Interested in learning R programming? This language offers a multitude of applications in data visualization and statistical computing, and is widely used by Data Scientists, Business Analysts, Data Analysts, and more. Discover how you can learn R through video tutorials and understand its benefits in our detailed guide.
Key Insights
- R programming is an open-source language, widely used for data visualization and statistical computing, often used by roles such as Data Scientists and Business Analysts.
- Learning R programming does not require any additional costs. It can run on various UNIX platforms, as well as macOS and Windows.
- Video tutorials are a flexible and convenient method to learn R programming, ideal for busy individuals who have to balance their R studies with other commitments.
- The R programming language includes a fully integrated suite of software tools for data storage, calculations, analytics, and visualization.
- Noble Desktop offers a range of in-person and live online coding and data analytics classes, as well as a Data Analytics with R Bootcamp for those interested in learning R programming.
- R programming has a wide array of applications across data-related industries and professions, making it a highly valuable skill in the current job market.
R is an open-source programming language created to help with data visualization and statistical computing. This versatile language has a range of applications for cleaning, analyzing, and graphing data. Watching video tutorials online is a popular method of learning R programming. Videos allow learners to learn the basics of R without having to commit to an intensive course. This flexible learning format is accessible to busy individuals who must balance their R study with other life commitments. This article will cover a range of videos, including what they teach and where to find them.
What is R Programming?
R is a programming language that statisticians created for statistical data analytics. This popular language has a range of applications for performing statistical computing and creating data visualizations. It is often used by Data Scientists, Business Analysts, Data Analysts, and those working in academia or science for tasks specifically involving statistical analysis. R is currently available for free and can run on Windows and Mac OS, as well as a variety of UNIX platforms and related systems.
R provides users with a range of graphical and statistical techniques, such as time-series analysis, clustering, classification, and linear and nonlinear modeling. One of the benefits of working with R is that it simplifies the process of creating publication-quality plots, especially those that incorporate formulas or mathematical symbols. This versatile language includes a fully integrated suite of software tools, such as a data storage and handling facility, operations for performing calculations on arrays, an extensive, integrated set of data analytics tools, and graphical tools designed to analyze and visualize data.
Read more about what R programming is and why you should learn it.
What Can You Do with R Programming?
R was created to primarily help with graphics and statistical computations. This language can accomplish various tasks, from data storage to data analysis to generating statistical models. Of all the available programming languages, R is considered to be the one with the most tools devoted exclusively to statistics. This language can aid with descriptive statistics tasks, like calculating standard deviations and designing models for mapping linear regression.
One of R’s most useful features is its ability to help users create customized data visualizations and dashboards. Some consider R’s ggplot2 package the best data visualization tool available. This package allows users to draw nearly any plot they can conceive. In addition, those who wish to take their data visualizations in R to the next level can combine ggplot2’s syntax with Plotly’s interactive features to make dashboards that are as engaging as they are interactive.
R draws from various machine learning tools so that users can make accurate, data-driven predictions. Users can select from an array of machine learning models, which have applications for creating predictive models, such as movie recommendation systems and churn models. In addition, R users can automate reporting by using R Markdown documents. R Markdown offers a straightforward, accessible syntax to generate various reports, such as presentations, books, or other written documents. This helps R users easily communicate data analysis results with others.
Why Are Video Tutorials Helpful When Learning R Programming?
Suppose you’re interested in learning more about R programming but may not be able to commit to a course that meets at regularly scheduled intervals. In that case, video tutorials are a great alternative. The following are just a few reasons why you may consider getting started learning R with online video content:
- Because videos are pre-recorded, they can be watched at any time of the day, from any location. They can also be paused for note-taking, rewound, and watched as often as necessary if you’re trying to master complex programming concepts. This flexible learning format is ideal for busy individuals who have to balance their R studies with full-time work or family commitments.
- Most R video content is relatively short, which makes it a manageable study option. Instead of investing dozens of hours into R study, learners can spend a few minutes on a video to learn a specific feature or concept before moving on to a different tutorial.
- For visual learners, R videos can provide an excellent way to learn this language. Those watching can follow along with video content in real-time, which can help with retention.
- Online video content is an affordable study option. Some are even available for free from top educational providers. This makes it a good alternative to certificate study or more rigorous, structured learning options, which can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars.
- Although it may be challenging to master complex programming skills solely from online R tutorials, they provide an excellent resource for those interested in receiving a general overview of R or learning beginner-level programming practices.
Types of R Programming Videos
For those interested in learning R in the online environment, many videos on R and data science are available from top educational providers. Videos are available for free on programming, data science, and data analytics. Those new to working with R can explore short video content on specific programming functions and more general information on the fields of programming or data science. Because so many online video options are available, it’s easier than ever to find content that’s accessible, engaging, and will help you learn how to perform statistical computing tasks with R.
Noble Desktop’s free Intro to Data Science seminar provides plenty of content if you're interested in learning more about fundamental data science concepts. This webinar contains beginner-friendly information on how Python is used in data science, as well as a general overview of the field of data science. This video is a great first step on your data science learning path.
Additional videos are also available from other educational providers:
- Simplilearn has an entire course called R Programming for Beginners 2022 on YouTube. This helpful resource covers various R topics, such as working with variables, logical operators, vectors, functions, data manipulation, and visualization.
- YouTube video content is also offered by freeCodeCamp. Interested learners can watch the R Programming Tutorial, which provides more than two hours of video content on common R topics like installing R, working with RStudio, and performing data visualizations such as scatterplots, histograms, bar charts, and overlay plots.
- Intellipaat’s R Tutorial for Beginners takes learners from beginner to pro using hands-on demos, video content, and interview questions. By the end of the video, students will be familiar with R’s data types, objects, and operators and how to work with data mining, flow control, loops, and variables.
Why Learn R Programming?
Learning to program with R has many benefits and applications across data-related industries and professions. This language is free and open source, which makes it widely accessible. Because it’s available under the General Public License, it has no license restrictions; users can modify code as necessary. Since this language can run on various operating systems, it performs seamlessly, whether you’re using a Windows, Mac, or Linux-based system. In addition, R offers an array of built-in functions and more than 10,000 packages, which can help with data manipulation, statistical modeling, machine learning, and data visualization, among others.
Another perk of working with R is that it has a large community that can assist as necessary with questions and other R-related topics. This means that R users can seek advice from those who have completed projects like the one they are working on or collaborate with others. There are even data science contests available to test users’ R skills. For those working with data visualization, R offers packages like plotly, ggvis, and ggplot2, which are great resources for designing print-quality graphs. R’s package, Shiny, allows users to create their own dashboards and interactive web pages right from the R Console. Shiny web apps can then be hosted on any cloud service, like AWS.
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How Difficult is It to Learn R Programming?
Because R is offered as a free software environment for graphical and statistical computing tasks, downloading and using this language does not require any additional costs. R can run on various UNIX platforms, as well as macOS and Windows. If you want to download R, you can do so directly from The R Project for Statistical Computing’s website. You will need to select your preferred CRAN mirror before downloading.
If you’re interested in learning R, there are a few prerequisites to consider studying first that can help you acquire this programming language easier and faster. Because R is often used for statistical analysis, it’s essential to have a strong background in mathematics and statistics. In addition, since R also has applications for data visualization, it’s helpful to be familiar with basic visualization options, such as working with plots and graphs. Some people who learn R also find it helpful to understand fundamental analytics skills and practices so that it will be easier to spot and use the patterns that emerge in data. In addition, you may consider learning basic programming concepts before studying R.
R is known to be challenging to learn for most people. Because its syntax is so different from most other programming languages like Python, it can be hard to read R. In addition, core operations, such as naming, selecting, and renaming variables, tend to be more challenging for most R users than in other languages. For those who have a background in other programming languages or have worked previously in the data sciences, it may be easier to learn R than those who are novices to coding or this field. However, some Data Scientists struggle using R due to its numerous GUIs, extensive commands, and inconsistent function names. Like any skill, the more time you spend becoming familiar with R’s rules, the easier it will be to work with this language.
Read about how difficult it is to learn R programming.
Learn R Programming with Hands-on Training at Noble Desktop
Noble Desktop has several excellent learning options for those new to R and courses for more advanced programmers interested in mastering complex R skills. Noble’s Data Analytics with R Bootcamp is an immersive class designed to take participants from the basics of coding to a portfolio showcasing your experience working with R. Those enrolled receive expert instruction and can retake the class for up to one year to brush up on course materials.
Noble also offers a variety of in-person and live online coding classes that prepare participants to become Data Scientists or Web Developers. Courses are available in popular programming languages such as JavaScript and Python, as well as front end and full stack web development. Certificates are also offered in software engineering and data science. For students seeking instruction about using programming for finance technology, Noble currently has a FinTech bootcamp available as well, which includes one-on-one mentoring for all participants.
In addition to the variety of programming courses Noble teaches, this top educational provider also has several in-person and live online Data Analytics classes. Noble’s Data Analytics Technologies Bootcamp is a beginner-friendly course that prepares students to work with core data analytics tools like SQL, Excel, and Tableau. In addition, a certificate in data analytics is also available for those interested in becoming a Business Analyst or Data Analyst. This rigorous learning opportunity prepares students to perform data analysis, statistical analysis, and data visualization, as well as how to use relational databases. All students receive one-on-one mentoring to help with their learning process.
How to Learn R Programming
Master R programming with hands-on training. Used commonly for data science and data analytics,R is free and open-source, making it a popular choice for programmers of all experience levels.
- Data Analytics with R Bootcamp at Noble Desktop: instructor-led course available in NYC or live online from anywhere
- Find Coding Classes Near You: Search & compare dozens of available courses in-person
- Attend a coding live online (remote/virtual training) from anywhere
- Find & compare the best online coding classes (on-demand) from several providers
- Train your staff with corporate and onsite coding training