FAQ

Modified

August 14, 2024

Can I use a local install of R and RStudio instead of using RStudio Workbench?

Yes, you can! But you will need to install a specific version of R and RStudio for everything to work as expected. We will use renv to manage package versions, so you will need to install that as well. You will also need to install Git, which is used for version control.

These are not extremely challenging things to get right, but they are not trivial either, particularly on certain operating systems. Myself and the TAs are always happy to provide help with any computational questions when you’re working in RStudio Workbench. Since we have provisioned that server, we know it will work for all the lab/homeworks/exams/etc. If you’re working on your local setup, we can’t guarantee being able to resolve your issues, though we’re happy to try.

If you want to take this path, follow these setup instructions.

And I’d like to reiterate again that successful installation of these software is not a learning goal of this course. So if any of this seems tedious or intimidating in any way, just use the computing environment we have set up for you. More on that here.

How do I export my assignment PDF from RStudio to upload to Gradescope?

Note

This is only necessary if you are using RStudio Workbench for the course. If you have installed R and RStudio locally, you can skip this section.

  1. Go to your Files tab, check the box next to the file you want to download.

    An image of the RStudio IDE showing the Files panel in the bottom-right corner and the assignment's rendered PDF file checked.

  2. Click on the blue gear icon on the Files tab to reveal the drop down menu, and select Export….

    An image of the RStudio IDE demonstrating how to select the blue gear icon, also known as the More button, and then select Export to download files.

  3. Click the Download button. If you have selected multiple files to export, RStudio will zip them up into a single zip file for you. If you’ve selected just a single file, it will only download that. For assignments submitted via Gradescope, you only need to download the PDF. The downloaded file will go to wherever files you download off the internet goes on your computer (usually your Downloads folder).

    An image of the RStudio IDE showing download button that needs to be clicked to download the specified file.

How can I submit my assignment to Gradescope?

The instructions for submitting your assignment to Gradescope can be found here. In a nutshell, you’ll upload your PDF and them mark the page(s) where each question can be found. It’s OK if a question spans multiple pages, just mark them all. It’s also OK if a page includes multiple questions.