Consider adding merge_predx_samples and ideas from predx_to_submission_df functions in https://github.com/reichlab/cdcfluutils/blob/master/R/predx-utils.R

[elray1]

To be able to use this for FluSight challenge submissions, I implemented a couple of utility functions to go from samples to submission files. Do we want to add either of these functions or ideas from them to the predx package?

• merge_predx_samples takes a predx_df that has duplicate rows of samples for a given location and target and merges those rows together. This arose in my use case from having obtained samples from multiple different runs of a model (e.g. different MCMC chains)
• predx_to_submission_df should probably be named predx_samples_to_submission_df and gets you from a predx_df with only samples for the prediction targets to a submission data frame.

[majohansson]

merge_predx_samples (or collect_predx_samples?) seems like it could be a useful general function. It comes to mind that the merging process could present some challenges, like accidentally merging things you don't mean to by forgetting a grouping factor or merging samples that were duplicated accidentally. I am guessing that you implementation relies on transform_predx? Is there a generic implementation of that which could help? Like calling transform_predx on a list of predx objects with conversiosn specificed (e.g., SampleCat to BinCat and Sample to BinLwr)?

And is predx_to_submission_df sort of shortcut for this? I am not sure that would always be useful. For example, a "submission" elsewhere could require samples so converting all would not necessarily be a standard approach.