Preliminary Setup for PSY 560

Instructions: Here is a step-by-step guide to setting up the necessary software for the course. This can be painful. Be patient. Go slow. Keep this open as a separate web browser to help with installation. In the end, you’ll be rewarded with a sophisticated and state-of-the art workflow that will allow you to participate in powerful and reproducible research.

Required Installation

1. Installing and Working with R & R Studio

R is the engine that does the work and runs the programs that does the data importing, management, visualization and modeling. R Studio is the IDE that makes R a bit more aesthically pleasing while also adding some functionality. They are separate. You’ll need both of them for the class

R & R Studio Setup Instructions Some tips and troubleshooting for the setting up R and R Studio.

2. GitHub Registration and Installing Git

Git is the engine that helps us manage the workflow of our projects. Git is software for version control that will manage all the code that you work with and revise. It’s like a Google Doc but a bit more intense. Git and GitHub are both separate software. Github is to Git what R Studio is to R. GitHub dependes on Git like R Studio depends on R. Github and other git clients like GitKraken and Source Tree can helpful for avoiding the dark abyss of the command line.

Git & GitHub Setup Instructions.

Cleaning up your Workspace

Live in the Cloud

3. Google Drive At CLU (Extra)

The email at CLU is run through Google and storage is unlimited. The easiest workflow is when you have installed Google Drive. The following are directions for installing Google Drive.

Download the Google Drive at Google Drive.
Sign in using your “astudent[@]callutheran.edu” and not your personal email (e.g., caligirl88).
A little icon will appear somewhere on the top (Mac) or bottom (Windows) bar of your screen. Click on that and it will allow you to go where that Google Folder is stored locally on your computer. You can move that folder to anywhere you like on your computer.
You can create a PSYC560 folder in it if you like. Make an alias/shortcut to your desktop. Voila. You’re always backed up.