Dear Bob, In my copy of the R FAQ (from the Rgui for Windows), these is no space between entries which, when copied to a text file, look like:
AMORE A MORE flexible neural network package, providing the TAO robust neural network algorithm. AlgDesign Algorithmic experimental designs. Calculates exact and approximate theory experimental designs for D, A, and I criteria. etc. For this, the following works: packages <- readLines("c:/temp/Packages.txt") packages <- gsub("^\ *", "", gsub("\ *$", "", packages)) # get rid of leading and trailing blanks packages <- matrix(packages, ncol=2, byrow=TRUE) write.table(packages, "c:/temp/Packages2.txt", sep=",", row.names=FALSE, col.names=FALSE) Producing a comma-separated text file that can be imported into Excel, and that looks like: "AMORE","A MORE flexible neural network package, providing the TAO robust neural network algorithm." "AlgDesign","Algorithmic experimental designs. Calculates exact and approximate theory experimental designs for D, A, and I criteria." etc. If you started with blank lines between packages, then (making sure that there is a blank line after the last package in the input file) you could adapt this as: packages <- readLines("c:/temp/Packages.txt") packages <- gsub("^\ *", "", gsub("\ *$", "", packages)) packages <- matrix(packages, ncol=3, byrow=TRUE) write.table(packages[,1:2], "c:/temp/Packages2.txt", sep=",", row.names=FALSE, col.names=FALSE) I hope this helps, John -------------------------------- John Fox Department of Sociology McMaster University Hamilton, Ontario Canada L8S 4M4 905-525-9140x23604 http://socserv.mcmaster.ca/jfox -------------------------------- > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Bob Green > Sent: Monday, December 05, 2005 6:58 PM > To: r-help@stat.math.ethz.ch > Subject: [R] is it possible to use R to edit an EXCEL > spreadsheet so I can create a searchable EXCEL database of R packages? > > I have copied the R FAQ pertaining to available packages into > an EXCEL file. They take the following form - > > Design > Regression modeling, testing, estimation, validation, > graphics, prediction, and typesetting by storing enhanced > model design attributes in the fit. > Design is a etc. > > Devore5 > Data sets and sample analyses from "Probability and > Statistics for Engineering and the Sciences (5th ed)" by Jay > L. Devore, 2000, Duxbury. > > > > Presently the above format can be represented as: > > package name > package description > space > > I want to change the format so that file name and description are in > adjacent columns and the space is removed > > package name package description > package name package description > > > Is this possible in R so I can create a searchable EXCEL > database of R > packages. I imagine this would be easily carried out using > PERL though was > interested to know R's capacity to work on textual data? > > > Any assistance regarding this is appreciated, > > > Bob Green > ______________________________________________ R-help@stat.math.ethz.ch mailing list https://stat.ethz.ch/mailman/listinfo/r-help PLEASE do read the posting guide! http://www.R-project.org/posting-guide.html