Hi Russ, Now I understand more clearly. Thanks.
This is, as I now understand, a request to update the R installer itself, which I think is going to be Windows specific. That is, I don't recall getting that prompting during the install on macOS. I just retried with R 4.6.0, up to the point of actually starting the install, since it already is. Even under the "Custom" button on the install GUI, paper size, etc. are not options. Thus, if this is to be some kind of a platform independent approach, it would not likely be via the installer, since Linuxen do not use any kind of GUI for the installation to my recollection even with precompiled binaries (e.g. RPMs, .debs, etc.). In those settings, you are either compiling from source, or using some variant of a package manager tool or the CLI. Albeit, it has been some years since I last used Fedora. Thus, either a Windows specific solution via an installer update, or it may come down to some easier to follow documentation that can be used, irrespective of the underlying OS, which is why I was initially thinking about how to enhance that pathway. Regards, Marc > On May 10, 2026, at 6:01 PM, Lenth, Russell V <[email protected]> wrote: > > > Apparently, it was not a clarification at all. I don't understand where I > went wrong trying to explain this. So please let me start over... > > When a new user first installs R, they are asked whether they want the paper > size to be letter or A4, and I think a couple of other preferences. > Similarly, I want them also to be asked whether they want to see significance > stars. That new user would not have to look anywhere, because they are asked > about it; they'd have to answer that question before proceeding with the > installation. > > In other words, the installation software GENERATES the user's initial > .Rprofile file. The line that sets the option 'show.signif.stars' should be > in that generated file. That way, the option is there for them to see and it > can be changed. > > Without such efforts to make this option visible, only R wizards know the > option even exists. > > Russ > > >> On May 10, 2026, at 4:28 PM, Marc Schwartz <[email protected]> wrote: >> [You don't often get email from [email protected]. Learn why this is >> important at https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentification ] >> >> Hi Russ, >> >> Thanks for the clarification. >> >> I would not disagree with the suggestion, the key would be for a new user to >> even know where to look for such an option, if they knew that it existed in >> the first place. >> >> I would need to review the relevant documentation (e.g. Intro to R) and >> relevant help files, trying to think like a new useR, as to how easily it >> would be to first find that option (e.g. using ?options and perhaps >> ?Startup) to begin to follow the pathway that would lead me to the file for >> editing. >> >> I almost wonder, if this came up often enough as a question, if it would >> make sense to add it as a FAQ? >> >> Regards, >> >> Marc >> >> >>> On May 10, 2026, at 4:54 PM, Lenth, Russell V <[email protected]> >>> wrote: >>> >>> Marc, >>> >>> Yes, of course; I have that in my .Rprofile too. >>> >>> But what I'm suggesting is that the FACTORY FRESH .Rprofile file includes >>> this option so that it is visible to new users, just as the 'papersize' >>> option is already in there. New users are very unlikely to know that option >>> even exists. I want it to be visible when you first install R so that >>> people know they have a choice. >>> >>> Russ >>> >>> -----Original Message----- >>> From: Marc Schwartz <[email protected]> >>> Sent: Sunday, May 10, 2026 3:46 PM >>> To: Lenth, Russell V <[email protected]> >>> Cc: [email protected] >>> Subject: [External] Re: [Rd] default for 'signif.stars' >>> >>> [You don't often get email from [email protected]. Learn why this is >>> important at https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentification ] >>> >>> Hi Russ, >>> >>> I may be misunderstanding what you are suggesting, but if not, the ability >>> to place: >>> >>> options(show.signif.stars = FALSE) >>> >>> in ~/.Rprofile has been around for years. I have been using R since circa >>> 2001 and have had that in my ~/.Rprofile for as long as I can remember. >>> >>> I would have to defer to others as to when that may have been added as >>> feature, if not available back then. >>> >>> Regards, >>> >>> Marc Schwartz >>> >>>> On May 10, 2026, at 4:23 PM, Lenth, Russell V via R-devel >>>> <[email protected]> wrote: >>>> Hello, >>>> I'm following up on a thread from 7 years ago (Mar 2019) where there are >>>> several arguments -- some of them passionate -- for and against having the >>>> 'show.signif.stars' option default to TRUE. You can look back in the >>>> archives (https://stat.ethz.ch/pipermail/r-devel/) under "default for >>>> 'signif.stars'", starting 27 March 2019 to see what was said. You may also >>>> want to look at the "Regression stars" thread initiated by Frank Harrell >>>> starting 7 Feb 2013. >>>> Clearly, there is a long-standing debate on this issue. I'm writing to >>>> suggest a more modest response than changing the default for >>>> 'show.signif.stars': Instead, consider making 'show.signif.stars' a >>>> configuration option along with 'papersize' and others that some users >>>> will want to change. The default .Rprofile script starts with "# Things >>>> you might want to change" - and it could be added there. I think this file >>>> is initialized with some modal dialogs in a new installation of R, and it >>>> would be good to add it there too. >>>> Why do this? Because there are a lot of users out there who strongly >>>> object to significance stars, just like there are a lot of people who use >>>> letter-sized paper. They are your colleagues, even though you may disagree >>>> with them; and it gives them a more visible way of not having those >>>> asterisks cluttering their results. >>>> Thanks >>>> Russ Lenth >>>> Professor Emeritus >>>> University of Iowa, USA ______________________________________________ [email protected] mailing list https://stat.ethz.ch/mailman/listinfo/r-devel
