Ask a Question

If you have questions about using Formulate, this page provides guidance on where and how to ask for help.

Where to Ask Questions

Depending on the nature of your question, there are several channels available:

GitHub Discussions

For general questions about using Formulate, feature requests, or to share your experience:

  • Visit the Formulate GitHub Discussions

  • Create a new discussion in the appropriate category (Q&A, Ideas, Show and Tell, etc.)

  • Be sure to check existing discussions first to see if your question has already been answered

GitHub Issues

For bug reports or specific technical issues:

  • Check the existing issues to see if your problem has already been reported

  • If not, create a new issue with details about your problem

  • Include information about your environment, steps to reproduce, and any error messages

Stack Overflow

For questions that might be relevant to a broader audience:

  • Ask on Stack Overflow with the formulate tag

  • Also consider adding related tags like python, root, or numexpr depending on your question

  • Follow Stack Overflow’s guidelines for asking good questions: - Be specific - Include minimal, reproducible examples - Show what you’ve tried so far

How to Ask Effective Questions

To get the best help possible, consider these tips when asking questions:

  1. Be Specific

    Clearly state what you’re trying to accomplish and where you’re stuck. Instead of “Formulate isn’t working,” try “I’m trying to convert this ROOT expression to numexpr and getting this specific error.”

  2. Include Context

    Provide relevant information about your environment:

    • Formulate version

    • Python version

    • Operating system

    • Any other relevant packages and their versions

  3. Show Minimal Examples

    Include the smallest possible code example that demonstrates your issue:

    import formulate

# This works
expr1 = formulate.from_root("x + y")
print(expr1.to_numexpr())  # Outputs: "x + y"

# This doesn't work
expr2 = formulate.from_root("problematic_expression")
print(expr2.to_numexpr())  # Error occurs here

    (x+y)
problematic_expression

  4. Include Full Error Messages

    If you’re encountering an error, include the complete error message with traceback.

  5. Describe What You’ve Tried

    Mention approaches you’ve already attempted to solve the problem.

  6. Be Patient and Respectful

    Remember that most help comes from volunteers. Be patient waiting for responses and respectful of people’s time.

Common Questions

Before asking, check if your question is answered in one of these resources:

Getting Involved

If you find yourself frequently answering questions about Formulate, consider getting more involved with the project:

  • Help improve the documentation

  • Contribute code fixes

  • Join the development team

See the Contributing to Formulate page for more information on how to contribute.