R help - Dec 2005 - is it possible to use R to edit an EXCEL spreadsheet so I can create a searchable EXCEL database of R packages?

I have copied the R FAQ pertaining to available packages into an EXCEL 
file. They take the following form -

Design
Regression modeling, testing, estimation, validation, graphics, prediction, 
and typesetting by storing enhanced model design attributes in the fit. 
Design is a etc.

Devore5
Data sets and sample analyses from "Probability and Statistics for 
Engineering and the Sciences (5th ed)" by Jay L. Devore, 2000, Duxbury.



Presently the above format can be represented as:

package name
package description
space

I want to change the format so that file name and description are in 
adjacent columns and the space is removed

package name    package description
package name    package description


Is this possible in R so I can create a searchable EXCEL database of R 
packages. I imagine this would be easily carried out using PERL though was 
interested to know R's capacity to work on textual data?


Any assistance regarding this is appreciated,


Bob Green

Dear Bob,

In my copy of the R FAQ (from the Rgui for Windows), these is no space
between entries which, when copied to a text file, look like:

AMORE
    A MORE flexible neural network package, providing the TAO robust neural
network algorithm.
AlgDesign
    Algorithmic experimental designs. Calculates exact and approximate
theory experimental designs for D, A, and I criteria.

etc.

For this, the following works:

packages <- readLines("c:/temp/Packages.txt")
packages <- gsub("^\ *", "", gsub("\ *$",
"", packages))  # get rid of
leading and trailing blanks
packages <- matrix(packages, ncol=2, byrow=TRUE)
write.table(packages, "c:/temp/Packages2.txt", sep=",", 
    row.names=FALSE, col.names=FALSE)

Producing a comma-separated text file that can be imported into Excel, and
that looks like:

"AMORE","A MORE flexible neural network package, providing the
TAO robust
neural network algorithm."
"AlgDesign","Algorithmic experimental designs. Calculates exact
and
approximate theory experimental designs for D, A, and I criteria."

etc.

If you started with blank lines between packages, then (making sure that
there is a blank line after the last package in the input file) you could
adapt this as:

packages <- readLines("c:/temp/Packages.txt")
packages <- gsub("^\ *", "", gsub("\ *$",
"", packages))
packages <- matrix(packages, ncol=3, byrow=TRUE)
write.table(packages[,1:2], "c:/temp/Packages2.txt",
sep=",",
    row.names=FALSE, col.names=FALSE)

I hope this helps,
 John

--------------------------------
John Fox
Department of Sociology
McMaster University
Hamilton, Ontario
Canada L8S 4M4
905-525-9140x23604
http://socserv.mcmaster.ca/jfox 
-------------------------------- 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: r-help-bounces at stat.math.ethz.ch 
> [mailto:r-help-bounces at stat.math.ethz.ch] On Behalf Of Bob Green
> Sent: Monday, December 05, 2005 6:58 PM
> To: r-help at stat.math.ethz.ch
> Subject: [R] is it possible to use R to edit an EXCEL 
> spreadsheet so I can create a searchable EXCEL database of R packages?
> 
> I have copied the R FAQ pertaining to available packages into 
> an EXCEL file. They take the following form -
> 
> Design
> Regression modeling, testing, estimation, validation, 
> graphics, prediction, and typesetting by storing enhanced 
> model design attributes in the fit. 
> Design is a etc.
> 
> Devore5
> Data sets and sample analyses from "Probability and 
> Statistics for Engineering and the Sciences (5th ed)" by Jay 
> L. Devore, 2000, Duxbury.
> 
> 
> 
> Presently the above format can be represented as:
> 
> package name
> package description
> space
> 
> I want to change the format so that file name and description are in 
> adjacent columns and the space is removed
> 
> package name    package description
> package name    package description
> 
> 
> Is this possible in R so I can create a searchable EXCEL 
> database of R 
> packages. I imagine this would be easily carried out using 
> PERL though was 
> interested to know R's capacity to work on textual data?
> 
> 
> Any assistance regarding this is appreciated,
> 
> 
> Bob Green
>

Hi R users:

In your opinion and experience, which hardware configuration
is the best to run R over LINUX ?

With "best" I mean best performance,
and also cheapest. (about U$ 2.000 the whole basic system:
mother board+CPUs+RAM+HD)

By the way, which LINUX distribution is the best to
run R with high computing technics (simulation, bayesian, etc) and huge 
data base?
and in combination with what kind of (cheap) hardware?

Thank you very much for your help.

Kenneth

Happy Holydays!!!