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EllaKaye merged 1 commit into from
May 13, 2026
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Revise prerequisites and move git and GitHub section #13

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30 changes: 17 additions & 13 deletions prerequisites.qmd
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Expand Up @@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
title: Prerequisites
---

*Last updated: May 11th, 2026*
*Last updated: May 12th, 2026*

## Prior knowledge

Expand All @@ -15,15 +15,6 @@ Two of the modules from the Warwick-Stats-Resources R Foundations course covers
- [Introduction to R and RStudio](https://warwick-stats-resources.github.io/r-foundations/content/01-intro/)
- [Programming in R](https://warwick-stats-resources.github.io/r-foundations/content/03-programming/)

## git and GitHub

Although there will be some time dedicated to this in the workshop, it would be advantageous if you already have:

- `git` installed on your computer. See <https://git-scm.com/book/en/v2/Getting-Started-Installing-Git>
- a [GitHub](https://github.com) account
- a GitHub PAT configured to work with RStudio -- the vignette from the usethis package on [Managing Git(Hub) Credentials](https://usethis.r-lib.org/articles/git-credentials.html) goes through this.

[Happy Git and GitHub for the useR](https://happygitwithr.com/) is an excellent resource for troubleshooting git related issues and checking that your setup works. Note that while the git/GitHub setup is convenient for sharing packages, you can create a package locally without it.

## R and RStudio

Expand All @@ -37,11 +28,11 @@ Download the pre-compiled binary for your OS from https://cloud.r-project.org/ a

**For Windows**

Click "Download R for Windows", then "base", then "Download R-4.5.0 for Windows". This will download an `.exe` file; once downloaded, open to start the installation.
Click "Download R for Windows", then "base", then "Download R-4.6.0 for Windows". This will download an `.exe` file; once downloaded, open to start the installation.

**For Mac**

Click "Download R for macOS", then "R-4.5.0-arm64.pkg" (the first option) to download the installer for Macs with **Apple Silicon** chips or "R-4.5.0-x86_64.pkg" (the second option) to download the installer for Macs with **Intel** chips. Run the installer to complete installation.
Click "Download R for macOS", then "R-4.6.0-arm64.pkg" (the first option) to download the installer for Macs with **Apple Silicon** chips or "R-4.6.0-x86_64.pkg" (the second option) to download the installer for Macs with **Intel** chips. Run the installer to complete installation.

**For Linux**

Expand All @@ -63,7 +54,7 @@ Download the relevant installer for your OS listed under "Installers for Support

### Development Tools

Some additional tools may be required to compile R packages from source.
Some additional tools are required to compile R packages from source, which is a necessary part of the package development process. These tools are not part of a typical R/RStudio setup so please follow the steps below to install them.

**For Windows with no admin rights**

Expand Down Expand Up @@ -96,3 +87,16 @@ If you installed `r-base-dev`, when installing R, you should have all you need
to build packages from source. Otherwise return to the instructions for
installing R for your distribution and follow the instructions there to install
the additional tools.

## git and GitHub

Although there will be some time dedicated to this in the workshop, it would be advantageous if you already have:

- `git` installed on your computer. See <https://git-scm.com/book/en/v2/Getting-Started-Installing-Git>
- a [GitHub](https://github.com) account
- a GitHub PAT configured to work with RStudio -- the vignette from the usethis package on [Managing Git(Hub) Credentials](https://usethis.r-lib.org/articles/git-credentials.html) goes through this.

[Happy Git and GitHub for the useR](https://happygitwithr.com/) is an excellent resource for troubleshooting git related issues and checking that your setup works.

Whilst git/GitHub isn't essential for package development, it is best practice and we will be making use of GitHub features during the course, e.g. publishing a package documentation website using GitHub pages. However, you can create a package locally without it.