Prepare for a Workshop

Software setup and tips for participants

Welcome! If you are attending one of our workshops, this page will help you get everything set up ahead of time. Please go through the sections that are relevant to your workshop – you can use the table of contents on the right to jump to what you need.

R and RStudio (or Positron?)

R is the programming language and RStudio is the integrated development environment (IDE) that makes working with R much more convenient. Both are open-source and need to be installed.

Install R

If you do not have R installed yet, here is a guide to install R. If you have R installed but it might be outdated, here is a guide to update R. You can check your current R version by running the following command in the R console:

R.version.string

We recommend using R version 4.3 or newer.

Install RStudio

If you do not have RStudio installed yet, here is a guide to install RStudio. If RStudio is already installed, you can check for updates via Help > Check for Updates in the menu bar. We recommend using RStudio version 2024.04 or newer.

What about Positron?

Positron is a next-generation data science IDE developed by Posit (the same company behind RStudio). It is built on top of VS Code and supports both R and Python. If you are curious about a modern alternative to RStudio, you can download Positron from positron.posit.co.

In our workshops we will use RStudio, but everything we do works just as well in Positron. If you are already comfortable with Positron, feel free to use it instead.

R Packages

During the workshop you will get to know and install additional R packages. In most cases, you can just install them the moment they are introduced. However, if you e.g. have a slow internet connection or if package installations need to be approved by your IT department, it may be worthwhile to install them beforehand. You can install the most important packages we need by running the following code in your R console:

install.packages(
  c("broom", "desplot", "emmeans", "glue",
    "ggtext", "here", "janitor", "lubridate", "multcomp",
    "multcompView", "naniar", "openxlsx",
    "readxl", "scales", "tidyverse")
)

This will install the core packages needed for the first days of most workshops. Additional packages will be introduced as needed during the workshop and can be installed then.

Quarto

This section is only relevant if the workshop covers Quarto (this should be mentioned in the course description).

Quarto is an open-source scientific and technical publishing system. The good news is that recent versions of RStudio already come with Quarto bundled, so if you installed an up-to-date RStudio as described above, you may not need to do anything extra. You can verify this by running the following command in the RStudio terminal (not the R console):

quarto --version

If this returns a version number (ideally 1.4 or newer), you are all set. If the command is not recognized or the version is too old, you can install or update Quarto separately from quarto.org/docs/get-started.

Online Workshops

This section is only relevant if the workshop takes place online.

Two screens help!

During the workshop, I will constantly share my screen with you. You will want to both watch what I am doing and write your own R code at the same time. Having two screens makes this much easier – one for the video call and one for RStudio. If you only have a single screen, you will need to constantly switch back and forth, which is doable but less comfortable. Here are three common setups, ranked from best to still-works:

  1. Two monitors on one computer – the most comfortable option. You can easily watch the presentation and write code side by side. It also allows you to share your screen if you need help and to copy-paste from the chat into R.
  2. Computer + tablet/phone – join the video call on your tablet or phone and use your computer for RStudio. This works well for watching and coding simultaneously, but sharing your screen or copy-pasting from the chat is less convenient.
  3. Single screen – you can absolutely still participate! It just means switching between the video call and RStudio more often. During exercises, you will have dedicated time to focus on R without needing to watch the presentation.

Microsoft Teams

Our workshops will most likely use Microsoft Teams. You do not need to install the Teams app and you do not need a Teams account – you can join directly from your browser. That said, having the app installed tends to provide a smoother experience (better audio/video quality, easier screen sharing). Please make sure that:

  • Your microphone works – you do not need to talk much, but it is important that you can ask questions when needed.
  • Your camera works – having cameras on makes the workshop more interactive and enjoyable for everyone. Of course, it is not mandatory.
  • You know the basic controls: how to mute/unmute, use the chat, and use reactions (e.g. raising your hand).

A quick test call before the workshop day can save a lot of trouble.