R
R is an industrial strength open source statistical package. We'll use it for simulation, computation and visualization. Don't worry if you are not familiar with R, we will provide plenty of tutorials and guidance in its use.
R takes two minutes to install. Here are the steps:
- Go to http://www.r-project.org/ Click the 'CRAN' link on the left. Then choose any of the mirror sites.
- Download and install.
- On the Mac download the latest version that works for your machine. You double-click to install.
- On Windows just follow the instructions.
- If you're using Linux you should be able to figure out how to install R.
We will also be using RStudio which provides an integrated environment for working in R. It is also a two-minute install. Here are the steps.
- Go to http://www.rstudio.com/ide/download/desktop
and choose the version for your computer (probably the one 'recommended for your system')
- Download and install.
- On the Mac open the downloaded .dmg file and copy the RStudio application to your Applications folder.
- On Windows install from the downloaded .exe.
- If you're using Linux you should be able to figure out how to install RStudio.
Here is the main page of the R project.
If you're interested you can find lots of information and tutorials on R there.