table: A sort function which returns the input table

[RiskoZoSlovenska]

The standard table.sort() sorts a table in-place and doesn't return anything, which is an annoyance whenever the table needs to also be modified in some way either prior to or after sorting. For example, compare the following:

local function sortedKeys(tbl)
    local keys = table.keys(tbl)
    table.sort(keys)
    return keys
end

-- vs

local function sortedKeys(tbl)
    return table.sort(table.keys(tbl))
end

Not only is the second snippet considerably shorter, but it is also slightly easier to read. I come across these kinds of use cases fairly often and so I think it's a worthwhile issue to address.

Overriding table.sort isn't a good idea, but I'm lost on as to what to name a function that would have the same behaviour as the stock one but returns the sorted table. table.sort2 could work may be confusing, and table.sorted implies a copy.

[ADmcdon]

Maybe table.modified