p1.frame.origin.x < p2.frame.origin.x
})
This will sort the alLViewsArray from the biggest X coordinate to the smallest, and store it in sortedArary.
Note, you can simplify the syntax a little, which often helps with readability (focus is on what you’re doing rather than the syntax of the types etc):
let sortedArray = sorted(allViewsArray) {
$0.frame.origin.x < $1.frame.origin.x
}
Trailing closures can be outside the function call parens, resembling other block structures like if or while; you can skip the return if the closure expression is a single statement, and you can skip the function signature and use $0, $1 etc. for the argument names.
That last one is best used only when there are no more useful names to be had (e.g. p1 is no more descriptive than $0). If you do want to give them names, you can still skip the types:
let sortedArray = sorted(allViewsArray) { p1, p2 in
p1.frame.origin.x < p2.frame.origin.x
}
Swift is sometimes a little fragile when applying this syntax sugar so occasionally you’ll find it can’t be shortened quite as much as it ought, but it usually works.
Which loop should I use when have to be extremely aware of the time it takes to iterate over a large array.
Short answer
Don’t micro-optimize like this – any difference there is could be far outweighed by the speed of the operation you are performing inside the loop. If you truly think this loop is a performance bottleneck, perhaps you would be better served by using something like the accelerate framework – but only if profiling shows you that effort is truly worth it.
And don’t fight the language. Use for…in unless what you want to achieve cannot be expressed with for…in. These cases are rare. The benefit of for…in is that it’s incredibly hard to get it wrong. That is much more important. Prioritize correctness over speed. Clarity is important. You might even want to skip a for loop entirely and use map or reduce.
Longer Answer
For arrays, if you try them without the fastest compiler optimization, they perform identically, because they essentially do the same thing.
Presumably your for ;; loop looks something like this:
var sum = 0
for var i = 0; i < a.count; ++i {
sum += a[i]
}
and your for…in loop something like this:
for x in a {
sum += x
}
Let’s rewrite the for…in to show what is really going on under the covers:
var g = a.generate()
while let x = g.next() {
sum += x
}
And then let’s rewrite that for what a.generate() returns, and something like what the let is doing:
var g = IndexingGenerator<[Int]>(a)
var wrapped_x = g.next()
while wrapped_x != nil {
let x = wrapped_x!
sum += x
wrapped_x = g.next()
}
Here is what the implementation for IndexingGenerator<[Int]> might look like:
struct IndexingGeneratorArrayOfInt {
private let _seq: [Int]
var _idx: Int = 0
init(_ seq: [Int]) {
_seq = seq
}
mutating func generate() -> Int? {
if _idx != _seq.endIndex {
return _seq[_idx++]
}
else {
return nil
}
}
}
Wow, that’s a lot of code, surely it performs way slower than the regular for ;; loop!
Nope. Because while that might be what it is logically doing, the compiler has a lot of latitude to optimize. For example, note that IndexingGeneratorArrayOfInt is a struct not a class. This means it has no overhead over declaring the two member variables directly. It also means the compiler might be able to inline the code in generate – there is no indirection going on here, no overloaded methods and vtables or objc_MsgSend. Just some simple pointer arithmetic and deferencing. If you strip away all the syntax for the structs and method calls, you’ll find that what the for…in code ends up being is almost exactly the same as what the for ;; loop is doing.
for…in helps avoid performance errors
If, on the other hand, for the code given at the beginning, you switch compiler optimization to the faster setting, for…in appears to blow for ;; away. In some non-scientific tests I ran using XCTestCase.measureBlock, summing a large array of random numbers, it was an order of magnitude faster.
Why? Because of the use of count:
for var i = 0; i < a.count; ++i {
// ^-- calling a.count every time...
sum += a[i]
}
Maybe the optimizer could have fixed this for you, but in this case it hasn’t. If you pull the invariant out, it goes back to being the same as for…in in terms of speed:
let count = a.count
for var i = 0; i < count; ++i {
sum += a[i]
}
“Oh, I would definitely do that every time, so it doesn’t matter”. To which I say, really? Are you sure? Bet you forget sometimes.
But you want the even better news? Doing the same summation with reduce was (in my, again not very scientific, tests) even faster than the for loops:
let sum = a.reduce(0,+)
But it is also so much more expressive and readable (IMO), and allows you to use let to declare your result. Given that this should be your primary goal anyway, the speed is an added bonus. But hopefully the performance will give you an incentive to do it regardless.
This is just for arrays, but what about other collections? Of course this depends on the implementation but there’s a good reason to believe it would be faster for other collections like dictionaries, custom user-defined collections.
My reason for this would be that the author of the collection can implement an optimized version of generate, because they know exactly how the collection is being used. Suppose subscript lookup involves some calculation (such as pointer arithmetic in the case of an array - you have to add multiple the index by the value size then add that to the base pointer). In the case of generate, you know what is being done is to sequentially walk the collection, and therefore you could optimize for this (for example, in the case of an array, hold a pointer to the next element which you increment each time next is called). Same goes for specialized member versions of reduce or map.
This might even be why reduce is performing so well on arrays – who knows (you could stick a breakpoint on the function passed in if you wanted to try and find out). But it’s just another justification for using the language construct you should probably be using regardless.
Famously stated: "We should forget about small efficiencies, say about 97% of the time: premature optimization is the root of all evil" Donald Knuth. It seems unlikely that you are in the %3.
Focus on the bigger problem at hand. After it is working, if it needs a performance boost, then worry about for loops. But I guarantee you, in the end, bigger structural inefficiencies or poor algorithm choice will be the performance problem, not a for loop.
Worrying about for loops is oh so 1960s.
FWIW, a rudimentary playground test shows map() is about 10 times faster than for enumeration:
class SomeClass1 {
let value: UInt32 = arc4random_uniform(100)
}
class SomeClass2 {
let value: UInt32
init(value: UInt32) {
self.value = value
}
}
var someClass1s = [SomeClass1]()
for _ in 0..<1000 {
someClass1s.append(SomeClass1())
}
var someClass2s = [SomeClass2]()
let startTimeInterval1 = CFAbsoluteTimeGetCurrent()
someClass1s.map { someClass2s.append(SomeClass2(value: $0.value)) }
println("Time1: \(CFAbsoluteTimeGetCurrent() - startTimeInterval1)") // "Time1: 0.489435970783234"
var someMoreClass2s = [SomeClass2]()
let startTimeInterval2 = CFAbsoluteTimeGetCurrent()
for item in someClass1s { someMoreClass2s.append(SomeClass2(value: item.value)) }
println("Time2: \(CFAbsoluteTimeGetCurrent() - startTimeInterval2)") // "Time2 : 4.81457495689392"
The for (with a counter) is just incrementing a counter. Very fast. The for-in uses an iterator (call object to pass the next element). This is much slower. But finally you want to access the element in both cases wich will then make no difference in the end.