FWD: Everyone's asking that same question...
Published by 劉正山,
If you’ve ever asked (or maybe whined) "Why is R so hard to learn?!" you’re not alone!
Just for fun, I did a Google search on that very question.
There were 236 MILLION results!
So if you’ve felt frustrated or confused by R, you’re in good company.
But despite its steep learning curve, R does have some advantages:
- It’s free.
- It’s much more flexible than SPSS or other menu-driven programs.
- It’s multiplatform (making it easy to work with collaborators and open source (which means it’s easier for others to reproduce your results).
- You have more control over how the data is analyzed, and it’s more customizable.
- Did we mention, it’s free? :)
The biggest challenge with R is that it’s code-based and object-oriented. And if you’re not prepared to invest a lot of time into learning its intricacies, you’re probably going to be pretty lost.
Thankfully, there are a few options to make working with R much easier, including R Commander and LessR. These are Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs) that "lay over" R, making it easier to navigate and use.
While these GUIs make R much easier, they also need a bit of an introduction (which is why we’re offering a four-module live workshop on them). I want to show you just a sample of what you can accomplish in R without having to code. Here’s a blog post so you can see just how powerful this combo can be:
What R Commander Can Do in R Without Coding – More Than You Would Think
And if you’re interested in taking your R knowledge further (but you don’t want to code), consider joining us for
R for SPSS Users:
A User-Friendly Introduction to R without Programming
A 4-Module Online, Live Interactive Workshop with Trent Buskirk, PhD
Happy analyzing,
Karen
(Not interested in hearing more about this workshop? Just click the link below to unsubscribe from the R for SPSS Promotion list.)
The Analysis Factor, Suite #4, 430 W State Street, Ithaca, NY 14850