R help - Feb 2004 - problem of install.packages in windows (R 1.81)

Dear R users,

I have a problem in the configuration of R:
I just changed university, and my conection to the net is via a password, which 
permits me to access the packages with no problem via the internet explorer 
(version 6).
I just updated R to R 1.81, and I cannot download nether upgrade packages (and 
many are not working with the update!!!).
I have been looking in the help and emails, and saw that many people had the 
similar problems. 
By what I understood, I have to set up the proxy, and do something about 
the 'path'... but although I read RFAQ and R for windows, I could not do
it,
because I dont know where do I go (I looked in the control panel, internet 
options, etc. nothing worked, than also I tried changing the name of the dll 
file (internet2.dll), as recommended and makes R crash, as soon as it is 
conected.

I think I am very lost in the 'proxy' and 'path'... probably
because I am a
Windows user. By the way I use Win xp and 98.

I am sorry for the basic question....

could you help e pleeeeease :-) ?
thank you
Marta

On Tue, 24 Feb 2004 17:36:39 +0100, mrufino at cmima.csic.es wrote :
>Dear R users,
>
>I have a problem in the configuration of R:
>I just changed university, and my conection to the net is via a password,
which
>permits me to access the packages with no problem via the internet explorer 
>(version 6).
If you can get to CRAN and download packages, then you can just
download the .zip files (the compiled versions of the packages) to a
directory on your computer, and ask R to install them from there using
the menu option

 Packages | Install packages from local zip file

Duncan Murdoch

mrufino at cmima.csic.es wrote:
> 
> Dear R users,
> 
> I have a problem in the configuration of R:
> I just changed university, and my conection to the net is via a password,
which
> permits me to access the packages with no problem via the internet explorer
> (version 6).
> I just updated R to R 1.81, and I cannot download nether upgrade packages
(and
> many are not working with the update!!!).
> I have been looking in the help and emails, and saw that many people had
the
> similar problems.
> By what I understood, I have to set up the proxy, and do something about
> the 'path'... but although I read RFAQ and R for windows, I could
not do it,
> because I dont know where do I go (I looked in the control panel, internet
> options, etc. nothing worked, than also I tried changing the name of the
dll
> file (internet2.dll), as recommended and makes R crash, as soon as it is
> conected.
> 
> I think I am very lost in the 'proxy' and 'path'...
probably because I am a
> Windows user. By the way I use Win xp and 98.
> 
> I am sorry for the basic question....
> 
> could you help e pleeeeease :-) ?
> thank you
> Marta
Let's study the R for Windows FAQ together:

  "2.17 The internet download functions fail.

  [...]

  (a) Use the alternative internet2.dll [...]
  Note that this does not work  with proxies that 
  need authentication."

OK. You do need authentication, so (a) is nothing for you ...

  "(b) A proxy needs to be set up: see ?download.file. 
  Here are two versions of an example (a real one, but 
  from a machine that is only available locally) of a
  command-line in a short cut:

  /R/rw1081/bin/RGui.exe http_proxy=http://user:pass at gannet:80/
  /R/rw1081/bin/RGui.exe http_proxy=http://gannet/ http_proxy_user=ask

  The second version will prompt the user for the proxy 
  username and password when HTTP downloads are first used."

And here we got it. Just modify your shortcut to start R. 
Right-click the shortcut, select Properties and modify the target as
given above,
where you have to replace "gannet" by your proxy server, and (for the
first version) user by your username and pass by your password. That's
it.

If you don't know what that means, it is the easiest way to ask someone
from your department's computer staff.

Also, you might want to look into ?download.file for more details, as
mentioned in the FAQs.

Uwe Ligges

Do read the rw-FAQ, Q2.17, which gives examples.  If following them does 
not work, you should seek local advice about your system.

You can always download the zip files and install them from the Packages 
menu too.

BTW, you do need to be accurate: it is R 1.8.1, not 1.81 and the proxy 
instructions need to be followed exactly.

On Tue, 24 Feb 2004 mrufino at cmima.csic.es wrote:
> Dear R users,
> 
> I have a problem in the configuration of R:
> I just changed university, and my conection to the net is via a password,
which
> permits me to access the packages with no problem via the internet explorer
> (version 6).
> I just updated R to R 1.81, and I cannot download nether upgrade packages
(and
> many are not working with the update!!!).
> I have been looking in the help and emails, and saw that many people had
the
> similar problems. 
Not so: very few people have proxies that need passwords.
> By what I understood, I have to set up the proxy, and do something about 
> the 'path'... but although I read RFAQ and R for windows, I could
not do it,
> because I dont know where do I go (I looked in the control panel, internet 
> options, etc. nothing worked, than also I tried changing the name of the
dll
> file (internet2.dll), as recommended and makes R crash, as soon as it is 
> conected.
That is *not* recommended in the FAQ, so why did you do it?  Please 
uninstall and reinstall R to undo the damage that you caused.

-- 
Brian D. Ripley,                  ripley at stats.ox.ac.uk
Professor of Applied Statistics,  http://www.stats.ox.ac.uk/~ripley/
University of Oxford,             Tel:  +44 1865 272861 (self)
1 South Parks Road,                     +44 1865 272866 (PA)
Oxford OX1 3TG, UK                Fax:  +44 1865 272595