tidytlg
A tables-listings-graphs package that reached CRAN and then went quiet.
Comparison · Analytics
hoardr vs serofoi
A side-by-side editorial comparison of hoardr and serofoi — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
hoardr vs serofoi: 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 serofoi?
serofoi grew a serosurvey simulator alongside the force-of-infection models it was built to fit.
serofoi estimates the force of infection from serological survey data using Bayesian serocatalytic models fitted through Stan. Beyond fitting it now simulates serosurveys — specifying a model and a survey design and generating the data such a survey would produce. The most recent release is visualisation and naming work.
hoardr vs serofoi: 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.
serofoi
0.0ANALYTICS
serofoi grew a serosurvey simulator alongside the force-of-infection models it was built to fit.
◆ Current state
serofoi estimates the force of infection from serological survey data using Bayesian serocatalytic models fitted through Stan. Beyond fitting it now simulates serosurveys — specifying a model and a survey design and generating the data such a survey would produce. The most recent release is visualisation and naming work.
◆ Where it's heading
The package moved from fitting-only to a fit-and-simulate pair. 0.1.0 added simulation from time- or age-varying force-of-infection trends and simplified the fitted object down to a Stan fit; 1.0.2 broadened simulation into full serosurvey generation with its own vignette. 1.0.3 then spent its effort on naming consistency and plotting options, which is what a package does once its scope is set.
◆ Prediction
With simulation and fitting both in place, the natural next step is tooling that closes the loop between them — recovery checks or study-design guidance built on simulated surveys.
Alternatives to hoardr and serofoi
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 serofoi.
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 serofoi alternatives →
Recent activity from hoardr and serofoi
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 1y agoserofoiConstant FoI plots, r-hat plotting and shorter parameter names
- 1y agohoardrPaths use forward slashes on every platform
- 1y agoserofoiSerological surveys can now be simulated end to end
- 2y agoserofoiSimulation functions added; fitted output simplified to a Stan fit
- 2y agohoardrTest-only patch for a CRAN failure
- 3y agoserofoiFirst release: three force-of-infection models and the core modules
- 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 serofoi?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. hoardr and serofoi 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 hoardr better than serofoi?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. hoardr and serofoi 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 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 serofoi?
Top serofoi alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "serofoi alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/serofoi for the full list with editorial commentary on each.