R Weekly Highlights

After an unexpected break we are back with a new episode of R Weekly Highlights! If you thought the easiest way to create pivot tables was in Excel, the a new package just might change your perspective. Plus how you can pull the strings for a multi-agent LLM workflow with the new puppeteeR package.

Episode Links
This week's curator: Batool Almarzouq - @batoolmm.bsky.social (Bluesky) & @batool664 (X/Twitter)
perspectiveR: Interactive Pivot Tables and Charts from R
puppeteeR - orchestrate multiple LLM agents into coordinated workflows
Entire issue available at rweekly.org/2026-W16

Supplement Resources

Perspective upstream library https://perspective-dev.github.io
You can just build your own programming language https://brodrigues.co/posts/2026-04-03-tproject.html
{gglite} https://pkg.yihui.org/gglite/

Supporting the show

Use the contact page at https://serve.podhome.fm/custompage/r-weekly-highlights/contact to send us your feedback
R-Weekly Highlights on the Podcastindex.org - You can send a boost into the show directly in the Podcast Index. First, top-up with Alby, and then head over to the R-Weekly Highlights podcast entry on the index.
A new way to think about value: https://value4value.info
Get in touch with us on social mediaEric Nantz: @[email protected] (Mastodon), @rpodcast.bsky.social (BlueSky) and @theRcast (X/Twitter)
Mike Thomas: @[email protected] (Mastodon), @mike-thomas.bsky.social (BlueSky), and @mike_ketchbrook (X/Twitter)

Music credits powered by OCRemix
A flea and his giant - Mega Man X: Maverick Rising - Chuck Dietz - https://maverick.ocremix.org/music.php

Choice is good, but sometimes you may want a little help! Our first two highlights showcase approaches you can take to inform your next LLM for analyses and open-source license. Plus how to make your mark(s) within your version control history.

Episode Links
This week's curator: Sam Parmar - @[email protected] (Mastodon) & @parmsam_ (X/Twitter)
How to choose the best LLM using R and vitals
Pick a License, Not Any License
Git commits: please mark your stitches!
Entire issue available at rweekly.org/2026-W09

Supplement Resources
rollama - R wrapper to Ollama https://jbgruber.github.io/rollama/
Opps, Git! How to recover from common mistakes workshop https://r-posts.com/oops-git-how-to-recover-from-common-mistakes-workshop/

Supporting the show
Use the contact page at https://serve.podhome.fm/custompage/r-weekly-highlights/contact to send us your feedback
R-Weekly Highlights on the Podcastindex.org - You can send a boost into the show directly in the Podcast Index. First, top-up with Alby, and then head over to the R-Weekly Highlights podcast entry on the index.
A new way to think about value: https://value4value.info
Get in touch with us on social mediaEric Nantz: @[email protected] (Mastodon), @rpodcast.bsky.social (BlueSky) and @theRcast (X/Twitter)
Mike Thomas: @[email protected] (Mastodon), @mike-thomas.bsky.social (BlueSky), and @mike_ketchbrook (X/Twitter)

Music credits powered by OCRemix
Seven Pipes to Heaven - Super Mario Land - Nostalvania - https://ocremix.org/remix/OCR03256
You Are Not Confined - Final Fantasy 9 - Sonicade - https://ocremix.org/remix/OCR01064

A glimpse into the R Consortium Submissions Working Group's recent successes and future work, and a new way to view those nested lists from a familiar face making his return to blogging!

Episode Links
This week's curator: Batool Almarzouq - @batoolmm.bsky.social (Bluesky) & @batool664 (X/Twitter)
Submissions Working Group: 2026 Plans and 2025 Success
Viewing Nested Lists with xfun::tabset()
Entire issue available at rweekly.org/2026-W08
Supplement Resources
R Consortium Submissions Pilot 4 https://rpodcast.quarto.pub/submissions-wg-pilot-4/
R-Podcast Episode 18 (Yihui Xie Returns) https://r-podcast.org/024-rstudioconf-yihui-xie/
litedown: R Markdown Reimagined https://yihui.org/litedown

Supporting the show
Use the contact page at https://serve.podhome.fm/custompage/r-weekly-highlights/contact to send us your feedback
R-Weekly Highlights on the Podcastindex.org - You can send a boost into the show directly in the Podcast Index. First, top-up with Alby, and then head over to the R-Weekly Highlights podcast entry on the index.
A new way to think about value: https://value4value.info
Get in touch with us on social mediaEric Nantz: @[email protected] (Mastodon), @rpodcast.bsky.social (BlueSky) and @theRcast (X/Twitter)
Mike Thomas: @[email protected] (Mastodon), @mike-thomas.bsky.social (BlueSky), and @mike_ketchbrook (X/Twitter)

Music credits powered by OCRemix
A Toadstool Mix - Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening - Reuben Spiers, Gamer of the Winds - https://ocremix.org/remix/OCR04064

A prominent leader at the intersection of data science and data engineering across multiple languages shares her insights, how a recent Git workshop tailored for data science de-mystifies common pitfalls, and for the second straight episode a new transpiler bringing dplyr syntax to databases (quite literally).
Episode Links
This week's curator: Jon Carroll - @[email protected] (Mastodon) & @jonocarroll.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy (Bluesky) & @carroll_jono (X/Twitter)
The Test Set Pod - Column selectors, data quality, and learning in public (Episode link)
Git & GitHub: Practical Version Control for Data Work
dplyr comes to duckdb
Entire issue available at rweekly.org/2026-W06

Supplement Resources

Risk Conference 2026 Agenda (Mike is presenting!) https://rconsortium.github.io/Risk_website/program.html
libdplyr https://github.com/mrchypark/libdplyr

Supporting the show

Use the contact page at https://serve.podhome.fm/custompage/r-weekly-highlights/contact to send us your feedback
R-Weekly Highlights on the Podcastindex.org - You can send a boost into the show directly in the Podcast Index. First, top-up with Alby, and then head over to the R-Weekly Highlights podcast entry on the index.
A new way to think about value: https://value4value.info
Get in touch with us on social mediaEric Nantz: @[email protected] (Mastodon), @rpodcast.bsky.social (BlueSky) and @theRcast (X/Twitter)
Mike Thomas: @[email protected] (Mastodon), @mike-thomas.bsky.social (BlueSky), and @mike_ketchbrook (X/Twitter)

Music credits powered by OCRemix

Lost Woods Inglewood - Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening - BenCousins - https://ocremix.org/remix/OCR00853
Aerobotics - Mega Man 8 - Just Coffee - https://ocremix.org/remix/OCR03323

The way LLMs can be a little stubborn when interpreting data visualizations, bringing new meaning to digging for your data and learning along the way, and the latest addition to the futureverse that seems too good to be true, but it is real! Plus an amazing Shiny app tailored made for this very podcast.

Episode Links
This week's curator: Jonathan Kitt - @jonathankitt.bsky.social (Bluesky)
LLMs interpret plots well, until expectations interfere
Students, software, and soil flux
futurize: Parallelize Common Functions via a "Magic" Touch
Entire issue available at rweekly.org/2026-W05

Supplement Resources

{bluffbench} https://simonpcouch.github.io/bluffbench/
{neonSoilFlux}: An R package for continuous sensor-based estimation of soil CO2 fluxes https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/2041-210x.70216
Building an R Weekly Highlights Podcast Assistant! https://jokasan.github.io/r-weekly_chatbot/

Supporting the show
Use the contact page at https://serve.podhome.fm/custompage/r-weekly-highlights/contact to send us your feedback
R-Weekly Highlights on the Podcastindex.org - You can send a boost into the show directly in the Podcast Index. First, top-up with Alby, and then head over to the R-Weekly Highlights podcast entry on the index.
A new way to think about value: https://value4value.info
Get in touch with us on social mediaEric Nantz: @[email protected] (Mastodon), @rpodcast.bsky.social (BlueSky) and @theRcast (X/Twitter)
Mike Thomas: @[email protected] (Mastodon), @mike-thomas.bsky.social (BlueSky), and @mike_ketchbrook (X/Twitter)

Music credits powered by OCRemix
Sunken Secrets - Super Mario 64 - Fishy - https://ocremix.org/remix/OCR02909
Serenity & Grace - Chrono Cross -timaeus222 - https://ocremix.org/remix/OCR04143