qqman
The Manhattan-plot package for GWAS results, finished and dormant since 2017.
Comparison · Analytics
austraits vs enpls
A side-by-side editorial comparison of austraits and enpls — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
austraits vs enpls: at a glance
What is austraits?
The R client for AusTraits spends its releases chasing the dataset it reads.
austraits is the R access layer for the AusTraits plant trait database, and its release history is almost entirely a record of keeping pace with two upstream systems it does not control: the austraits.build data releases and the Zenodo archive that hosts them. The most recent release adds a version-dispatch layer so the same package can read both v4.x and v5.0.0 data. Three of the four visible tags were backfilled to GitHub within 23 minutes of each other, so version order and publication order do not agree.
What is enpls?
enpls has not changed its statistics since 2016 — only its website, twice.
enpls implements ensemble partial least squares regression, with variants for feature selection, outlier detection and model applicability. Across the six most recent releases there is not one change to the modeling code. They cover a documentation website, a website URL change, a font stack, code indentation, a CI service, and most recently a GitHub Actions migration with an R CMD check note fix.
austraits vs enpls: editorial side-by-side
austraits
0.0ANALYTICS
The R client for AusTraits spends its releases chasing the dataset it reads.
◆ Current state
austraits is the R access layer for the AusTraits plant trait database, and its release history is almost entirely a record of keeping pace with two upstream systems it does not control: the austraits.build data releases and the Zenodo archive that hosts them. The most recent release adds a version-dispatch layer so the same package can read both v4.x and v5.0.0 data. Three of the four visible tags were backfilled to GitHub within 23 minutes of each other, so version order and publication order do not agree.
◆ Where it's heading
The package is converging on a stable public vocabulary and a versioned internal. Sites became locations across every join, plot and extract function; the extract_ and print family filled out at 1.0.0; and by 2.2.2 the core functions each carry a switch on the detected data version rather than assuming one schema. The visible cost of that is dependency churn — plotting packages moved to Suggests, which the notes admit can leave core functions unable to run.
◆ Prediction
Given that every release so far has been triggered by an upstream austraits.build or Zenodo change, the next one most likely follows the next data release rather than any independent roadmap. The entries do not indicate new analysis capability being planned in the client itself.
enpls
0.0ANALYTICS
enpls has not changed its statistics since 2016 — only its website, twice.
◆ Current state
enpls implements ensemble partial least squares regression, with variants for feature selection, outlier detection and model applicability. Across the six most recent releases there is not one change to the modeling code. They cover a documentation website, a website URL change, a font stack, code indentation, a CI service, and most recently a GitHub Actions migration with an R CMD check note fix.
◆ Where it's heading
The statistical work finished around version 5.6, which added cross-validation fold control and fixed component selection when the maximum was left unspecified. Everything since has kept the package installable and its docs online. The 2025 release arriving the same day as sibling package grex, with the same two fixes, confirms the pattern: these are maintainer sweeps across a portfolio, not attention to enpls specifically.
◆ Prediction
The next release will almost certainly be another CRAN or tooling fix. Six consecutive infrastructure-only releases across nine years give no basis for expecting new methods.
Alternatives to austraits and enpls
Other Analytics products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either austraits or enpls.
constants
The R package for CODATA constants rebuilt its symbol table on NIST's naming so future updates stop being hand work.
ggdemetra
A ggplot2 layer for seasonal adjustment output, filling in one plot type at a time.
fossilsim
A fossil-record simulator that quietly grew a trait-evolution engine.
tern.rbmi
Reference-based multiple imputation tables, shipping only what CRAN checks demand.
tern.mmrm
An MMRM tabulation package that has published nothing since its 2024 CRAN releases.
See all austraits alternatives → · See all enpls alternatives →
Recent activity from austraits and enpls
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 1y agoenplsenpls 6.1.1 moves pkgdown to GitHub Actions
- 2y agoaustraitsSupport for AusTraits 5.0.0 data and the rebuilt Zenodo API
- 3y agoaustraitsextract_taxa, lookup_trait and print methods arrive
- 3y agoaustraitsVignette build and extract_ function polish
- 3y agoaustraitssite becomes location across the API; AusTraits 3.0.2+ support
- 7y agoenplsenpls 6.1 adopts tidyverse code style
- 8y agoenplsenpls 6.0 changes the documentation URL
- 8y agoenplsenpls 5.9 drops Google Fonts from vignettes
- 9y agoenplsenpls 5.8 updates gallery images, enables HTTPS
- 9y agoenplsenpls 5.7 adds a pkgdown site and Windows CI
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between austraits and enpls?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. austraits and enpls are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 0.0 vs 0.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.
Is austraits better than enpls?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. austraits and enpls are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 0.0 vs 0.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Analytics products to evaluate alongside.
What are the best alternatives to austraits?
Top austraits alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "austraits alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/austraits-r for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to enpls?
Top enpls alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "enpls alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/enpls for the full list with editorial commentary on each.