{"categories":[{"label":"Python Modules","url":"https://skillfed.io/packages/category/software-development-libraries-python-modules/9"}],"enrichment":{"capability":"Computes distance metrics (Levenshtein, Hamming, Jaccard, Sorensen) between arbitrary sequences, with pure Python implementations and optional C extensions for performance.","skillfed_tags":["string-matching","sequence-algorithms","abandoned"],"use_cases":["Spell-checking or autocorrect: find candidate words close to a misspelled input using Levenshtein distance.","Fuzzy string matching: identify similar records in datasets where exact matches fail.","Sentence or document similarity: compare sequences of tokens to find related text passages.","Filtering large lists: use ilevenshtein or ifast_comp to efficiently find items within a distance threshold of a reference sequence."],"what_it_does":"Distance is a sequence comparison library that implements several standard metrics for measuring similarity or difference between sequences\u2014strings, tuples, or lists. It provides Levenshtein (edit distance), Hamming, Jaccard, and Sorensen metrics, all in pure Python, with optional C implementations for speed. The library also includes convenience functions like fast_comp for quick approximate distance checks and iterators for filtering large lists of sequences by similarity to a reference.\n\nThe package is designed for tasks like spell-checking, fuzzy matching, and finding similar items in collections. It has no runtime dependencies and can work entirely in Python, though building the C extension requires a compiler and Python development headers. The package is no longer maintained; its last release was in 2013-11-21.","worth_installing":"Yes, with conditions. The package is stable and has no known vulnerabilities, but it is abandoned and targets Python 3.3. Use it if you need a lightweight, dependency-free sequence distance library and can accept that it will not receive updates. If you need the C extension, expect build friction on modern systems. For new projects, consider whether a maintained alternative better fits your Python version and support expectations."},"id":"distance","links":{"html":"https://skillfed.io/packages/distance","md":"https://skillfed.io/packages/distance.md","pypi":"https://pypi.org/project/distance/"},"maintenance":{"status":"abandoned"},"meta":{"latest_release":"2013-11-21","license_spdx":null,"license_treatment":"copyleft","name":"Distance","python_support":"unspecified","summary":"Utilities for comparing sequences"},"popularity":{"monthly_downloads":690153,"position":5332,"tier":"top_15000"},"security":{"n_vulnerabilities":0},"version":"0.1.3"}