tidytlg
A tables-listings-graphs package that reached CRAN and then went quiet.
Comparison · Analytics
hoardr vs tidymodels
A side-by-side editorial comparison of hoardr and tidymodels — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
hoardr vs tidymodels: 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 tidymodels?
The meta-package ships almost nothing, which is exactly what a version-pinning shim should do
The tidymodels package is a loader and version pin for the modeling framework's core set rather than a place where features live. Its entire changelog consists of updated dependency versions, adjustments to how tidymodels_prefer() resolves name conflicts against other packages, and the occasional addition of a package to the core set — workflowsets in 0.1.3, tailor in 1.4.0. The most recent releases moved the package's own code from the magrittr pipe to R's base pipe and patched a bug where some attached packages were omitted.
hoardr vs tidymodels: 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.
tidymodels
0.0ANALYTICS
The meta-package ships almost nothing, which is exactly what a version-pinning shim should do
◆ Current state
The tidymodels package is a loader and version pin for the modeling framework's core set rather than a place where features live. Its entire changelog consists of updated dependency versions, adjustments to how tidymodels_prefer() resolves name conflicts against other packages, and the occasional addition of a package to the core set — workflowsets in 0.1.3, tailor in 1.4.0. The most recent releases moved the package's own code from the magrittr pipe to R's base pipe and patched a bug where some attached packages were omitted.
◆ Where it's heading
Release cadence tracks the ecosystem rather than any roadmap of its own: a version bump when member packages release, a tidymodels_prefer() rule when a new conflict appears — DALEX::explains() over dplyr::explains(), recipes::update() over other update() methods. Additions to the core set are the only structurally interesting events, and there have been two in seven releases. Everything else is plumbing that exists so a single library() call attaches a consistent set of versions.
◆ Prediction
The next release will most likely be another version-set update, with any new core package the only thing worth noting. Feature news for this framework will keep arriving in the member packages, not here.
Alternatives to hoardr and tidymodels
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 tidymodels.
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 tidymodels alternatives →
Recent activity from hoardr and tidymodels
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 11mo agotidymodelsFix for packages omitted from attachment
- 11mo agotidymodelstailor joins the core set; base pipe replaces magrittr
- 1y agotidymodelsConflict preferences added for DALEX and recipes
- 1y agohoardrPaths use forward slashes on every platform
- 2y agohoardrTest-only patch for a CRAN failure
- 3y agotidymodelsConflict preferences and pinned versions refreshed
- 3y agohoardrPatch release for maintainer handover
- 4y agotidymodelsVersion refresh and testthat 3e migration
- 4y agotidymodelsRotating startup messages and an analysis template
- 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 tidymodels?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. hoardr and tidymodels 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 tidymodels?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. hoardr and tidymodels 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 tidymodels?
Top tidymodels alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "tidymodels alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/tidymodels for the full list with editorial commentary on each.