multiloadr

multiloadr is an R package that streamlines the process of loading R packages that are essential dependencies for a project within a session.

This package is particularly useful when developing multiple R packages that have interdependencies, as it simplifies the process of loading these packages in your local environment and enhances the overall efficiency of your workflow.

Usage

Suppose the user is actively working on PackageA, a dependency for both PackageB and PackageC, with the intention of enhancing a specific function within PackageA.

Given that this improvement may have downstream effects on both PackageB and PackageC, it becomes necessary to update these packages accordingly.

To manage this development process, a feature branch will be created for each of these packages. However, it's also possible that multiple branches may be generated to address various aspects of the feature.

The multiloadr package facilitates this development scenario by allowing users to load multiple R packages into the session. multiloadr also provides the capability to selectively pull changes from different branches or commits, offering flexibility and control during the development process.

library(multiloadr)

# add packages to multiloadr
add_pkgs("PackageA", "local-path-to-PackageA")
add_pkgs("PackageB", "local-path-to-PackageB")
add_pkgs("PackageC", "local-path-to-PackageC")

# load packages from presently active branch
load_pkgs()

# load packages from develop branch
load_pkgs(branch_name = "develop")

# perform git pull before loading
load_pkgs(branch_name = "develop", git_pull = TRUE)

# load packages from "develop" branch if available, or "main" branch otherwise,
# and perform git pull
load_pkgs(branch_name = c("develop", "main"), git_pull = TRUE)

# load packages from specific commit
from_commit <- list(packageA = "hash_commit", packageC = "hash_commit")
load_pkgs(branch_name = "main", git_pull = TRUE, from_commit = from_commit)

By executing this action, the user can load packages into their current session and evaluate the impact of updating PackageA on PackageB and PackageC without having to rebuild or reinstall all the packages.

Installation

To install the development version of multiloadr, follow these steps:

library(devtools)
install_github("donyunardi/multiloadr")

Install Git

Git is required to use multiloadr. Please refer to the instructions provided here to install git in your environment.

Additional Information

Installing Package Dependencies before Executing load_pkgs()

It is the responsibility of the user to ensure that the dependencies required for loading the package(s) are installed before executing load_pkgs(). If any dependencies are missing, a message will be displayed prompting the user to install them. To resolve the issue, the user can install the missing packages and then rerun the load_pkgs() function.

Git in Local R Package Folder

multiloadr assumes that the local directory of the R package is under version control using git. In most cases, this is true, especially if the package is hosted in a public repository like GitHub or GitLab where users are required to perform a git clone. However, if this is not the case, please initialize the folder by running git init inside the folder directory before using multiloadr.