Packages are an essential part of the R ecosystem. As described by Hadley Wickham and Jenny Bryan in “R Packages” (2nd edition), packages are the fundamental units of reproducible R code. They include reusable R functions, the documentation that describes how to use them, and sample data. Putting your code or data into a package enables others to easily download and use it.  

 

This course will teach you how to write your own R package. We will cover the whole process from setting up the package, adding functions and data, function and package documentation, testing, checking, publication (including to CRAN), promotion, and maintenance. We will also work with Git and GitHub, including using GitHub Actions to check a package, and to publish a package website.

 

We will build a package together during the course, through a combination of classroom instruction, live coding demos during which participants will code along, and hands-on exercises.

 

During the final session, participants will have an opportunity to work on their own R package, either something they already have in development, or get started with their own idea. Alternatively, they can reinforce the material taught in the course by creating a new package from a list of ideas suggested by the lecturer.

 

The course will be taught using R, in the RStudio IDE, and make use of packages from the r-lib ecosystem (especially devtools, usethis and testthat).

 

Organizational structure of the course

Each day will consist of two sessions, one in the morning (10:30-12:30) and one in the afternoon (13:30-15:30). The first five sessions will combine classroom instruction with live coding demos and hands-on exercises in which participants will practice all the steps involved in building an R package. Throughout the course, there will be plenty of opportunities for questions and discussion.

 

The final session is a lab in which participants will work on their own R package (either their own idea or one suggested by the lecturer). During that session, participants will have the opportunity for individual consultations with the lecturer, to get help on any aspect of the course content or the development of their own package.

Software requirements