EvoPhylo
EvoPhylo added BEAST2 alongside MrBayes, then went quiet for two years.
Comparison · Analytics
qtl vs RadialMR
A side-by-side editorial comparison of qtl and RadialMR — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
Shared themes:r-package
qtl vs RadialMR: at a glance
What is qtl?
R/qtl is in pure custodial mode: every recent release answers a compiler, not a user
R/qtl is the long-established R package for QTL mapping in experimental crosses, covering interval mapping, composite interval mapping, multiple-QTL model fitting and the associated cross data formats. Nothing in the recent release history adds capability. Version 1.74 removes an include that started warning on CRAN, 1.72 improves an error message in cim(), and 1.70 migrates the C code from Calloc/Realloc/Free to their R_-prefixed equivalents for R-devel.
What is RadialMR?
RadialMR's 2026 release corrects degrees of freedom that had been wrong since documentation.
RadialMR implements radial-plot formulations of IVW and MR-Egger Mendelian randomization, with outlier detection and interactive plotting. The recent history is thin on features and increasingly focused on the arithmetic: 1.2.4 in July 2026 fixes the degrees of freedom returned by egger_radial() to the documented n-2, corrects the heterogeneity p-value that inherited the same error, and repairs a negated lower bound in the random-effects bootstrap standard error search interval in ivw_radial().
qtl vs RadialMR: editorial side-by-side
qtl
0.0ANALYTICS
R/qtl is in pure custodial mode: every recent release answers a compiler, not a user
◆ Current state
R/qtl is the long-established R package for QTL mapping in experimental crosses, covering interval mapping, composite interval mapping, multiple-QTL model fitting and the associated cross data formats. Nothing in the recent release history adds capability. Version 1.74 removes an include that started warning on CRAN, 1.72 improves an error message in cim(), and 1.70 migrates the C code from Calloc/Realloc/Free to their R_-prefixed equivalents for R-devel.
◆ Where it's heading
The package is being maintained, not developed. The work divides cleanly into keeping the compiled code building against successive R and toolchain versions, and fixing narrow bugs reported through the issue tracker. The C-level migrations in particular are compliance with R's tightening of its C interface rather than anything chosen. Users should read the stability as maturity: the analysis surface has been fixed for years and the maintainer is keeping it installable.
◆ Prediction
R has continued to restrict its non-API C entry points, and this package has already made two such migrations, so further compile-time compliance work is the most likely content of the next release.
RadialMR
0.0ANALYTICS
RadialMR's 2026 release corrects degrees of freedom that had been wrong since documentation.
◆ Current state
RadialMR implements radial-plot formulations of IVW and MR-Egger Mendelian randomization, with outlier detection and interactive plotting. The recent history is thin on features and increasingly focused on the arithmetic: 1.2.4 in July 2026 fixes the degrees of freedom returned by egger_radial() to the documented n-2, corrects the heterogeneity p-value that inherited the same error, and repairs a negated lower bound in the random-effects bootstrap standard error search interval in ivw_radial().
◆ Where it's heading
This is a package being read closely by its maintainer rather than extended. The 1.2.x line pairs statistical corrections with defensive hardening — an rmr_format class check so unformatted input fails with a clear message, and plotly_radial() dispatching on object class instead of counting list elements. Both are the kind of change made while auditing, not while building.
◆ Prediction
Expect the audit to continue into the remaining estimator internals and print methods rather than new radial variants; the entries show no feature work queued.
Alternatives to qtl and RadialMR
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 qtl or RadialMR.
treespace
treespace ships once every year or two, and only when CRAN or a user forces it.
Rpath
Rpath 1.1.0 learns to read Ecopath's own files, easing migration off the desktop tool.
TAF
TAF keeps turning ICES stock assessments into reproducible, dependency-pinned projects.
parallelDist
parallelDist is in pure preservation mode — one build fix every few years.
cairo
Cairo finally catches R's graphics engine, all the way to GE API 16.
See all qtl alternatives → · See all RadialMR alternatives →
Recent activity from qtl and RadialMR
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 1mo agoRadialMRegger_radial() degrees of freedom corrected to n-2
- 3mo agoRadialMRroxygen2 bumped; package-level helpfile added
- 4mo agoRadialMRUnspecified codebase optimizations
- 8mo agoqtlRemove R_ext/PrtUtil.h include flagged by CRAN
- 8mo agoqtlClearer cim() error when multiple phenotypes are passed
- 1y agoRadialMRggplot2 v4 warning removed from plot_radial()
- 1y agoqtlC memory calls migrated to R_Calloc/R_Realloc/R_Free
- 2y agoqtlFix Rprintf call and remaining compiler warnings
- 2y agoqtlFix summary.scanone() thresholds and csvs phenotype reading
- 3y agoqtlFix addint()/addcovarint() with X chromosome QTL and missing phenotypes
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between qtl and RadialMR?
Both compete on the same themes — r-package — within Analytics. qtl and RadialMR 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 qtl better than RadialMR?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. qtl and RadialMR 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 qtl?
Top qtl alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "qtl alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/qtl-r for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to RadialMR?
Top RadialMR alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "RadialMR alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/radialmr for the full list with editorial commentary on each.