R help - May 2004 - multi read.table function and read.table function not accepting col.names

I am using R-1.8.0 on Debian.

I'm trying to read in a large table (1441*16) which currently has no
header line. I have set up a list of column names which is 16 names long.

when i try the following:

myfiledate.01<-read.table("filenamedate.01",row.names=NULL,col.names="names",na.strings="-999.00")

I am returned with an error saying there are more columsh than column
names. I am sure I have done this successfully in the past so can't
understand the problem. I have done the read.table function without
specifying col.names and it works fine and i end up with a 1441*16
data.frame.

Also as I have several hundred of these tables to read into R, all having
the same dimension and all having the same column names, is it possible to
automate R so they will all be read in at once - each table represents a
different days worth of data.

Thanks

Laura

Hi!

1.
assuning that names is the vector with the names.
try col.names=names instead of "names"

2.
Several ways
a)
use 
lapply(listwithpathstofiles,read.tabel,remaining, options) //u will get it
stored in the list.
b)
or use for loop and append to list. mylist<-list()
c)
or look
?assing
to generate several hundred objects in the envrovment.

Sincerely Eryk

*********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********

On 5/26/2004 at 12:51 PM Laura Quinn wrote:
>I am using R-1.8.0 on Debian.
>
>I'm trying to read in a large table (1441*16) which currently has no
>header line. I have set up a list of column names which is 16 names long.
>
>when i try the following:
>
>myfiledate.01<-read.table("filenamedate.01",row.names=NULL,col.names="names",na.strings="-999.00")
>
>I am returned with an error saying there are more columsh than column
>names. I am sure I have done this successfully in the past so can't
>understand the problem. I have done the read.table function without
>specifying col.names and it works fine and i end up with a 1441*16
>data.frame.
>
>Also as I have several hundred of these tables to read into R, all having
>the same dimension and all having the same column names, is it possible to
>automate R so they will all be read in at once - each table represents a
>different days worth of data.
>
>Thanks
>
>Laura
>
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Dipl. bio-chem. Eryk Witold Wolski    @    MPI-Moleculare Genetic   
Ihnestrasse 63-73 14195 Berlin       'v'    
tel: 0049-30-83875219               /   \    
mail: wolski at molgen.mpg.de        ---W-W----   
http://www.molgen.mpg.de/~wolski