Check if variable is an array

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#1

Hello, quick question.
How do I tell if a variable is an array?
I tried using typeof(), but it can only check tables and not arrays.

#2 
if table.find(array, variable) then
    print("is in array")
end
#3

…I meant, an array, not in array.

#4

Arrays are limited to using numbers as indices, which differentiates them from dictionaries.

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#5

Why don’t you print typeof() both arrays and see what they are?

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#6

90% sure arrays basically do not exist in Lua. Arrays have a fixed length and cannot be modified, and all the items in it are the same data type. I don’t think that could be created in Lua, except if you modified the __newindex metamethod of the table. Then, you could do:

array = {}
array.__newindex = function(tbl, key, value)
    warn("new indexes are not allowed.")
end

if type(array.__newindex) == "function" then
    print("is an array")
end

I think that’d be the closest you can get.

#7

Tried this, and… it’s considered a table?

#8

Arrays and dictionaries are subcategories of tables.

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#9

The wiki didn’t explain much to me.
Well then. Thank you!

#10

Array equivalent in Lua are tables without dictionary keys.

local array_tbl = {
"value",
100,
false
}

compared to dictionaries:

local dictionary_tbl = {
some_key = some_value
}

or

local dictionary_tbl = {
["some_key"] = some_value
}

Let’s say you had a function and you send two types of tables through and you have a for loop but you must run the right loop for the type of table. You can check if a table is an array by simply:

local function is_array(t)

  	for k, _ in pairs(t) do

		if type(k) ~= "number" then

			return false

		end

	end

	return true
end
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#11

yeah my bad i got confused with a different concept

#12

but the only problem is arrays have a fixed length and no key. So Lua arrays aren’t really “proper” arrays. For example dictionaries might be more classed as associative arrays.

#13

Sorry, forgot to add the context of this message.
Arrays in Lua always have an index-value pair, whether you see the index or not. Dictionaries have a key-value pair, where the key is a string and not a number.

local function isArray(t)
    if type(t) ~= "table" then return false end
    if #t == 0 then return true end
    for i, _ in t do
        return type(i) == "number"
    end
end
#14

You have basically just reiterated what @LucidBits said above. If you were attempting to solve the topic, please reply to that and not to me.

#15

Yeah, that’s true, but if you try to loop through a dictionary using ipairs it won’t work because the indexes of a dictionary aren’t integer based.

#16

I just want to point out that this function will return true for mixed tables and even pure dictionary-style tables

local function isArray(t)
	if type(t) ~= "table" then return false end
	if #t == 0 then return true end
	for i, _ in t do
		return type(i) == "number"
	end
end

print("Is dictionary array:", isArray({ 
	KeyA = 10,
	KeyB = 20
})) -- "Is dictionary array: true"

print("Is mixed table array:", isArray({ 
	[1] = 10,
	[2] = 20,
	KeyA = 30
})) -- "Is mixed table array: true"
#17

Oh yeah. I didn’t think about that cuz I tend to iterate using next instead of those.

But it still poses the question whether you can get a true array in Lua.

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#18

I’m pretty sure @LucidBits’s method is the only real way to determine if a table is a pure array or not. I’m curious why one would need to determine whether a table is an array or not though. I don’t think I’ve been in a situation where I needed to determine whether a table was an array or not at runtime.

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#19

Hey no problem! And I use next too when I need to check if a table is empty. About tables being a true array: I feel like it’s fine as long as you can access a table like an array. An array can be accessed the same way an integer based table can be. someArray[0] is the same as someTable[1]

The main thing that kills it for tables being a true array is that it’s flexible. It can grow or shrink but if you wanted it to be a set size you could do that too.

#20

I like how it also doesn’t entirely matter if it is a true array, since it could just be treated as an array if it is a table. I think my method using the __newindex metamethod may be very close to array-like behaviour, the new key could always be typechecked. It’s a bit like OOP; you cannot do it the same way as other languages, but you can produce an almost identical effect.

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