tern.rbmi
Reference-based multiple imputation tables, shipping only what CRAN checks demand.
Comparison · Analytics
grex vs omock
A side-by-side editorial comparison of grex and omock — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
grex vs omock: at a glance
What is grex?
grex is a lookup table with a version number — it ships when the annotation moves.
grex converts the deprecated Ensembl gene IDs found in GTEx data into current gene symbols and identifiers, using org.Hs.eg.db as its reference. Its value is entirely in that bundled reference data, so a release either refreshes the mapping or does nothing to it. The 2025 release does nothing to it: GitHub Actions for the docs site, a check-note fix, and a smaller vignette.
What is omock?
A mock-data generator for OMOP studies that keeps widening what it can fake.
omock builds synthetic OMOP Common Data Model tables so packages in the darwin-eu and OHDSI ecosystem can be tested without touching patient data. The 0.7.0 release adds concept set subsetting with its own vignette, unit and value support in mockMeasurement, observation date validation and cohort attrition initialization, while deprecating mockConcepts. Releases arrive as PR digests rather than written notes.
grex vs omock: editorial side-by-side
grex
0.0ANALYTICS
grex is a lookup table with a version number — it ships when the annotation moves.
◆ Current state
grex converts the deprecated Ensembl gene IDs found in GTEx data into current gene symbols and identifiers, using org.Hs.eg.db as its reference. Its value is entirely in that bundled reference data, so a release either refreshes the mapping or does nothing to it. The 2025 release does nothing to it: GitHub Actions for the docs site, a check-note fix, and a smaller vignette.
◆ Where it's heading
The annotation refreshes stopped. Between 2017 and 2019 the package tracked org.Hs.eg.db through four versions and added the GTEx V7 identifier set; since then the reference has stood still while the releases turned to packaging. That gap matters more here than it would elsewhere — a stale mapping table silently returns outdated symbols rather than failing, so the package's core asset ages invisibly.
◆ Prediction
Nothing in these entries signals a planned data refresh, and the six-year pattern suggests the next release will again be infrastructure. Users needing current annotations should check which org.Hs.eg.db version is bundled rather than assume the version number reflects it.
omock
0.0ANALYTICS
A mock-data generator for OMOP studies that keeps widening what it can fake.
◆ Current state
omock builds synthetic OMOP Common Data Model tables so packages in the darwin-eu and OHDSI ecosystem can be tested without touching patient data. The 0.7.0 release adds concept set subsetting with its own vignette, unit and value support in mockMeasurement, observation date validation and cohort attrition initialization, while deprecating mockConcepts. Releases arrive as PR digests rather than written notes.
◆ Where it's heading
The package has been moving from generating tables to shipping and managing reference datasets — mockDatasets arrived in 0.4.0, mockCdmFromDataset gained a source argument in 0.5.0, and 0.6.1 added download retry handling plus an internal GiBleed dataset after the hosted files moved. The recent work is filling in CDM fidelity: type concepts, measurement units, attrition, and guards for degenerate cases like an empty person table.
◆ Prediction
Expect coverage to keep extending table by table toward the parts of the CDM that omock still cannot mock, with mockConcepts removed outright once the concept set subsetting path settles.
Alternatives to grex and omock
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 grex or omock.
tern.mmrm
An MMRM tabulation package that has published nothing since its 2024 CRAN releases.
ggmagnify
A single-purpose ggplot2 inset tool, refining the same three arguments.
symengine
An R symbolic-maths binding whose changelog is really the C++ core's release notes.
gtfstools
gtfstools stopped guarding its own object model and started accepting everyone else's.
quantities
The glue package that makes R carry units and uncertainty through the same calculation.
Recent activity from grex and omock
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 1mo agoomockConcept set subsetting and richer measurement mocks
- 4mo agoomockDelphi dataset added and CDM version bumped
- 6mo agoomockDataset downloads survive the storage move
- 11mo agoomockJOSS submission tag alongside the 0.5.0 release
- 11mo agoomockmockCdmFromDataset gains a source argument
- 1y agogrexgrex 1.9.1: pkgdown on Actions, smaller vignette
- 1y agoomockmockDatasets introduces bundled reference data
- 7y agogrexgrex 1.9 refreshes the reference to org.Hs.eg.db 3.8.2
- 8y agogrexgrex 1.8 adds GTEx V7 IDs, updates to org.Hs.eg.db 3.6.0
- 8y agogrexgrex 1.7 updates the reference to org.Hs.eg.db 3.4.2
- 8y agogrexgrex 1.6 drops Google Fonts from vignettes
- 9y agogrexgrex 1.5 adds a pkgdown site and refreshes the reference
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between grex and omock?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. grex and omock 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 grex better than omock?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. grex and omock 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 grex?
Top grex alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "grex alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/grex-r for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to omock?
Top omock alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "omock alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/omock-r for the full list with editorial commentary on each.