← Back to home
Comparison · Analytics

socialmixr vs spatstat.model

A side-by-side editorial comparison of socialmixr and spatstat.model — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

socialmixr vs spatstat.model: at a glance

Featuresocialmixrspatstat.model
SectorAnalyticsAnalytics
Velocity score0.02.5
Sparks · 30d00
Top themescontact matrices, epidemiology, pipeline api, breaking changesspatial-statistics, point-processes, model-fitting, r-package
Last editorial update1h ago2h ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is socialmixr?

socialmixr breaks its one-shot contact_matrix() call into a composable pipeline.

socialmixr builds age-structured social contact matrices from survey data for infectious-disease modelling. Version 0.6.0 replaces the monolithic contact_matrix() entry point with a chain of composable steps — filter, assign age groups, weigh, compute, then symmetrise, split or convert per capita — behind a new contact_matrix S3 class. Survey downloading is being handed off to a separate contactsurveys package.

Read the full socialmixr trajectory →

What is spatstat.model?

spatstat's inference layer builds out determinantal and cluster process fitting

spatstat.model fits point process models and provides the diagnostics that go with them. The recent window is dominated by determinantal point process work — a variance-covariance matrix and more diagnostics in 3.7-2, additional `intensity` and `repul` methods in 3.7-1, and ROC curves for determinantal models in 3.5-0. Cluster and Cox process inference has advanced in parallel, with Waagepetersen's composite likelihood arriving in 3.6-1.

Read the full spatstat.model trajectory →

socialmixr vs spatstat.model: editorial side-by-side

S
socialmixr
ANALYTICS
0.0

socialmixr breaks its one-shot contact_matrix() call into a composable pipeline.

◆ Current state

socialmixr builds age-structured social contact matrices from survey data for infectious-disease modelling. Version 0.6.0 replaces the monolithic contact_matrix() entry point with a chain of composable steps — filter, assign age groups, weigh, compute, then symmetrise, split or convert per capita — behind a new contact_matrix S3 class. Survey downloading is being handed off to a separate contactsurveys package.

◆ Where it's heading

The arc from 0.4.0 to 0.6.0 is decomposition: first extracting helpers like assign_age_groups(), then moving downloads out of the package, and now exposing every stage of matrix construction as its own verb. Breaking changes are accepted at each step — preserved empty age groups, arrays instead of xtabs, [N,Inf) labels — with the new class inheriting from list so existing $matrix access keeps working. The label change is explicitly aligned with the contactmatrix package.

◆ Prediction

Expect the deprecated dotted argument names and the remaining in-package download paths to be removed once the contactsurveys handoff completes, leaving contact_matrix() as a thin wrapper over the pipeline.

S2.5

spatstat's inference layer builds out determinantal and cluster process fitting

◆ Current state

spatstat.model fits point process models and provides the diagnostics that go with them. The recent window is dominated by determinantal point process work — a variance-covariance matrix and more diagnostics in 3.7-2, additional `intensity` and `repul` methods in 3.7-1, and ROC curves for determinantal models in 3.5-0. Cluster and Cox process inference has advanced in parallel, with Waagepetersen's composite likelihood arriving in 3.6-1.

◆ Where it's heading

The pattern is that model classes enter the package as fitting machinery first and only later gain the apparatus that makes them usable in practice — standard errors, diagnostics, residuals, model checking. Determinantal processes are visibly midway through that progression, reaching variance-covariance estimation only in the most recent release. Around this, the package has been broadening where models can be fitted at all: replicated point patterns on linear networks in 3.5-0, extended spatial logistic regression, and conversion of recursively partitioned models to tessellations.

◆ Prediction

Expect determinantal model support to keep filling out along the same path other model classes took, since variance estimation has only just arrived and partial residuals already exist for the cluster and Cox families. The entries do not signal a move into three dimensions here, unlike the geometry and simulation packages.

Alternatives to socialmixr and spatstat.model

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 socialmixr or spatstat.model.

See all socialmixr alternatives → · See all spatstat.model alternatives →

Recent activity from socialmixr and spatstat.model

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 18d agospatstat.modelVariance-covariance and diagnostics for determinantal models
  2. 2mo agospatstat.modelMore intensity and repul methods; boundary-aware predictions
  3. 3mo agosocialmixrContact matrices become a composable pipeline
  4. 6mo agosocialmixrPatch: load_survey() handles files without cont_id
  5. 6mo agospatstat.modelComposite likelihood for cluster processes
  6. 6mo agosocialmixrAge-group assignment and population lookup split out
  7. 8mo agospatstat.modelReplicated network models and partial residuals
  8. 10mo agospatstat.modelintensity.ppm improvements for Geyer models
  9. 1y agospatstat.modelROC curve support substantially extended
  10. 1y agosocialmixrFaster survey loading and cached Zenodo lookups
  11. 2y agosocialmixrcontact_matrix() now takes survey objects only
  12. 2y agosocialmixrTest fixes for machine-precision failures

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between socialmixr and spatstat.model?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. spatstat.model 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 socialmixr better than spatstat.model?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. spatstat.model 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 socialmixr?

Top socialmixr alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "socialmixr alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/socialmixr for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to spatstat.model?

Top spatstat.model alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "spatstat.model alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/spatstat-model for the full list with editorial commentary on each.