Tips and Tricks
How to tidy select all that apply questions in R
May 17, 2022
Surveys often have multiple choice, select all that apply questions. Being able to wrangle this type of data in R can be challenging. Figuring out the right way to get your data into the (tidy) structure necessary for visualizing it with ggplot can be complicated. And, to make things even more complicated, different survey tools spit out data from select all that apply questions in different formats. This blogpost is going to demonstrate how we would use tidy data principles and the tidyverse...
How to get started with the bookdown package
April 18, 2022
Ever since I started working on my book R Without Statistics people have asked me for details on how I'm writing it. If your mental model for how a book gets written involves dozens of Word documents, you may be in for a surprise ( my father certainly was ). In writing R Without Statistics, I'm using the bookdown package . The bookdown package allows you to create a series of RMarkdown files, bundle them together, and create an online book like I've done with R Without Statistics. I recently...
Announcing R Without Statistics
April 4, 2022
n early 2020, I started to have conversations with publishers about doing a book on R. I was excited about the possibility, but wasn't exactly sure what the book would be about. Then COVID came and, with two young kids at home, writing a book was not going to happen. In the two years since then, I had a lot of time to think about what type of R book I am uniquely placed to write. By last fall, I had a decent idea : a book that highlights all of the ways you can use R that don't involve...
Why R is Magic
March 8, 2022
A couple weeks ago, I had the opportunity to speak to some folks at Western Michigan University. I called my talk Why R is Magic. Because, well, it is. I busted out my favorite R party trick: doing a survey and immediately generating a report with RMarkdown . I even tried something new by sending out the reports to people by email using the gmailr package . (Yes, you can send email from R. Did you now know that it’s magic?) The folks at the Western Michigan Evaluation Center were kind enough...
What the heck does `summarise()` ungrouping output (override with `.groups` argument) mean?
March 2, 2022
Ever been using R and gotten this message? summarise() ungrouping output (override with .groups argument) What the heck does it mean? This is not an error. It’s just R’s way (the dplyr package specifically) of telling you what is happening with your data. Here’s a quick explanation of what this message is all about and how to avoid it. Hope that helps! Just a heads up that newer versions of the dplyr package dropped this behavior. So if you never see the summarise() ungrouping output...
How To Make Data Viz That Matches Your Organization's Branding
February 9, 2022
Here at R for the Rest of Us, we make a lot of reports for clients . And one of the most important things we do in these reports is use the clients' colors throughout. Picking a color scheme that ties in with a client's brand or that evokes the subject matter behind the data is what allows the plot to contribute to, rather than detract from, the main story the client is seeking to tell. It's what we've done for the last several years working on Oregon by the Numbers . The report uses the...
A Chat About Tidy Data
January 3, 2022
Tidy data is one of the most complex concepts for participants in R in 3 Months . Even before they get to the actual coding involved in data tidying, many struggle with what tidy data is exactly. I introduce tidy data to R in 3 Months participants through this lesson (which comes from the Going Deeper with R course ). In it, I try to give an overview of what tidy data is and why it's beneficial to use it. But, for many people, this isn't enough. Understanding tidy data takes several weeks —...
2021 Year in Review
December 14, 2021
As 2021 comes to a close, I wanted to share what R for the Rest of Us has been up to this year. It's been a busy year and just trying to remember everything we did has been a challenge! You'll notice first of all that I said we. I've always used I when referring to the business because, before 2021, it was pretty much just me running R for the Rest of Us. In the beginning of the year, I decided it was time to bring on others to help me. Throughout the year, I've worked with others on courses,...
I've Hit My Enough Number
December 10, 2021
A couple years ago, I read Paul Jarvis's book Company of One . The book argues that the idea of growth for its own sake is often misguided. Instead, businesses should grow at a speed that fits with the work and personal goals of their owners. I loved the whole book, but one idea has really stayed with me as a business owner: the need to define an enough number . Rather than constantly seeking more revenue, define what you're working toward and stop when you get there. 2021 has been a very...