How do you combine “Revision Control” with “Workflow” for R?

Question

I remember coming across R users writing that they use \"Revision control\" (e.g: \"Source control\"), and I am curious to know: How do you combine \"Revision control\" with

Answer 1

After reading your update, it seems like you are viewing the choice and use of a version control systems as dictating the structure of your repository and workflow. In my opinion, version control is more akin to an insurance policy as it provides the following services:

1. Backups. If something gets accidentally deleted or the whims of fate fry your hard drive your work can be recovered from the repository. With distributed version control nothing short of the apocalypse can cause you to loose work-- in which case you'll probably have other things to worry about anyway.

2. The mother of all undo buttons. Was the analysis looking better an hour ago? a day ago? a week ago? Version control provides a rewind button that allows you to travel back in time.

If you are the only person working on a project, the above two points probably outline how version control systems will affect the way you work.

The other side of version control systems is that they foster collaborative efforts by allowing people to experiment on an isolated copy or "branch" of the project material and then "merge" any positive changes back into the master copy. It also provides a means for project members to keep tabs on who's changes affected which lines of which files.

As an example, I keep all of my college coursework under version control in a Subversion repository. I am the only one who works on this repository so I never branch or merge the source-- I just commit and occasionally rewind. The ability to rewind my work reduces the risks of trying some sort of new analysis-- I just do it. If two hours later it looks like it wasn't such a good idea, I just revert the project files and try something different.

In contrast, most all of my non-coursework package/program development is hosted under git. In this sort of a setting I frequently want to experiment on a branch while having a stable master copy available. I use git rather than Subversion in these situations because git makes branching and merging an effortless task.

The important point is that in both of these cases the structure of my repository and the workflow I use are not decided by my version control system-- they are decided by me. The only impact the version control has on my workflow is that it frees me from worrying about trying something new, deciding I don't like it, and then having to undo all the changes to get back to where I started. Because I use version control, I can follow Yogi Berra's advice:

When you come to a fork in the road, take it.

Because I can always go back and take it the other way.