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Bioconductor / caBIG
====================

For general information, please visit the `Bioconductor`_ web site. This wiki is for those using or developing R packages as web or caBIG_ / caGrid_ services.

RWebServices
------------

RWebServices exposes R packages as web or grid services. The package creates a representation of R data types and methods in Java. The Java representations can then be exposed as standard web services, or incorporated into caGrid *introduce* projects. Service requests are forwarded to R 'workers' capable of handling requests. 

RWebServices depends on the R packages TypeInfo (to annotate function argument and return values with strong type information) and SJava (to translate data and service requests between R and Java), and on Apache `activeMQ`_ for distributing service requests to workers.

RWebServices requires R version 2.5 or greater. It currently runs on linux platforms with Java 1.5; these limitations are not meant to be permanent. Further information is available in the `RWebServices vignettes`_.

.. _Bioconductor: http://bioconductor.org/
.. _caBIG: https://cabig.nci.nih.gov/
.. _caGrid: http://www.cagrid.org/
.. _activeMQ:  http://activemq.apache.org/
.. _RWebServices vignettes: http://bioconductor.org/packages/2.0/bioc/html/RWebServices.html

Exemplars
---------

Three Bioconductor_ packages have been exposed as caGrid services. These exemplars are outlined on the `ExposedFunctionality`_ page.

The `ebi-biocep`_ project uses RWebServices to create R / Java mappings, implementing service requests using JRI in `rJava`_ and additional Java layers.

The `Tobacco Behavioral Informatics Grid`_ is using RWebServices in exploratory development of caGrid statistical analytic services. 

.. _ExposedFunctionality: ExposedFunctionality
.. _ebi-biocep: http://code.google.com/p/ebi-biocep/
.. _rJava: http://www.rforge.net/rJava/
.. _Tobacco Behavioral Informatics Grid: http://tobig.ncsa.uiuc.edu/

Hints
-----

See the `Hints`_ page to help address problems you might encounter

Further `developer details`_ are available.

.. _`Hints`: Hints
.. _`developer details`: FrontPageCA