Detailed Instructions for using `process()` at home

There are several steps:

install R on your home computer;
install LaTeX on your home computer;
set up a special folder/directory to work in;
loading process() into R.

See also the Frequently Asked Questions at the bottom of the page.

Installing R

This is relatively straightforward; go to the CRAN mirror and follow the instructions. There are versions for Windows, Macintosh and Unix/Linux.

Tip for Mac users No matter which R "disk image" you download (you should choose the most recent one compatible with your version of the Mac OS), the "R Framework", i.e. the command-line R for use in the Terminal, is always installed by default when you mount the disk image and double-click R.mpkg. You should also get the R GUI Application which gives nice graphical output in an interactive session. Sometimes the R GUI is not installed by default, however you can make sure it is by clicking on "Customize" during the installation procedure and making sure that both "R Framework" and "R GUI" are both selected.

Installing (La)TeX

There are many different (La)TeX "installations" which should work with process() (note: LaTeX is an extension of the original TeX). These days it is probably easier to install one directly from the internet: see Installing TeXLive over the internet for general installation instructions relating to the TeXLive distribution for all platforms (which we recommend). Other TeX distributions exist and may be a bit easier to install: proTeXt for Windows users and MacTeX for Mac users. Also, for many Linux distributions, some form of LaTeX installation should be available in the distribution's package management system. Any basic LaTeX system should be fine for our purposes, as long as a special directory/folder is set up as described below.

Special Folder

Once you have working versions of both R and LaTeX, to use process() successfully your LaTeX needs to be able to find certain style files. These may or may not be in your (La)TeX system and even if they are, your R session may not be able to find them. Hence we recommend that you have a special dedicated process() folder/directory to work in containing the following three LaTeX style files: Sweave.sty, fancyvrb.sty and a4.sty. You might also want to download this small test file to test it all out.

Loading `process()` into R

Start up R so that your dedicated process() folder is the working directory; this can either be done with the command setwd(...) or if you have a Graphical User Interface version (GUI - available for Windows or the Mac) there is a menu item you can click to browse and select the working directory.

There are at least two ways to load process() into R.

Over the internet: if you are online, the following command will load process() into R:
load(url("http://www.maths.usyd.edu.au/u/michaels/process.RData"))
The advantage of this approach is that if process() is ever upgraded, you are sure to have the latest version. The disadvantage is that you have to be online for this to work.
Save a local copy: download the file http://www.maths.usyd.edu.au/u/michaels/process.RData and save it in your dedicated process() folder. Then type the command
load("process.RData")
Automatic Loading: if you have a file called .Rprofile in your dedicated process() folder, then any R commands in it are executed when R is started up. This is a way to automate either of the above two procedures.
Opening the file process.RData On certain systems, it is possible to directly "open" the file process.RData. This means that an R GUI starts up, changes its working directory to your special process() folder, and the command load("process.RData") is automatically executed:
- On Windows, just double-click process.RData (files ending with .RData are automatically "opened" in R).
- On the Mac, if you have the R GUI installed as an Application, you can "drag and drop" the file process.RData onto the R icon (in the Finder or the Dock) to "open" it. Alternatively, you can tell your system to always open .RData files with R by doing the following:
  - Highlight the file process.RData in the Finder and select Get Info
  - Under "Open with:", select the R Application; also select "Always Open With";
  Then double-clicking process.RData is enough. You can also open a Terminal, change directories to your special folder and enter the command open process.RData.

Frequently Asked Questions

I get the error Error in file(con,"r") : unable to open connection; what's going on? The hiding of filename extensions (the part of the filename after a dot) can cause problems, especially for your text file when using process() with graphics. In Windows and on the Mac some or all of these are hidden by default, so that a file displayed as prac1 might actually be called prac1.txt, and the above error or something similar will occur. To avoid such problems:
- Windows make sure that you turn off the "Hide file extensions for known file types" option for your special folder, under the menubar item Tools-Folder Options-View (you can change it globally for all folders under Control Panel-Folder Options-View);
- the Mac either
  - select a file e.g. prac1 in the Finder, select "Get Info" and make sure that under "Name and Extension" the "Hide extension" box is not checked or
  - to show absolutely all filename extensions, under Finder-Preferences-Advanced, check the "Show all file extensions" box.
On my Mac, I get the error sh: line 1: pdflatex: command not found; what's going on? The R GUI on the Mac sometimes doesn't know where to find everything. One way around this is to go to a Terminal and enter the command
```
echo PATH=$PATH >> ~/.Renviron
```
Then every time you run R after this, if can find pdflatex.

Michael Stewart (last edited: 2012-03-12)

Detailed Instructions for using process() at home

Installing R

Installing (La)TeX

Special Folder

Loading process() into R

Detailed Instructions for using `process()` at home

Loading `process()` into R