D Glossary

See the psyTeachR Glossary for more definitions of R jargon.

term definition
argument A variable that provides input to a function.
attribute html Extra information about an HTML element
base r The set of R functions that come with a basic installation of R, before you add external packages
cache web In a web browser, external files like CSS, JavaScript, and images are usually cached so that they don't have to be repeatedly downloaded.
character A data type representing strings of text.
commit The action of storing a new snapshot of a project's state in the git history.
console The pane in RStudio where you can type in commands and view output messages.
css Cascading Style Sheet: A system for controlling the visual presentation of HTML in web pages.
data type The kind of data represented by an object.
data wrangling The process of preparing data for visualisation and statistical analysis.
directory A collection or "folder" of files on a computer.
double A data type representing a real decimal number
dynamic Something that can change in response to user actions
element html A unit of HTML, such as a header, paragraph, or image.
function A named section of code that can be reused.
github A cloud-based service for storing and sharing your version controlled files.
html Hyper-Text Markup Language: A system for semantically tagging structure and information on web pages.
integer A data type representing whole numbers.
javascript An object-oriented computer programming language commonly used to create interactive effects in web browsers.
jquery A library that makes it easier to write JavaScript.
latex A typesetting program needed to create PDF files from R Markdown documents.
list A container data type that allows items with different data types to be grouped together.
logical A data type representing TRUE or FALSE values.
numeric A data type representing a real decimal number or integer.
object A word that identifies and stores the value of some data for later use.
ordinal Discrete variables that have an inherent order, such as number of legs
package A group of R functions.
pandoc A universal document convertor, used by R to make PDF or Word documents from R Markdown
panes RStudio is arranged with four window "panes".
project A way to organise related files in RStudio
push Updating the remote git project from the local project.
r markdown The R-specific version of markdown: a way to specify formatting, such as headers, paragraphs, lists, bolding, and links, as well as code blocks and inline code.
rstudio An integrated development environment (IDE) that helps you process R code.
server This is the part of a Shiny app that works with logic.
shiny An R package that builds interactive web apps
static Something that does not change in response to user actions
string A piece of text inside of quotes.
tag A way to mark the start and end of HTML elements.
tidyverse A set of R packages that help you create and work with tidy data
ui The User Interface. This usually refers to a Shiny App as the user will see it.
vector A type of data structure that collects values with the same data type, like T/F values, numbers, or strings.
version control A way to save a record of changes to your files.
whitespace Spaces, tabs and line breaks
widget A interactive web element, like a dropdown menu or a slider.
working directory The filepath where R is currently reading and writing files.
yaml A structured format for information
Wickham, H. (2021). Tidyverse: Easily install and load the tidyverse. https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=tidyverse
Xie, Y. (2019). TinyTeX: A lightweight, cross-platform, and easy-to-maintain LaTeX distribution based on TeX live. TUGboat, 1, 30–32. https://tug.org/TUGboat/Contents/contents40-1.html