tidytlg
A tables-listings-graphs package that reached CRAN and then went quiet.
Comparison · Analytics
hoardr vs rstantools
A side-by-side editorial comparison of hoardr and rstantools — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
Shared themes:r-package
hoardr vs rstantools: at a glance
What is hoardr?
A cache-directory helper that has shipped nothing but CRAN-triggered patches for seven years.
hoardr manages local cache directories for other R packages — where files go, how they are keyed, whether they exist. It underpins caching in several rOpenSci data clients. The last functional additions were in 2018; everything since is a patch issued because CRAN reported a test failure or the maintainer changed.
What is rstantools?
The scaffolding layer for Stan-backed R packages, maintained rather than extended.
rstantools generates and maintains the build infrastructure that lets an R package ship Stan models — the inst/stan layout, the auto-generated C++, the Rcpp module loading, and the posterior_* generics downstream packages implement. Its releases are dominated by keeping that scaffolding compiling as Stan, StanHeaders, and rstan move underneath it. Version 2.7.0 continues that pattern, its one user-facing change being an allowance for deprecated syntax in specified versions of specified packages.
hoardr vs rstantools: editorial side-by-side
hoardr
0.0ANALYTICS
A cache-directory helper that has shipped nothing but CRAN-triggered patches for seven years.
◆ Current state
hoardr manages local cache directories for other R packages — where files go, how they are keyed, whether they exist. It underpins caching in several rOpenSci data clients. The last functional additions were in 2018; everything since is a patch issued because CRAN reported a test failure or the maintainer changed.
◆ Where it's heading
This is infrastructure that has reached its final shape. Three of the last three releases were reactive: two responses to CRAN test-failure notifications, one to a maintainer handover. The single behavioural change in that stretch — forward slashes in paths on every operating system — is a consistency fix for downstream packages rather than a feature. Its release cadence is set by CRAN's checks, not by demand.
◆ Prediction
Expect the next release to be triggered by another CRAN check failure rather than by new functionality, matching every release since 2018.
rstantools
2.5ANALYTICS
The scaffolding layer for Stan-backed R packages, maintained rather than extended.
◆ Current state
rstantools generates and maintains the build infrastructure that lets an R package ship Stan models — the inst/stan layout, the auto-generated C++, the Rcpp module loading, and the posterior_* generics downstream packages implement. Its releases are dominated by keeping that scaffolding compiling as Stan, StanHeaders, and rstan move underneath it. Version 2.7.0 continues that pattern, its one user-facing change being an allowance for deprecated syntax in specified versions of specified packages.
◆ Where it's heading
This is a stable dependency in maintenance mode, and the release history reads accordingly: compatibility shims for new rstan and Stan RNG versions, C++ standard bumps, and pkgdown housekeeping. The last substantive API growth was 2.5.0's loo_epred() generic and discrete-data loo_pit(). Contributor churn is visible in recent releases, with several first-time contributors handling infrastructure rather than statistics.
◆ Prediction
Expect the next releases to continue tracking Stan and rstan breakage as it arrives; nothing in the recent entries points to new generics or a change in the package-generation model.
Alternatives to hoardr and rstantools
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 hoardr or rstantools.
Tplyr
Tplyr made clinical summary tables explain where every number came from.
rlistings
Clinical listings that keep inheriting their hardest problem — pagination — from the layer below.
gigs
gigs redesigned its whole conversion API for rOpenSci, then spent three releases getting the docs to build.
riem
A weather-data client that keeps rewriting its HTTP layer while slowly tightening its API.
datasetjson
datasetjson rebuilt its object model to track the CDISC Dataset-JSON 1.1 schema.
See all hoardr alternatives → · See all rstantools alternatives →
Recent activity from hoardr and rstantools
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 19d agorstantoolsDeprecated syntax allowed for pinned package versions
- 7mo agorstantoolspkgdown theme refresh, C++14 dropped from SystemRequirements
- 11mo agorstantoolsloo_epred() generic added, loo_pit() extended to discrete data
- 1y agohoardrPaths use forward slashes on every platform
- 2y agorstantoolsStandalone Stan functions fixed for rstan 2.33+
- 2y agohoardrTest-only patch for a CRAN failure
- 3y agorstantoolsinit_cpp deprecated, standalone-function bugfix under Stan 2.31
- 3y agorstantoolsC++17 standard adopted, standalone function export reworked
- 3y agohoardrPatch release for maintainer handover
- 7y agohoardrFixes cache paths leaking between HoardClient instances
- 7y agohoardrFile-existence checks and full-path cache configuration
- 9y agohoardrCRAN disk-writing policy compliance
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between hoardr and rstantools?
Both compete on the same themes — r-package — within Analytics. rstantools is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 2.5 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.
Is hoardr better than rstantools?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. rstantools is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 2.5 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Analytics products to evaluate alongside.
What are the best alternatives to hoardr?
Top hoardr alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "hoardr alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/hoardr for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to rstantools?
Top rstantools alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "rstantools alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/rstantools for the full list with editorial commentary on each.