is.ratetable: Verify that an Object is of Class `ratetable'
Description
The function verifies not only the class attribute, but the
structure of the object.
Usage
is.ratetable(x, verbose=FALSE)
Arguments
x
the object to be verified.
verbose
if TRUE and the object is not a ratetable, then return a character string
describing the way(s) in which x fails to be a proper ratetable object.
Value
returns TRUE if x is a ratetable, and FALSE or a description if it is not.
Details
Rate tables are used by the pyears and survexp functions, and normally
contain death rates for some population, categorized by age, sex, or other
variables. They have a fairly rigid structure, and the verbose option
can help in creating a new rate table.