On the use of R programming language in the analyses of spatial data

Abstract

R is a powerful and increasingly popular programming language with strong graphical and presentation features and large expanŽdability. Although primarily intended for statistical computing, R has paved its way to the field of GIS through the development of specialized extension packages. It offers a wide range of functions at all GIS levels: data acquisition, data manipulation, graphical reŽpresentation and quantitative analysis. The paper presents R as an open source alternative to the existing commercial GIS software. It proves especially well when advanced quantitative methods on spatial data are needed (e.g. spatial modelling). We demonstrate R capabilities through spatial analysis of forest area in Snežnik (South Slovenia), where the possibilities of data import, conversion and export into various GIS formats and possibilities of geostatistics, spatial modelling and spatial visualization are demonstrated.