qqman
The Manhattan-plot package for GWAS results, finished and dormant since 2017.
Comparison · Analytics
constants vs windex
A side-by-side editorial comparison of constants and windex — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
constants vs windex: at a glance
What is constants?
The R package for CODATA constants rebuilt its symbol table on NIST's naming so future updates stop being hand work.
constants exposes the CODATA recommended values of the physical constants to R, as a data frame plus symbol lists that carry units, uncertainties, or both. The package reached 1.0.0 on the 2018 CODATA release and has shipped once since, purely to track a units package update. Its surface is small and its release cadence is bound to CODATA, which revises every few years.
What is windex?
Steady, unglamorous upkeep on a niche phylogenetic adaptation index.
windex calculates the Wheatsheaf index for measuring adaptation in a phylogenetic comparative framework, with supporting simulation tests and node-distance tooling. Recent releases have loosened the input format requirements, improved troubleshooting in treedatacheck, and added a barplot for fitted logistic regression models. The package's analytic core is unchanged across the visible window.
constants vs windex: editorial side-by-side
constants
0.0ANALYTICS
The R package for CODATA constants rebuilt its symbol table on NIST's naming so future updates stop being hand work.
◆ Current state
constants exposes the CODATA recommended values of the physical constants to R, as a data frame plus symbol lists that carry units, uncertainties, or both. The package reached 1.0.0 on the 2018 CODATA release and has shipped once since, purely to track a units package update. Its surface is small and its release cadence is bound to CODATA, which revises every few years.
◆ Where it's heading
The direction set at 1.0.0 was to stop being a curated convenience wrapper and become a mechanical mirror of NIST. Hand-crafted symbol names were replaced with NIST's own ASCII symbols, categories adopted NIST's, and uncertainty switched from relative to absolute — all framed by the maintainer as necessary to make future CODATA updates routine. On top of that the package gained a correlation matrix and optional integration with the quantities package, moving it from a lookup table toward something that can propagate uncertainty.
◆ Prediction
Having rebuilt the symbol table specifically so CODATA revisions become mechanical, the next substantive release most likely tracks a new CODATA dataset rather than adding API. The experimental correlated-value support, disabled by default at 1.0.0, is the one part these entries flag as unfinished.
windex
0.0ANALYTICS
Steady, unglamorous upkeep on a niche phylogenetic adaptation index.
◆ Current state
windex calculates the Wheatsheaf index for measuring adaptation in a phylogenetic comparative framework, with supporting simulation tests and node-distance tooling. Recent releases have loosened the input format requirements, improved troubleshooting in treedatacheck, and added a barplot for fitted logistic regression models. The package's analytic core is unchanged across the visible window.
◆ Where it's heading
Every release in this window is a variation on the same theme: make existing functions easier to use and their plots easier to customise. Some releases exist only to satisfy CRAN policy changes with no functional difference. This is a stable single-purpose package where usability friction, not method development, drives the work.
◆ Prediction
Expect further small usability and plotting additions on the same roughly annual cadence; nothing here points to new methods.
Alternatives to constants and windex
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 constants or windex.
austraits
The R client for AusTraits spends its releases chasing the dataset it reads.
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 constants alternatives → · See all windex alternatives →
Recent activity from constants and windex
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 1y agowindexRelaxes input formats; adds logistic regression barplots
- 2y agowindexwindex 2.0.8
- 2y agowindexnodeDist returns age distributions; plot axes customisable
- 2y agowindexCRAN policy compliance release, no functional change
- 5y agowindexMerges sister-clade functions into richYuleInputs
- 5y agoconstantsCompatibility fix for units 0.7-0
- 5y agowindexAdds modSel.geiger for geiger model selection tables
- 5y agoconstantsconstants 1.0.0 ⚡
- 8y agoconstantsUnit handling fixes ahead of the 1.0.0 rebuild
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between constants and windex?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. constants and windex 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 constants better than windex?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. constants and windex 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 constants?
Top constants alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "constants alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/constants-r for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to windex?
Top windex alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "windex alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/windex-r for the full list with editorial commentary on each.