Basic introduction
Rather than saying that R is a statistical software, it is better to say that R is a mathematical computing environment, because R does not just provide a number of statistical programs. Users only need to specify a database and a number of parameters to perform a statistical analysis. The idea of R is that it can provide some integrated statistical tools, but more importantly, it provides a variety of mathematical calculations and statistical calculation functions, so that users can flexibly conduct data analysis and even create new ones that meet their needs. statistical calculation method.
The language's syntax is superficially similar to C, but its semantics are a variant of a functional programming language and have strong compatibility with Lisp and APL. In particular, it allows "computing on the language". This makes it possible to pass expressions as input arguments to functions, which is useful for statistical simulations and plotting.
Only 8 basic modules are included in the R installer. Other external modules can be obtained through CRAN.
Software features
1.R is free software. This means it is completely free and open source. You can download any relevant installation programs, source codes, program packages and their source codes and documentation from its website and its mirrors. The standard installation file itself comes with many modules and built-in statistical functions. After installation, many commonly used statistical functions can be directly implemented.
2.R is a programmable language. As an open statistical programming environment, the syntax is easy to understand and it is easy to learn and master the language's syntax. And after learning it, we can program our own functions to extend the existing language. This is why its update speed is much faster than that of general statistical software, such as SPSS, SAS, etc. Most of the latest statistical methods and techniques are directly available in R.
3. All R functions and data sets are stored in the package. Only when a package is loaded, its contents can be accessed. Some commonly used and basic program packages have been included in the standard installation file. With the emergence of new statistical analysis methods, the program packages included in the standard installation file are also constantly changing with version updates. In the other version of the installation file, the program packages already included are: base-R basic module, mle-maximum likelihood estimation module, ts-time series analysis module, mva-multivariate statistical analysis module, survival-survival analysis module etc.
4.R is highly interactive. Except that the graphics output is in another window, its input and output windows are all in the same window. If there is an error in the input syntax, you will be prompted immediately in the window. It has a memory function for previously entered commands and can be used at any time. Reproduce, edit and modify to meet user needs. The output graphics can be directly saved in JPG, BMP, PNG and other image formats, and can also be directly saved as PDF files. In addition, it has good interfaces with other programming languages and databases.
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