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Run comparison

The run comparison tool compares outputs of model runs side by side: pick a model, add historical runs (or raw workspace tables) to the comparison set, choose what to compare, and get a chart preview. The tool is a preliminary data selection with a quick preview — complex analysis belongs in the Datagrok workspace, where any comparison can be exported as a snapshot (Results > Open in workspace: the long-format data table plus the chart with its current options).

Matching​

Scalars and dataframe columns are matched across runs by name: exact, then normalized (case/underscore/dash-insensitive), then fuzzy. Values with mismatching units never match; partially missing units produce a warning icon.

Index and split columns​

Column comparison requires an index (x axis) column per table. An optional split column marks a categorical column whose values are separate series within one run.

  • By default only int, bigint, and string columns are offered as indexes; float and datetime indexes are enabled with the Float indexes / Datetime indexes toggles.
  • Split columns must be string-typed and different from the index.
  • With Merge same functions (on by default), tables produced by the same function collapse into one picker row; a selection applies to all runs.
  • Charts are built by concatenating raw rows of all runs into one long dataframe; the line chart splits by run and, when set, by the split column. There is no row alignment or tolerance logic — differing grids simply chart as separate lines.

Default index/split annotations​

A model can declare the default index and split columns on its dataframe output:

//output: dataframe result {comparisonIndex: time; comparisonSplit: species}

When a run is added to the comparison:

  • comparisonIndex pre-fills the index picker, and the column is offered even when its type is behind a toggle (an explicit annotation outranks the type gating);
  • comparisonSplit pre-fills the split picker, provided the column is a valid split (string-typed, not the index);
  • annotations never overwrite a selection the user has already made, and a missing column name is silently ignored;
  • merged rows work naturally: all merged tables come from the same function, so they carry the same annotation and agree on the default.

Raw workspace tables have no annotations.

Multiple values​

When the selected column target has compatible siblings (same runs, tables, index and split columns, and a line-chartable index), the Multiple values toggle (or Shift+click on a compare row) enables selecting several values at once. Each value becomes a stacked line-chart panel with runs (and split categories) as lines inside.