[Rd] (PR#9613) [Wishlist] to uniform help(x) and library(help=x)

[ripley at stats.ox.ac.uk]

What library(help=foo) produces is not HTML and has no hyperlinks, so why 
do you want it displayed in a browser?  If you do want text displayed in a 
browser, you can set options("pager") to point to your browser (or a 
wrapper).

It is no different from other library() help modes, like library() with no 
argument, nor from help(package="foo").

Indeed, the help for help says

htmlhelp: logical (or 'NULL').  If 'TRUE' (which is the default after
           'help.start' has been called), the HTML version of the help
           on the topic will be shown in the browser specified by
           'options("browser")'.

and note 'topic' and 'HTML version'.  Where there is no such help, plain 
text is shown.

On Tue, 17 Apr 2007, lbraglia at gmail.com wrote:

> Full_Name: Luca Braglia
> Version: R version 2.4.1 (2006-12-18)
> OS: Debian Lenny (testing)
> Submission from: (NULL) (82.61.142.240)
>
>
> Some options of mine:
>
>> options("htmlhelp")
> $htmlhelp
> [1] TRUE
>
>> options("browser")
> $browser
> [1] "/usr/bin/urxvt -rv -e elinks"
>
>
> I run R under X windows system: if I command
>
> help(foo)
>
> foo manual page is printed, correctly, under elinks (my textual browser); but if
> I command
>
> library(help=asd)
>
> asd package summary page is printed in R console.
> I would like library(help=asd) to be printed in my browser too, if possible:
> strictly speaking
>
> --> add htmlhelp = getOption("htmlhelp") in library arguments
>
> to be used only if "help" option  is specified.
>
>
> Thanks a lot,
>
>     Luca
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Version:
> platform = i486-pc-linux-gnu
> arch = i486
> os = linux-gnu
> system = i486, linux-gnu
> status =
> major = 2
> minor = 4.1
> year = 2006
> month = 12
> day = 18
> svn rev = 40228
> language = R
> version.string = R version 2.4.1 (2006-12-18)
>
>
> locale:
> LC_CTYPE=it_IT.UTF-8;LC_NUMERIC=C;LC_TIME=it_IT.UTF-8;LC_COLLATE=it_IT.UTF-8;LC_MONETARY=it_IT.UTF-8;LC_MESSAGES=it_IT.UTF-8;LC_PAPER=it_IT.UTF-8;LC_NAME=C;LC_ADDRESS=C;LC_TELEPHONE=C;LC_MEASUREMENT=it_IT.UTF-8;LC_IDENTIFICATION=C
>
> attached base packages:
> [1] "utils"     "stats"     "graphics"  "grDevices" "methods"
> [6] "base"
>
> other attached packages:
>    MASS
> "7.2-33"
>
>
> Search Path:
> .GlobalEnv, package:MASS, package:utils, package:stats, package:graphics,
> pack\
> age:grDevices, package:methods, Autoloads, package:base
>
> ______________________________________________
> R-devel at r-project.org mailing list
> https://stat.ethz.ch/mailman/listinfo/r-devel
>

-- 
Brian D. Ripley,                  ripley at stats.ox.ac.uk
Professor of Applied Statistics,  http://www.stats.ox.ac.uk/~ripley/
University of Oxford,             Tel:  +44 1865 272861 (self)
1 South Parks Road,                     +44 1865 272866 (PA)
Oxford OX1 3TG, UK                Fax:  +44 1865 272595