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chromer

ANALYTICS
Velocity0.0

package for interacting with the chromosome counts database (CCDB) at https://taux.evolseq.net/CCDB_web/

github.com/ropensci/chromer ↗

A chromosome-count database client that only ever ships when the upstream API moves.

ropenscir-packageapi-clientbiodiversitymaintenancecran
◆Current state
chromer is a thin R client for the Chromosome Counts Database. Every release in the past three years is maintenance: a new maintainer and licence change in 0.3, test-skipping when the upstream service is down in 0.4, and two separate releases whose entire content is that the database's URL changed again. The current 0.10 points at ccdb.tau.ac.il/services/.
◆Where it's heading
The package is functionally complete and externally driven — its release cadence is a record of the CCDB's hosting history rather than of any development plan. The defensive work in 0.4, which added an internal check for whether the database is down and skips tests accordingly, shows the maintainer treating upstream instability as the permanent condition rather than an incident.
◆Prediction
The next release will most likely be triggered by another CCDB endpoint or format change; nothing in the history suggests new functionality is planned.

◆Recent moves

  1. 1y ago

    Chromosome Counts Database endpoint moved again

    The API moved to ccdb.tau.ac.il/services/ and the client follows. Framed as a minor change, but without it the package does not return data at all — the second such move in as many years.

    View source ↗
  2. 2y ago

    Database URL updated after upstream move

    A one-line release chasing a changed Chromosome Counts Database URL. It restores a broken client rather than adding anything.

    View source ↗
  3. 2y ago

    API calls switched to https

    API requests move from http to https. Overdue transport hygiene for a package that queries a remote database.

    View source ↗
  4. 2y ago

    Documentation tweak for a CRAN check

    A small documentation change to clear a CRAN problem. Nothing user-facing.

    View source ↗
  5. 3y ago

    Tests skipped when the upstream database is down

    Tests are skipped on CRAN and an internal check detects when CCDB is unreachable. A concession that the package's health depends on a service it does not control.

    View source ↗
  6. 3y ago

    New maintainer; licence changes from CC0 to MIT

    Karl Broman takes over maintenance, the licence moves from CC0 to MIT, and the package picks up GitHub Actions plus tidyverse compatibility fixes. The handover is what kept the package alive through the URL churn that followed.

    View source ↗