---
title: "Numerical Validation"
output: rmarkdown::html_vignette
vignette: >
  %\VignetteIndexEntry{Numerical Validation}
  %\VignetteEngine{knitr::rmarkdown}
  %\VignetteEncoding{UTF-8}
---

```{r, include = FALSE}
knitr::opts_chunk$set(
  collapse = TRUE,
  comment = "#>"
)
```

```{r setup}
library(dplyr)
```

## Purpose

`probcal` is implemented in R. It has no Python dependency at runtime. During
development, optional tests compare selected outputs against external reference
implementations. These tests provide evidence that shared methods follow the
same numerical definitions where the APIs overlap.

## Optional checks

```{r validation-targets}
validation_targets <- data.frame(
  reference = c("Python netcal", "Python netcal", "Python netcal", "R betacal"),
  compared = c(
    "ece(), mce(), ace()",
    "multiclass confidence ECE and temperature scaling",
    "cal_histogram() with equal-width bins",
    "cal_beta() predictions"
  ),
  test_file = c(
    "test-netcal.R",
    "test-netcal-multiclass.R",
    "test-netcal.R",
    "test-betacal.R"
  )
) |>
  mutate(runtime_dependency = "no")

validation_targets
```

The tests skip when the optional dependency is unavailable. This is intentional:
users should be able to install and use the package without Python.

## Why not compare every method

Some `netcal` methods expose broader behavior than the current scope of
`probcal`. For example, `netcal` includes detection calibration, Bayesian
fitting, and optimizer-specific constraints. Those features are outside the
current package scope.

The initial validation therefore focuses on functions where the numerical
contract is directly comparable: confidence calibration metrics and equal-width
histogram binning. Additional comparisons can be added once each convention is
matched explicitly.

## Running the optional tests

The ordinary test suite runs without Python. To run the Python-backed checks,
install `reticulate`, configure Python for `reticulate`, and install `netcal` in
that Python environment. Then run the package tests in the usual way.

```{r, eval = FALSE}
devtools::test()
```

The `betacal` check runs when the R package `betacal` is installed.