r2rtf
The clinical-report table engine learned Chinese, then learned to leave RTF entirely
Comparison · Analytics
maplegend vs slider
A side-by-side editorial comparison of maplegend and slider — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
maplegend vs slider: at a glance
What is maplegend?
The legend engine mapsf spun out, now covering legend types the parent map package can draw.
maplegend draws the legends for base-R thematic maps, extracted from mapsf so both packages could evolve the legend vocabulary independently. It has been catching up to the map types it has to serve: 0.6.0 added choro_point, choro_line, and choro_symb for choropleth legends rendered on circles, lines, and symbols, following the histogram legend type in 0.4.0. Considerable effort has gone into behaving correctly when the plot aspect ratio is not 1, which required refactoring most of the package in 0.4.0 and still produced a proportional-symbol segment sizing fix in 0.6.3.
What is slider?
Feature-complete since 2021, and every release since has been paying CRAN's C API bill
slider provides sliding-window and index-aware window functions for R, with a C implementation underneath and a specialised fast path for common aggregations. The user-facing surface has been stable since 0.3.0 in late 2022. Everything after that is compliance and platform work: STRING_PTR removed in 0.3.2, OBJECT() removed in 0.3.3, a vctrs callable's C signature corrected, and the minimum R version raised twice.
maplegend vs slider: editorial side-by-side
maplegend
0.0ANALYTICS
The legend engine mapsf spun out, now covering legend types the parent map package can draw.
◆ Current state
maplegend draws the legends for base-R thematic maps, extracted from mapsf so both packages could evolve the legend vocabulary independently. It has been catching up to the map types it has to serve: 0.6.0 added choro_point, choro_line, and choro_symb for choropleth legends rendered on circles, lines, and symbols, following the histogram legend type in 0.4.0. Considerable effort has gone into behaving correctly when the plot aspect ratio is not 1, which required refactoring most of the package in 0.4.0 and still produced a proportional-symbol segment sizing fix in 0.6.3.
◆ Where it's heading
This is a support library whose backlog is defined by its caller. Every legend type mapsf can produce needs a matching legend renderer, and the release notes are dominated by spacing, offset, and border details — box_cex for symbol spacing, NA box placement in horizontal choropleth legends, text overflow when no_data is set. The shared vocabulary with mapsf is being maintained deliberately, with val_rnd, val_big, and val_dec propagating through legend types release by release. Version numbering is not monotonic in this feed, with 0.4.0 published seconds after 0.5.0.
◆ Prediction
Expect the remaining combined map types to acquire matching legends and the val_* formatting arguments to reach the types that still lack them.
slider
0.0ANALYTICS
Feature-complete since 2021, and every release since has been paying CRAN's C API bill
◆ Current state
slider provides sliding-window and index-aware window functions for R, with a C implementation underneath and a specialised fast path for common aggregations. The user-facing surface has been stable since 0.3.0 in late 2022. Everything after that is compliance and platform work: STRING_PTR removed in 0.3.2, OBJECT() removed in 0.3.3, a vctrs callable's C signature corrected, and the minimum R version raised twice.
◆ Where it's heading
Two forces set the release schedule, and neither is feature demand. The first is CRAN closing off non-API C entry points, which packages reaching into R internals for speed have to unwind one accessor at a time — slider is on its second such release with no visible loss of function. The second is vctrs, whose breaking changes slider absorbs ahead of time; 0.2.2 exists solely to prepare for one. The last release that added anything callers can see was 0.3.0's slider_plus() and slider_minus() extension hooks.
◆ Prediction
Expect the pattern to continue: another non-API accessor removal or a vctrs compatibility release, rather than new window functions. The C-level surface is the only part of this package still moving.
Alternatives to maplegend and slider
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 maplegend or slider.
DoseFinding
New stewardship at openpharma, then two releases adding the methods MCP-Mod was missing
webmockr
The stubbing library added httr2 support, then spent a year cutting itself free of everything else
crul
crul took mocking back from webmockr and made it a property of the client itself
dendroNetwork
Six releases, six identical bodies — the feed carries the package abstract instead of release notes
chattr
chattr deleted every LLM integration it had written and outsourced the lot to ellmer
See all maplegend alternatives → · See all slider alternatives →
Recent activity from maplegend and slider
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 2mo agomaplegendContinuous legend formatting and aspect-ratio segment fix
- 4mo agomaplegendChoropleth legends on points, lines and symbols
- 7mo agomaplegendPackage-wide refactor for non-unity aspect ratios, histogram legends
- 7mo agomaplegendSingle-modality legends allowed for typo, symb and prop_line
- 9mo agosliderNon-API OBJECT() removed and a vctrs C signature fixed
- 1y agomaplegendAlpha transparency and redraw on device resize
- 1y agomaplegendOffset and symbol sizing aligned with mapsf
- 1y agosliderNon-API STRING_PTR removed; R 4.0.0 now required
- 2y agosliderValgrind test fixes and dependency version bumps
- 3y agosliderExtension hooks let clock and almanac types serve as an index
- 5y agosliderInternal vec_order usage updated ahead of a vctrs break
- 5y agosliderlong double alignment issue fixed for CRAN sanitisers
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between maplegend and slider?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. maplegend and slider 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 maplegend better than slider?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. maplegend and slider 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 maplegend?
Top maplegend alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "maplegend alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/maplegend for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to slider?
Top slider alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "slider alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/slider for the full list with editorial commentary on each.