metatools
SDTM supplemental-qualifier merging got sturdier, then the package went quiet for two years.
Comparison · Analytics
random.cdisc.data vs xplainfi
A side-by-side editorial comparison of random.cdisc.data and xplainfi — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
random.cdisc.data vs xplainfi: at a glance
What is random.cdisc.data?
Synthetic CDISC data generation that has been quiet since early 2024.
random.cdisc.data generates synthetic CDISC-format clinical trial datasets, used across the insightsengineering and teal packages as test and demo data. The last substantive release, 0.3.15 in March 2024, made cached-data rebuilds incremental and corrected an ETHNIC factor level. Everything older in this feed is release automation.
What is xplainfi?
xplainfi treats feature importance as an estimate with error bars, not a number.
xplainfi implements feature importance methods for mlr3 — perturbation-based PFI, CFI and RFI, refit-based LOCO and WVIM, and SAGE. Its defining choice is that importance scores come with inference attached: several confidence-interval methods, including the Nadeau-Bengio correction and a distribution-free option added in 1.1.0. It declared itself released at 1.0.0 in January 2026.
random.cdisc.data vs xplainfi: editorial side-by-side
random.cdisc.data
0.0ANALYTICS
Synthetic CDISC data generation that has been quiet since early 2024.
◆ Current state
random.cdisc.data generates synthetic CDISC-format clinical trial datasets, used across the insightsengineering and teal packages as test and demo data. The last substantive release, 0.3.15 in March 2024, made cached-data rebuilds incremental and corrected an ETHNIC factor level. Everything older in this feed is release automation.
◆ Where it's heading
Activity has thinned to one real release in the visible window, surrounded by version bumps and workflow propagation. The 0.3.15 work is maintenance-shaped — dependency floors, a data typo, faster vignette rebuilds — which is what a fixture package looks like once downstream packages depend on its output staying unchanged.
◆ Prediction
Further releases are likely to stay corrective, since the package's value to teal and tern depends on its generated datasets remaining stable rather than growing.
xplainfi
2.5ANALYTICS
xplainfi treats feature importance as an estimate with error bars, not a number.
◆ Current state
xplainfi implements feature importance methods for mlr3 — perturbation-based PFI, CFI and RFI, refit-based LOCO and WVIM, and SAGE. Its defining choice is that importance scores come with inference attached: several confidence-interval methods, including the Nadeau-Bengio correction and a distribution-free option added in 1.1.0. It declared itself released at 1.0.0 in January 2026.
◆ Where it's heading
Two lines of work run in parallel. The statistical side keeps adding inference options — variance corrections, conditional predictive impact, and the Lei et al. observation-wise loss-difference test — while the computational side attacks the cost of refit-based methods, most recently with a batch_size argument that parallelises refits and a default of one refit per resampling iteration. Support for pre-trained learners in 1.1.0 removes the refit requirement entirely in some workflows.
◆ Prediction
The stated reasoning that budget is better spent on resampling iterations than repeated refits suggests n_repeats may be removed from WVIM and LOCO outright, as the release notes hint.
Alternatives to random.cdisc.data and xplainfi
Other Analytics products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either random.cdisc.data or xplainfi.
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logrx
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lobstr
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GSODR
A weather-station data client that broke one return type to hand back distances instead of bare IDs.
giscoR
giscoR's 1.0 moved its dataset index into the cache, so new Eurostat releases arrive without a package update.
See all random.cdisc.data alternatives → · See all xplainfi alternatives →
Recent activity from random.cdisc.data and xplainfi
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 20d agoxplainfiRefits parallelise; repeated refits deprioritised in favour of resampling
- 5mo agoxplainfiPre-trained learners supported; distribution-free inference added
- 6mo agoxplainfiVersion bumped to mark the package as released
- 9mo agoxplainfiConfidence intervals arrive for feature importance scores
- 2y agorandom.cdisc.dataIncremental cached-data rebuilds and an ETHNIC level fix
- 3y agorandom.cdisc.data2022_10_13
- 3y agorandom.cdisc.data2022_08_16
- 4y agorandom.cdisc.data2022_04_07
- 4y agorandom.cdisc.dataTESTING_DEPTH sets added to the generated data
- 4y agorandom.cdisc.dataTESTING_DEPTH sets added (duplicate pre-release tag)
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between random.cdisc.data and xplainfi?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. xplainfi is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 2.5 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.
Is random.cdisc.data better than xplainfi?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. xplainfi is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 2.5 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Analytics products to evaluate alongside.
What are the best alternatives to random.cdisc.data?
Top random.cdisc.data alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "random.cdisc.data alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/random-cdisc-data for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to xplainfi?
Top xplainfi alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "xplainfi alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/xplainfi for the full list with editorial commentary on each.