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Comparison · Analytics
brglm2 vs forrel
A side-by-side editorial comparison of brglm2 and forrel — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
brglm2 vs forrel: at a glance
What is brglm2?
A bias-reduction package reaches 1.0 by adding an estimator built for high-dimensional logistic regression
brglm2 fits generalized linear models using mean and median bias reduction rather than plain maximum likelihood, which matters most when ML estimates are infinite or badly biased. The 0.7-0.9 line broadened coverage — negative binomial via brnb(), ordinal superiority measures, the expo() method for exponentiated parameters, add1()/drop1() so step() stops silently producing nonsense. Version 1.0.0 in August 2025 added mdyplFit(), estimating logistic regression by maximum Diaconis-Ylvisaker prior penalized likelihood with optional high-dimensional corrections. The two releases since have tuned that new path.
What is forrel?
forrel is getting faster at the simulations forensic kinship work actually spends its time on.
forrel handles forensic pedigree analysis: kinship likelihood ratios, profile simulation, relationship checking, and missing person calculations. Version 1.9.0 synced with pedtools 2.11.0's loop handling, which the release notes credit with enabling complex pedigrees that were previously intractable, and moved profileSim() to mirai for parallelism. It also added fEstimate() for inbreeding coefficients and parentChildLikelihood() as a fast path for the simplest case.
brglm2 vs forrel: editorial side-by-side
brglm2
0.0ANALYTICS
A bias-reduction package reaches 1.0 by adding an estimator built for high-dimensional logistic regression
◆ Current state
brglm2 fits generalized linear models using mean and median bias reduction rather than plain maximum likelihood, which matters most when ML estimates are infinite or badly biased. The 0.7-0.9 line broadened coverage — negative binomial via brnb(), ordinal superiority measures, the expo() method for exponentiated parameters, add1()/drop1() so step() stops silently producing nonsense. Version 1.0.0 in August 2025 added mdyplFit(), estimating logistic regression by maximum Diaconis-Ylvisaker prior penalized likelihood with optional high-dimensional corrections. The two releases since have tuned that new path.
◆ Where it's heading
The package's older work assumed the classical regime where observations comfortably outnumber parameters. mdyplFit() and its hd_correction argument target the opposite case, and the follow-up releases are almost entirely about it — Pearson residuals on original responses, aliased parameter handling, the sloe() signal-strength estimator ignoring leverage-one observations. Meanwhile the older surface gets graceful-failure work: brglm_fit() now returns its latest estimates with warnings rather than aborting.
◆ Prediction
Given that 1.0.1 and 1.1.0 are both dominated by mdyplFit follow-ups while the classical path receives only robustness fixes, further work on high-dimensional corrections is the likeliest direction.
forrel
0.0ANALYTICS
forrel is getting faster at the simulations forensic kinship work actually spends its time on.
◆ Current state
forrel handles forensic pedigree analysis: kinship likelihood ratios, profile simulation, relationship checking, and missing person calculations. Version 1.9.0 synced with pedtools 2.11.0's loop handling, which the release notes credit with enabling complex pedigrees that were previously intractable, and moved profileSim() to mirai for parallelism. It also added fEstimate() for inbreeding coefficients and parentChildLikelihood() as a fast path for the simplest case.
◆ Where it's heading
Two long threads run through the window. One is making the common operations cheap: faster simulations through reorganized likelihood calculations, a dedicated parent-child path, dropped map attribute preservation, log-likelihoods to avoid underflow in kinshipLR(). The other is making relationship checking presentable, with checkPairwise() growing ggplot2 and plotly output, verbal relationship descriptions, and bootstrap p-values. Reference data is maintained alongside both, with the FORCE SNP panel completed and an X-chromosomal counterpart added.
◆ Prediction
With profileSim() on mirai and the loop handling synced, the next likely step is extending mirai parallelism to the other simulation-heavy functions such as exclusionPower() and the bootstrap in checkPairwise().
Alternatives to brglm2 and forrel
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 brglm2 or forrel.
gcube
gcube's recent releases are all packaging metadata, not simulation code
cubist
The R port of Quinlan's Cubist gets reproducibility fixes, not new modelling
ggstats
ggstats keeps widening what a coefficient or Likert plot can be
ecodive
ecodive rebuilt itself into a broad diversity-metric library, breaking as it went
simStateSpace
State-space data simulation for R, filled in one function at a time
See all brglm2 alternatives → · See all forrel alternatives →
Recent activity from brglm2 and forrel
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 1mo agoforrelmirai parallelism and faster profile simulation
- 3mo agobrglm2brglm2 v1.1.0
- 8mo agobrglm2brglm2 v1.0.1
- 11mo agobrglm21.0.0 adds maximum DY-prior penalized likelihood for logistic regression ⚡
- 1y agobrglm2brglm2 v0.9.3
- 1y agobrglm2brglm2 v0.9.2
- 1y agoforrelFORCE SNP panel completed and X-chromosomal set added
- 1y agoforrelrankProfiles() and access to special lumping
- 1y agoforrelacrossComps argument and readFam() unexported
- 1y agoforrelcheckPairwise() overhauled with p-values and new plot backends
- 2y agoforrelFamilias interoperability split into pedFamilias
- 3y agobrglm2brglm2 v0.9.1
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between brglm2 and forrel?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. brglm2 and forrel 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 brglm2 better than forrel?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. brglm2 and forrel 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 brglm2?
Top brglm2 alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "brglm2 alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/brglm2 for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to forrel?
Top forrel alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "forrel alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/forrel for the full list with editorial commentary on each.