sdsfun
A spatial-statistics utility package exists to be depended on, and is built accordingly.
Comparison · Analytics
firatheme vs ggmapinset
A side-by-side editorial comparison of firatheme and ggmapinset — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
firatheme vs ggmapinset: at a glance
What is firatheme?
firatheme woke up after four years and started fixing what ggplot2 changed underneath it.
A ggplot2 theme built around the Fira font family. It went quiet after the 2021 releases that made it pass R CMD check cleanly on all three platforms, then returned in December 2025 with a maintenance release solving a ggplot2 deprecation warning and cleaning up text alignment, followed six weeks later by a facet argument to theme_fira() that adds borders and a custom strip background so facet labels stay legible.
What is ggmapinset?
A ggplot2 inset-map extension that is now infrastructure for other packages
ggmapinset adds magnified inset panels to ggplot2 sf maps, handling the coordinate transformation, the inset frame and the sf-related stat layers that have to follow it. The 0.5.0 release is aimed less at end users than at extension authors: coerce_centre() is a new extension point required by sibling package ggautomap, and the inset parameter drops NA in favour of waiver() as its default. It comes from cidm-ph, alongside nswgeo.
firatheme vs ggmapinset: editorial side-by-side
firatheme
0.0ANALYTICS
firatheme woke up after four years and started fixing what ggplot2 changed underneath it.
◆ Current state
A ggplot2 theme built around the Fira font family. It went quiet after the 2021 releases that made it pass R CMD check cleanly on all three platforms, then returned in December 2025 with a maintenance release solving a ggplot2 deprecation warning and cleaning up text alignment, followed six weeks later by a facet argument to theme_fira() that adds borders and a custom strip background so facet labels stay legible.
◆ Where it's heading
The pattern of the revival is compatibility first, then the gap users actually hit. Faceting is the obvious hole in any hand-built theme — strip labels are where a theme that looks right on a single panel falls apart — and it arrived immediately after the deprecation cleanup, from a new contributor who has now made every recent change. Note the 0.2.4 release notes restate 0.2.3's contents rather than describing new work.
◆ Prediction
With faceting handled, further releases most likely track ggplot2 deprecations; the entries don't support a stronger claim than that.
ggmapinset
0.0ANALYTICS
A ggplot2 inset-map extension that is now infrastructure for other packages
◆ Current state
ggmapinset adds magnified inset panels to ggplot2 sf maps, handling the coordinate transformation, the inset frame and the sf-related stat layers that have to follow it. The 0.5.0 release is aimed less at end users than at extension authors: coerce_centre() is a new extension point required by sibling package ggautomap, and the inset parameter drops NA in favour of waiver() as its default. It comes from cidm-ph, alongside nswgeo.
◆ Where it's heading
The package has moved steadily from feature to foundation. 0.3.0 replaced confusing parameter names and rebuilt everything on stat_sf_inset() so coordinate limits stayed correct, then exposed transform_to_inset() explicitly for extension developers. 0.4.0 generalised inset shapes beyond circles to rectangles and arbitrary sf geometries. 0.5.0 continues in that direction, changing defaults in ways that require downstream extensions to adapt — the cost of being depended upon.
◆ Prediction
Expect further extension points driven by what ggautomap and the other cidm-ph mapping packages need, with the user-facing inset API staying largely settled after the shape generalisation.
Alternatives to firatheme and ggmapinset
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 firatheme or ggmapinset.
eulerr
The area-proportional Euler diagram package is finished software, and maintained like it.
intsurv
A Cox cure-rate model package woke up after four years to simplify its own interface.
miscmetabar
A phyloseq toolbox keeps absorbing metabarcoding methods, and has started splitting into a family.
arcgisutils
The R-ArcGIS plumbing layer grew a portal administration API and geoprocessing job support.
bootStateSpace
A parametric bootstrap for state-space models, shipped and then left alone.
See all firatheme alternatives → · See all ggmapinset alternatives →
Recent activity from firatheme and ggmapinset
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 4mo agoggmapinsetNew extension point for ggautomap; waiver() replaces NA
- 7mo agofirathemeFaceting support with borders and custom strips
- 8mo agofirathemeText alignment cleanup and ggplot2 deprecation fix
- 1y agoggmapinsetRectangular and arbitrary sf inset shapes
- 3y agoggmapinsetRebuilt on stat_sf_inset() with corrected coordinate limits
- 5y agofirathemeClean builds across all three platforms
- 5y agofirathemetheme_fira no longer returns a list
- 6y agofirathemeInitial citable release
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between firatheme and ggmapinset?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. firatheme and ggmapinset 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 firatheme better than ggmapinset?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. firatheme and ggmapinset 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 firatheme?
Top firatheme alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "firatheme alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/firatheme for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to ggmapinset?
Top ggmapinset alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "ggmapinset alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/ggmapinset for the full list with editorial commentary on each.