Porcelain helps convert R packages into easily-tested APIs, using plumber. The ideas come from our experience putting complex R APIs into production where it is important that the API behaves predictably even with unpredictable inputs.
The focus of plumber is quickly putting together applications and works like magic. In porcelain we take a more explicit approach defining standard response types and using schemas to make clear the API contract.
While a work-in-progress, we use this in several applications:
orderly.serverwhich asynchronously runsorderlyreportshintrwhich runs statistical analysis of HIV prevalence under interventions (see the project page for more information).mintrwhich is a simpler application looking at interventions for malaria control. for The application is publicly availablecometrwhich runs dynamic models of COVID-19
Each of these applications is used by web applications written in Kotlin/TypeScript - see this poster for more on our design approach.
For more information, see the package vignettes:
vignette("porcelain")- an introduction and example packagevignette("cookbook")- a cookbook of endpoint patterns
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