UP::[[About this project]]
**Last updated**: 2025-05-02
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> "*Writing is an exploration. You start from nothing and learn as you go*." – E.L. Doctorow
*I have a personal reason for writing this book*: I want to encourage more beginners to embrace R, so we can grow and learn together. Many new users shy away from R, thinking it's too complex, but I aim to change that perception. R isn't just for programmers or statisticians; it’s for anyone who wants to engage in **reproducible research**.
This is an evolving blueprint for _R for Non-Programmers_. Stay tuned as the story unfolds!
### 1. Why R, Why You, Why Me, Why Now?
A conversation that sets the stage—why we’re here and why R is the tool for the curious.
First draft completed on 2025-02-04
Polished and updated on 2025-02-05
Upleveled on 2025-03-27 after reading [[Nobody Wants to Read Your Sht - Steven Pressfield|The Book - Nobody wants to read your..]]
> It’s the best time to learn R even if you are a non programmer
### 2. Starting with Reproducibility in Mind
The core theme. Building great habits from the start.
First draft completed on 2025-02-04
A spark made me revise this chapter on 2025-03-19, Thanks, Rumi (Yes, the poet!)
Upleveled on 2025-03-27 after reading [[Nobody Wants to Read Your Sht - Steven Pressfield|The Book - Nobody wants to read your..]]
> Beginning with reproducibility in mind is the one thing that makes R learning easier
### 3. I Hate Maths—Can I Still R?
Spoiler: Yes, you can. Let’s talk about it.
First draft completed on 2025-02-05
Draft improved on 2025-03-19
Upleveled on 2025-03-27 after reading [[Nobody Wants to Read Your Sht - Steven Pressfield|The Book - Nobody wants to read your..]]
> Work with a cause a need in mind
### 4. A Zen Beginner
Approaching coding with a calm, open mindset.
First draft on 2025-02-06
Second draft on 2025-03-19
Upleveled on 2025-03-27 after reading [[Nobody Wants to Read Your Sht - Steven Pressfield|The Book - Nobody wants to read your..]]
> Start small and be open
### 5. Structuring Before Coding—Why and How
Beware! The matrix calls for a structure!!
First draft laid on 2025-03-19
Upleveled on 2025-03-27 after reading [[Nobody Wants to Read Your Sht - Steven Pressfield|The Book - Nobody wants to read your..]]
> Start with a structure and maintain it
### 6. Naming Conventions: Where Most Beginners Trip
What’s in a name? Everything.
First draft on 2025-03-20
Upleveled on 2025-03-27 after reading [[Nobody Wants to Read Your Sht - Steven Pressfield|The Book - Nobody wants to read your..]]
> Naming can make and break
### 7. Get In and Get Out—Import and Export
Your data’s journey: into R and out with insights.
Draft improved on 2025-04-02
TNT - to combine with another draft written earlier on the same
> Get in and get out. Master it
### 8. Data Cleaning: The Unsung Hero
Mastering the basics of wrangling data and preparing it for analysis—like prepping your veggies so you can cook faster and better.
Renamed as: [[Before the Stats, Comes the Scrub]] on 2025-04-03
Drafted on 2025-04-03.
Improved on 2025-04-04 - added reproducibility through r prelude
> You cannot escape cleaning on the long run
### 9. Quick Wins: Exploratory Data Analysis and Descriptives
Small victories that build big confidence and getting the glimpse of the data.
First draft dated 2025-04-08
Yet to tie this up with reproducibility-the core
> Getting a glimpse before you lay hands
### 10. Knitting Your First Results Section in Quarto
From analysis to beautifully organized output.
> quarto is your beautiful friend
First draft written on 2025-05-02
### Appendix-1. Personal Journeys and Case Studies
Stories that inspire and remind you it’s possible.
### Appendix-2. Solutions and Reflections
Lessons learned, challenges overcome, and things to take away.
### Post word. R: A Holy Grail?
Or just a trusty companion on your data journey?
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### Change Log
| **Date** | **Change** | **Notes** |
| ---------- | ------------------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| 2025-01-21 | Added section on **Data Cleaning** to the index. | In freewriting today, I figured out this piece was missing. |
| 2025-02-04 | Chapter 2 complete | |
| 2025-02-05 | Chapter 1 complete | |
| 2025-03-19 | Chapter 2 revised | |
| 2025-03-27 | 6 chapters revised | thanks to one book [[Nobody Wants to Read Your Sht - Steven Pressfield\|The Book - Nobody wants to read your..]] |
| 2025-04-03 | Data cleaning chapter drafted and renamed | Should i rename all that went before? |
| 2025-05-02 | Chapter 10 | This seems to complete all my first drafts |
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