RStudio is an open-source tool for programming in R. It is an extremely popular development environment for R. RStudio is a flexible tool that helps you create readable analyses, and keeps your code, images, comments, and plots together in one place. It’s worth knowing about the capabilities of RStudio for data analysis and programming in R. Using MikTex to install LaTeX on windows for RStudio. The website used is for the download. Latex2exp is an R package that parses and converts LaTeX math formulas to R’s plotmath expressions.Plotmath expressions are used to enter mathematical formulas and symbols to be rendered as text, axis labels, etc. Throughout R’s plotting system.

1.2 Install LaTeX (TinyTeX) for PDF reports

If you would like to create PDF documents from R Markdown, you will need to have a LaTeX distribution installed. Although there are several traditional options including MiKTeX, MacTeX, and TeX Live, we recommend that R Markdown users install TinyTeX.

TinyTeX is a custom LaTeX distribution based on TeX Live that is relatively small in size, but functions well in most cases, especially for R users. Installing or running TinyTeX does not require sysadmin privileges.¹ You can install TinyTeX with the R package tinytex(Xie 2020e):

Rstudio Latex Autocomplete

Please note that “tinytex” refers to the R package, and “TinyTeX” refers to the LaTeX distribution. There are two advantages of using TinyTeX:

1. TinyTeX is lightweight (compared to other LaTeX distributions), cross-platform, and portable. For example, you can store a copy of TinyTeX on your USB drive or other portable devices, and use it on other computers with the same operating system.

2. When R Markdown is converted to PDF, Pandoc converts Markdown to an intermediate LaTeX document first. The R package tinytex has provided helper functions to compile LaTeX documents to PDF (the main function is tinytex::latexmk()). If you use TinyTeX and certain LaTeX packages are required but not installed, tinytex will try to automatically install them for you. It will also try to compile the LaTeX file for a sufficient number of times to make sure all cross-references are resolved.

If you are interested in the technical details, you may check out the article Xie (2019b) and the FAQ page at https://yihui.org/tinytex/faq/.

Installing R and LaTeX

Contents

1 Introduction

This article explains how to set up an R deveploment enviroment (including LATEX)on various operating systems. We provide a set of instructions for the three majordesktop operating systems Windows, Mac OS X and Linux (Debian-basedsystems in particular) in Sections 2, 3, and 4, respectively. Section 6 includesreferences to related articles and further resources. For more information about Rplease visit the website of the R Project at http://www.r-project.org/.Additional informations about installation and administration of R is available inthe manual at http://cran.r-project.org/doc/manuals/R-admin.html.Further questions not covered by this article and feedback may be sent tostatmath@wu.ac.at.

2 Windows

The instructions in this manual have been written to run/work under Windows 7.Nevertheless, it is possible to configure the R development enviroment on otherWindows versions. To set up a basic R development environment under Windows,please follow the steps below:

1. Install the current version of R (available from http://CRAN.R-project.org/bin/windows/base/).
2. Install the R for Windows toolset (known as Rtools, available from http://cran.at.r-project.org/bin/windows/Rtools/ ).
3. Set up a suitable LATEX environment, preferably installing all available packages and updates (we recommend TeX Live http://www.tug.org/texlive/ or another distribution like MiKTEXhttp://miktex.org/).
4. Update the PATHs and further environment variables.

Setting up R and LATEX explained in pictures
Installing the R for Windows Toolset

Rtools includes various software packages needed for successfully building Rand R packages (usually packages containing C or FORTRAN source code).It provides Windows with a set of compilers, libraries and various othertools.

LATEXEnvironment

There are two popular options for installing a LATEX environment under Windows.We are supporting the TeX Live distribution but MiKTEX can also be used. While itis possible to download and use the net installer, we recommend to download theISO-Image from http://mirror.ctan.org/systems/texlive/Images/, mount it toa virtual drive (e.g., using the program DAEMON Tools Lite) and install TeX Liveincluding all packages. In order to update the distribution use the TeX Live Manager(Go to Start → All Programs → TeX Live <Version>→ TeX Live Manager → fullinstallation), (<Version> has to be replaced with the installed TeX Live version).Note that the installation of the LATEX distribution and the corresponding updateprocess could take several hours.

PATH and further environment variables

Presumably the most important step after the installation procedures is to updatethe PATH environment variable.

To do so go to: Start → Control Panel → System → Advanced system settings →Advanced → Enviroment Variables.
Search in the System variable list for the PATH variable. Click on edit and enter thecorresponding PATHs into the Variable value field. The PATHs to the ‘bin, x64’ or‘i386’ directories of the following programs have to be included (if they were notincluded automatically):

• R
• Rtools
• TeX Live

Note that the order of the entries is important. Separate them by semicolon. Donot delete other entries, Windows may need them. An example is given below,however there might be different PATHs on the system:

RStudio and alternative Text Editors
We recommend using the RStudio IDE which can be downloaded from http://www.rstudio.com/products/rstudio/download/.
Alternatively, here are some links pointing to URLs where it is possible to download other suitable text editors:

3 MAC OS X

In order to successfully set up a basic development environment for R-related projectsunder MAC OS X it is necessary to follow these four steps:

1. Install the current version of R (available from http://CRAN.R-project.org/bin/macosx/ ).
2. Install a LATEX environment (e.g., MacTeX).
3. Install XCode.
4. Install the GNU Fortran compiler (gfortran).

LATEXenvironment

A readily usable environment for typesetting scientific articles with LATEX isprovided with the MacTeX distribution available from http://www.tug.org/mactex/.This distribution also includes a text editor named TeXShop.

XCode

Compilers are needed for installing R packages containing source code typicallywritten in C or FORTRAN. A set of C compilers for Mac OS X is providedin XCode, the basic development tools for Mac OS X. Installable eitherfrom the DVD containing the operating system that came with the Mac or,after downloading the latest version from the Apple Developer website athttp://developer.apple.com/technology/xcode.html.

GNU FORTRAN compiler

Unfortunately, the compiler gfortran is not included in XCode. Luckily, since Rversion 2.5.0 the compiler is installed with the R Mac OS X installer (see Step 1:Installing the current version of R). Nevertheless, it is possible to install it manuallyusing the packages provided at http://r.research.att.com/tools/, in case anyproblems are encountered when setting up the compiler.

Text Editors
Links pointing to URLs where it is possible to download suitable text editors:

4 Linux

In this article we focus on Debian-based distributions, as it is hardly possibleto provide a complete set of instructions for every Linux distribution. Themost prominent of such Debian-based Linux distributions is called Ubuntu(http://www.ubuntu.com). Nevertheless, the instructions mentioned in this sectionshould usually work on any Debian-based system.

In order to successfully set up a basic R development environment under Ubuntufollow these three steps:

1. Install the current version of R (r-base and r-recommended packages).
2. Install a LATEX environment (e.g., TeX Live available by installing the texlive-full).
3. Install compilers and other development packages (r-base-dev packages).

Installing R

R is provided in form of a binary Debian package called r-base. It can be installedeither by using the Synaptic Package Manager or by issuing the following commandon the command prompt:

sudo aptitude install r-base r-recommended

To install a more recent version of R follow the steps provided on the website. ForDebian at http://cran.r-project.org/bin/linux/debian/ or for Ubuntu athttp://cran.r-project.org/bin/linux/ubuntu/.

LATEXenvironment

A readily usable environment for typesetting scientific articles with LATEX isprovided with the TeX Live distribution available from www.tug.org/texlive/.Luckily, one can install the complete distribution with the texlive-full package veryeasily. It can be installed either using the Synaptic Package Manager or by issuingthe following command:

sudo aptitude install texlive-full texlive-xetex
In order to use the wu-beamerstyle one additionally needs to install thettf-mscorefonts-installer.

sudo aptitude install ttf-mscorefonts-installer

Compilers and Other Tools

Typically, compilers and other development tools are needed in a reasonabledevelopment environment. Those tools are made available on Debian-based systemssimply by installing the r-base-dev package. It can be installed either using theSynaptic Package Manager or by issuing the following command:

sudo aptitude install r-base-dev

RStudio and Text Editors
We recommend using the RStudio IDE which can be downloaded from http://www.rstudio.com/products/rstudio/download/.
The package can than be installed via commandline:
sudo dpkg -i /PathToYourDownloadedFile on Debian/Ubuntu

sudo rpm -i /PathToYourDownloadedFile on Fedora/openSUSE
Please feel free to install the editors you need as mentioned above via SynapticPackage Manager or via commandline:
sudo aptitude install i.e. emacs, vim and so on.

5 Official Presentation Format

As your lecturer may want you to use the wubeamer style for your presentation withinthe scope of our department’s courses, please feel free to download it via svn from theWU’s svn Repository http://www.wu.ac.at/it/instructions/latex_template.Please note that according to our departments understanding the use of the templateis permitted exclusively for courses at the WU. In order to use the wu-beamerstyle(official presentation format, https://svn.wu-wien.ac.at/wu/ login with the WU SVNRepository Login i.e. h+matriculation number + powernet password) oneadditionally needs to install the ttf-mscorefonts-installer.

6 Further Information

Rstudio Latex Full

More information about the topic can be retrieved from the following references.

Rstudio Latex Packages

• R Installation and Administration:
  • Windows
    http://cran.r-project.org/doc/manuals/R-admin.html#Installing-R-under-Windows
    
  • Mac Os X
    http://cran.r-project.org/doc/manuals/R-admin.html#Installing-R-under-Mac-OS-X
    
  • Unix/Linux
    http://cran.r-project.org/doc/manuals/R-admin.html#Installing-R-under-Unix_002dalikes
• Writing R Extensions (R-Project):
  http://cran.r-project.org/doc/manuals/R-exts.html
• Making R packages for the Mac:
  http://personality-project.org/r/makingpackages.html
• Making R packages under Windows:
  http://cran.r-project.org/doc/contrib/Graves+DoraiRaj-RPackageDevelopment.pdf and http://www.math.ncu.edu.tw/~chenwc/R_note/reference/package/packages.pdf
• TEX Formula Quick Reference (Wikipedia):
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Displaying_a_formula
• LATEX unter Windows (German):
  http://schlosser.info/latexsystem.html

7 Frequently Asked Questions

1. TeX Live (Windows):
   1. How to make TeX Live recognize ‘Sweave.sty’?

      Answer:

      Go to the R installation directory, i.e., the directory where R has been installed to. We call this directory ‘RHOME’. Search for the LATEX style sheet called ‘Sweave.sty’. Typically it is located in the folder ‘<RHOME>sharetexmf’. Next, one needs to copy the corresponding files to the “personal“ LATEX libary. We will call the directory where TeX Live has been installed ‘TEXHOME’. The “personal“ LATEX library is located in the directory ‘<TEXHOME>texmftexlatex’ and ‘<TEXHOME>texmf-localtexlatex’. Copy the contents of the ‘<RHOME>sharetexmf’ latex folder to the ‘Sweave’ folder in the “personal“ LATEX library. If the ‘Sweave’ folder is not found in the latex library, create it and copy the contents into this folder.
      Eventually the package database needs to be updated.
      Go to Start and open the command line interface by entering cmd. Once the command line interface starts and update the database by entering texhash (use the command texhash.exe).

   2. How to install further LATEX packages?

      Answer: Go to Start → All Programs → TeX Live <Version>→TeX Live Manager. (<Version> has to be replaced with the installed TeX Live version)

      Search for the packages needed, then select the package and click on Install. (It is also possible to select all packages, but this will include many language packs which are probably not needed).

   3. Note that the installation and the update process of TeX Live can take a very long time. Sometimes this can lead to the sytem becoming unresponsive, in that case simply restart the corresponding process.
2. MiKTEX(Windows):
   1. How to make MiKTEX recognize ‘Sweave.sty’?

      Answer: In Pictures
      Go to the R Installation directory, i.e., the directory where R has been installed to. We call this directory ‘RHOME’. Search for the LATEX style sheet called ‘Sweave.sty’. Typically, it is located in the folder ‘<RHOME>sharetexmf’. Copy the contents of this folder to the ‘Sweave’ folder in the “personal” LATEX library. The location of the LATEX library can be seen by going to Start → All Programs→ MiKTeX<Version>¹→ Maintenance → Settings.

      Go to the Roots tab, and mark the “Show MiKTeX-maintained root directories” box. Look at the Description where it says “UserInstall,UserConfig”. The coresponding PATH points to the location. Usually it is in ‘<RHOME>Application DataMiKTeX<Version>texlatex’; (<Version>has to be replaced with the installed MiKTEX version). If there is no ‘latex’ and/or ‘Sweave’ folder, create it and copy the contents into this folder.
      

   2. How to install further LATEX packages?

      Answer: Go to Start → All Programs → MiKTeX<Version>¹→Maintenance(Admin) → Package Manager(Admin); (<Version>has to be replaced with the installed MiKTEX version).

      Search for the package needed, then right click on the package name and click on Install.

   3. MikTEX offers downloading missing packages but fails.

      Answer: Note that it is required to be able to write to the system library of MiKTEX. Typically this can only be achieved through logging in with Administrator privileges.

8 Acknowledgment

An earlier version of this manual was written by Ksenia Fraczek.