[feature:] do we need a get_parameter_names function?

[Andrea-Havron-NOAA]

Describe the situation that led to the request and a solution

Recent changes to dev have added a get_parameter_names function to FIMS.

• rcpp_interface.hpp, lines 84-93, detail the function that is exposed to R
• information.hpp, lines 160-167, contain the RegisterParameterName function
• rcpp_selectivity.hpp, line 102 provides an example on how to set up the parameter name in the interface.

I have used this code for debugging in two ways:

1. Check the dimension of the parameters before calling MakeADFun

sucess <- CreateTMBModel()
parameters <- list(p = get_fixed())
#returns the parameter list with parameter names
get_parameter_names(parameters)
obj <- MakeADFun(data = list(), parameters, DLL = "FIMS", silent = TRUE)

2. Look at sdreport TMB output to determine which parameters have NA standard errors

sucess <- CreateTMBModel()
parameters <- list(p = get_fixed())
#returns the parameter list with parameter names
get_parameter_names(parameters)
obj <- MakeADFun(data = list(), parameters, DLL = "FIMS", silent = TRUE)
opt <- nlminb(obj$par, obj$fn, obj$gr,
  control = list(eval.max = 800, iter.max = 800)
#Return the fitted list of parameters with parameter names
pars_named <- get_parameter_names(opt$par)
sdr <- TMB::sdreport(obj)
sdr_fixed <- summary(sdr, "fixed")
rownames(sdr_fixed) <- names(pars_named)
sdr_fixed

**Note get_parameter_names function isn't currently exposed to the user in dev.

Alternative solutions

This function may duplicate functionality available through the JSON output. @msupernaw and @rklasky, can you comment on the usability of this function, could it be helpful for power users in the future and for debugging?

Statistical validity

No response

Additional context

No response