If You Are New to R

If you are new to R, we recommend that you read the following section on installation procedures as well as the overview of R syntax and usage in Section .

This distribution works on a variety of platforms, including Windows (see Section ), MacOSX (see Section ), and Linux (see Section ). Alternatively, you may access R from your PC using a terminal window or an X-windows tunnel to a Linux or Unix server (see Section ). Most servers have R installed; if not, contact your network administrator.

There are advantages and disadvantages to each type of installation. On a personal computer, R is easier to install and launch. Using R remotely on a server requires a bit more set-up, but does not tie up your local CPU, and allows you to take advantage of the server's speed.

Gary King 2011-11-29