I'm starting a new email, every other Thursday called Field Notes on AI. I'll share my thoughts on using LLMs for data work. First issue goes out tomorrow. Sign up → rfor.us/email

Another thing I'm wondering: if you add skills from an external repo, do you typically add all of the skills in the repo or just choose individual skills?

👀

I've been hinting at this. Here it is: Ally. Retiring most @rfortherestofus.com courses, launching this instead. Here’s why. youtu.be/o9bWlxh1xdA

Tomorrow I’m announcing the biggest change to R for the Rest of Us since 2019. But keeping things as they are doesn't serve me, and it doesn't serve the people I built this for.

What used to take 30 minutes can now be done in 30 seconds. R is changing. Announcing something new on Wednesday.

I released a course on AI + R last year. I had to take it done a few weeks later as it was already obsolete. That failure is the reason I'm changing everything about R for the Rest of Us.

For those of you adding agent skills to work with #rstats code, how do you actually add skills? Using npx skills add? Some other way?

Asked my list earlier this year why course sales are dropping. Two answers, over and over: budget cuts and AI. I can't do much about the first. But I’m working on the second. More soon!

Posted this on LinkedIn a bit ago, but forgot to post here (I'm bad at social media): Not to be too cryptic, but I'm planning the largest shift for R for the Rest of Us since I launched it in 2019 and it's both exciting and scary in equal measure.

How are you using AI in your #rstats workflow? Do you use AI directly in your code editor or on the web? If you use AI in your editor, what tools are you using (Claude Code, Positron Assistant, Posit Assistant, etc)?

We rebuilt our core R courses—now using Positron. More modern workflows. Built-in AI. Better debugging. 🎉 To celebrate the launch: Get 50% off paid courses through April 30. See updated courses: buff.ly/rdULEs7 #DataScience #RStats #Positron

I've been quietly re-recording all of the core R for the Rest of Us courses to use Positron. They're dropping tomorrow with a big discount. #rstats If you want to be the first to know when they're live, you can sign up here:

Checking whether your PDFs are accessible is important, but the tools to do so aren't great. That's why @joseph-barbier.bsky.social and I built a new R package: {pdfcheck}. Check it out and let us know what you think! rfortherestofus.com/2026/02/intr...

For grouped summaries in #rstats, do you use group_by() + summarize() or the .by argument in summarize()?

One of these reports was made in InDesign. The other was made in Quarto + Typst. Can you tell which is which?

6 years of R for the Rest of Us! 🎂 2025 highlights: ✅ Spun off consulting into Clarity Data Studio ✅ 10 cohorts of R in 3 Months (400+ people!) ✅ $3,000+ donated to social & environmental causes Full year in review 👇 buff.ly/zDySVOU

With our R in 3 Months program, we give out multiple scholarships. However, some recipients barely participate at all. This is frustrating because we pass over other recipients who likely would participate further. Any ideas for how we can ensure that scholarship recipients actively participate?

Just donated over $2,000 to the @nilc.org as part of our Black Friday fundraiser for @rfortherestofus.com. Thanks to everyone who bought courses!

Ever since we started making documents in Quarto and Typst, I've wanted to make EVERYTHING in Quarto and Typst. Curious to learn how make documents like these? Boy, do I have the blog post for you! #rstats rfortherestofus.com/2025/11/quar...

At 10:00am Pacific time, @joseph-barbier.bsky.social and I are doing a livestream answering your questions about making reports using Typst and Quarto. Join us and ask questions! Or, if you can't make it, ask your questions below! #rstats

I spent several days working on this blog post and video. Behold everything I know (aka everything @joseph-barbier.bsky.social has ever taught me) about making high-quality PDFs using Quarto and Typst. #rstats

Post is up! #rstats rfortherestofus.com/2025/11/quar...

AI note takers do many things well. Irony is not one of them.

Do I even want to know why @hadley.nz?

I'm writing a blog post on making high-quality reports with Quarto and Typst like the ones we recently made for the Johns Hopkins University International Vaccine Access Center. Anything in particular you want to know about how we make reports like these? #rstats

Are you attending posit::conf this week in Atlanta! 👋 If you spot me, come say hi. I’ve got R for the Rest of Us and Clarity Data Studio swag to share. #rstats

So smooth (if you get that joke, you are an #rstats nerd).

Does anyone know why shapefiles for Michigan often end up looking oversimplified like this? #rstats code in the alt text.

I gave the keynote at Cascadia R Conf 2025: “25 Things You Didn't Know You Could Do with R.” R isn’t just for stats — it’s great for visualization, mapping, automation, and more. Watch the talk + get all the resources here: buff.ly/6svaIME Hope you learn something new! #rstats

Think R is just for data analysis? Think again. David Keyes’ keynote, 25 Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do with R, from #CascadiaRConf2025 blasts that myth wide open. Want creativity, practicality, and real-world R hacks? This is your ticket. Watch it now: youtu.be/wrPrIRcOVr0 #rstats #datasci

Running a business, you get some weird marketing pitches. Today's might be the weirdest: putting R for the Rest of Us on the side of a Nascar race race. I appreciate the sentiment, but not sure it's the best way for me to reach customers!

🎉 Big news! After 5+ years of consulting work under the R for the Rest of Us name, I'm launching Clarity Data Studio. The name confusion was real – people thought we only did courses, not knowing about our consulting work building reports, websites, and more.

I'm making a list of #rstats packages for data validation. I've got {pointblank} and {assertr}. What am I missing?

I'm doing my biannual donations from R for the Rest of Us to support organizations fighting for social justice (rfortherestofus.com/1percent). I'd like to support those impacted by ICE raids. Anyone have recommendations for organizations to donate to?

Had such a great time talking to @dgkeyes.com about #rstats, unit testing, and missing data. Thanks for making time, David!

Going to San Francisco with my 9 year-old son next week. Where should we go?

Welcome to the first issue of RDM Weekly, a weekly roundup of Research Data Management resources! To kick off this newsletter, I will be doing a drawing for 1 free @rfortherestofus.com course for anyone who subscribes by Friday! Winner will be notified via email. open.substack.com/pub/rdmweekl...

Really enjoyed speaking to Cascadia R Conference today! Materials from my talk are at rfortherestofus.com/cascadia2025. #rstats

Cascadia R Conf is tomorrow! I'll be giving the keynote: Twenty-Five Things You Didn't Know You Could Do with R. #rstats You can still register for the virtual conference: cascadiarconf.com

My book R for the Rest of Us: A Statistics-Free Introduction is available as part of the Humble Bundle. Pay what you want, get some great books, and support the Electronic Frontier Foundation at the same time! www.humblebundle.com/books/coding...

I had a blast chatting about brand.yml with @rfortherestofus.com!

🚨 Cascadia R Conf is hosting hands-on R workshops June 20 in Portland! Topics include GitHub, Rust, Shiny, GIS & more. Workshops are ticketed are going fast! Register today! 🔗 Info & registration: cascadiarconf.com #rstats #datascience

Excited to launch "ggplot2 [un]charted" with @yan-holtz.bsky.social! 🎉 An online course to master #ggplot2 with exercises, quizzes, and modules—and hands-on code running in your browser! Still WIP—sign up now for a limited discount: 👉 www.ggplot2-uncharted.com #rstats #DataViz #DataVisualization

In putting together the new version of the Mapping with R course, I came across lots of great resources for learning to make maps in #rstats. Here are some of my top recommendations, all of which are available online for free.

My keynote at Cascadia R Conf is all about things you didn't know you could do with R. I've got some ideas, but I'd love to get additional suggestions. What do you do with R that others have never even considered?

Join me and many others in the #rstats community this June at Cascadia R Conf!

It is all just so very very stupid

Unidentified men grabbing someone off the street and putting her in a car because she wrote an op-Ed. This as flatly authoritarian as anything we’ve seen in this country in a very long time.

Kicking off the 9th (!) cohort of R in 3 Months today with participants from around the world!