R in a Nutshell, 2nd Edition

Chapter 13. Graphics

There are many different ways to plot graphics in R. In this book, we’ll focus on the three most popular packages: graphics, lattice, and ggplot2.

The graphics package contains a wide variety of functions for plotting data. It is easy to customize or modify charts with the graphics package, or to interact with plots on the screen. The lattice package contains an alternative set of functions for plotting data. Lattice graphics are well suited for splitting data by a conditioning variable. Finally, ggplot2 uses a different metaphor for graphics, allowing you to easily and quickly create stunning charts. This chapter gives an overview of the graphics package. We’ll explain how to use lattice graphics in Chapter 14, and ggplot2 in Chapter 15.