R data.entry() can't open

Question

when I call the function data.entry(), I got an error about losing a package "XQuartz", so I downloaded one and installed it.

When I tried again, I got a new error as follows:

''' Error in .External2(C_dataentry, data, modes) : unable to start data editor In addition: Warning message: In dataentry(odata, as.list(Modes)) : unable to open display '''

Can someone help me figure this out?

Answer 1

Data.entry behaviour varies wildly by system and GUI, and sometimes isn't supported at all in some builds, giving the error you report. See ?data.entry for some system specific details.

Please post your operating system/GUI details and your r version/details if you can't get it to work.

Additional notes: The source code for data.entry() generates that error when it cannot resolve the XOpenDisplaycommand with the operating system's GUI environment. On Linux, that usually means X is to blame. data.entry is mostly intended for Windows because there are better alternatives on *unix systems and less X hair-ripping config frustrations.

RStudio may help you with visual data entry/editing with less debugging.

Another option is the package RCmdr which includes a visual editor that works on some platforms. It's available on CRAN: Rcmd package

Yet another option is to use the function edit() from the utils package instead of data.entry. It has fewer dependencies on the platform. See ?edit or utils::edit.data.frame