Good practices in R

Tutorial on writing clean and readable cod

Tips and tricks for writing better code

Important

🏗 Under construction

Writing Clean and Readable Code

Example in R:

# Good: Use meaningful variable names and comments
population_size <- 1000  # Number of individuals in the population
sample_size <- 100       # Number of individuals in the sample

# Avoid: Using unclear or abbreviated variable names
ps <- 1000
ss <- 100

Using Comments and Documentation

# Good: Add comments to explain complex operations or logic
calculate_mean <- function(data) {
    # Calculate the sum of elements in the data
    total <- sum(data)
    
    # Calculate the mean by dividing the total by the number of elements
    mean_value <- total / length(data)
    
    return(mean_value)
}

# Avoid: Lack of comments and explanation
calc_mean <- function(d) {
    t <- sum(d)
    m <- t / length(d)
    return(m)
}

Avoiding Global Variables and Code Dependencies

# Good: Use local variables within functions to avoid global scope pollution
calculate_variance <- function(data) {
    n <- length(data)
    mean_value <- sum(data) / n
    
    # Calculate the variance using local variables
    variance <- sum((data - mean_value)^2) / (n - 1)
    
    return(variance)
}

# Avoid: Using global variables in functions
mean_value <- 0
calc_variance <- function(data) {
    n <- length(data)
    mean_value <<- sum(data) / n
    
    # Calculate the variance using global variables
    variance <- sum((data - mean_value)^2) / (n - 1)
    
    return(variance)
}