feat(renvironments): add activities and further ideas sections (#85)

Author: amyheather

short_courses/r_environments.ipynb

@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@
     "* 📦 **Packages:** Dependency management using `renv`.\n",
     "* ⚙️ **Other:** Handling system libraries and project settings.\n",
     "* 🛠️ **Recreate & troubleshoot:** Restoring environments and common fixes.\n",
-    "* 🧪 **Activity:** Hands-on practice with a sample repository.\n",
+    "* 🧪 **Activities:** Have a go at R environment management!\n",
     "* 📚 **Further ideas:** Advanced tools and workflows for managing R environments.\n",
     "\n",
     "<br>\n",
@@ -493,16 +493,104 @@
     "\n",
     "``````\n",
     "\n",
-    "``````{tab-item} 🧪 Activity\n",
+    "``````{tab-item} 🧪 Activities\n",
     "\n",
-    "## 🧪 Activity\n",
+    "## 🧪 Activities\n",
+    "\n",
+    "Let's put theory into practice! These activities are designed to help you experience real-world workflows for managing R environments using `renv` and `rig`.\n",
+    "\n",
+    "### Activity 1: Create a reproducible R project from scratch\n",
+    "\n",
+    "**Goal:** Set up a new R project with `renv`, add a package, capture the environment for reproducibility, and share it with others.\n",
+    "\n",
+    "**Suggested package and script:** Use the `ggplot2` package, and create a script named `plot_example.R` with the following code:\n",
+    "\n",
+    "```\n",
+    "library(ggplot2)\n",
+    "ggplot(mtcars, aes(mpg, wt)) + geom_point()\n",
+    "```\n",
+    "\n",
+    "```{dropdown} View solution\n",
+    "\n",
+    "1. **Create a new R project.**\n",
+    "    * In RStudio: Go to \"File\" > \"New Project...\" and choose \"New Directory\" or \"Existing Directory\" as needed.\n",
+    "2. **Initialize `renv`.**\n",
+    "    * In the R console, run:\n",
+    "      ```\n",
+    "      install.packages(\"renv\")\n",
+    "      renv::init()\n",
+    "      ```\n",
+    "3. **Install a package.**\n",
+    "    * For example, to add `ggplot2`, add this to a `DESCRIPTION` file and then run\n",
+    "      ```\n",
+    "      renv::install()\n",
+    "      ```\n",
+    "4. **Write and run a simple script.**\n",
+    "    * Create a new R script (e.g., `plot_example.R`) with:\n",
+    "      ```\n",
+    "      library(ggplot2)\n",
+    "      ggplot(mtcars, aes(mpg, wt)) + geom_point()\n",
+    "      ```\n",
+    "    * Run the script to confirm everything works.\n",
+    "5. **Snapshot the environment.**\n",
+    "    * Save the current state of your environment:\n",
+    "      ```\n",
+    "      renv::snapshot()\n",
+    "      ```\n",
+    "    * This updates the `renv.lock` file, recording all package versions.\n",
+    "6. **Share your project.**\n",
+    "    * Your project folder now contains everything needed for someone else to reproduce your analysis - just share the folder (via GitHub, ZIP, etc.).\n",
+    "\n",
+    "Review the **📦 Packages** page for more information on these steps.\n",
+    "\n",
+    "```\n",
+    "\n",
+    "### Activity 2: Reproduce an existing R project\n",
+    "\n",
+    "**Goal:** Clone a repository with a pre-configured `renv` environment, switch to the correct R version, restore dependencies, and run a basic R script.\n",
+    "\n",
+    "Example repository: [amyheather/renv-reproduce-activity](https://github.com/amyheather/renv-reproduce-activity/)\n",
+    "\n",
+    "```{dropdown} View solution\n",
+    "\n",
+    "1. **Clone the example repository.**\n",
+    "    * `git clone https://github.com/amyheather/renv-reproduce-activity.git`\n",
+    "    * `cd renv-reproduce-activity`\n",
+    "2. **Switch to the required R version.**\n",
+    "    * Check the `renv.lock` file or `README` for the required R version.\n",
+    "    * Use `rig` (or your preferred tool) to switch R versions.\n",
+    "3. **Restore the project environment.**\n",
+    "    * Open the project in RStudio.\n",
+    "    * Run `renv::restore()`.\n",
+    "4. **Run the example code.**\n",
+    "    * Locate and run the provided R script (`analysis.R`).\n",
+    "5. **Troubleshoot (if needed).**\n",
+    "    * If you encounter errors, refer to the troubleshooting section in **🛠️ Recreate & troubleshoot**.\n",
+    "\n",
+    "```\n",
     "\n",
     "``````\n",
     "\n",
     "``````{tab-item} 📚 Further ideas\n",
     "\n",
     "## 📚 Further ideas\n",
     "\n",
+    "If you are interested in exploring more advanced or alternative approaches to managing reproducible R environments - especially when dealing with complex external dependencies - consider the following tools and resources:\n",
+    "\n",
+    "### Docker for R\n",
+    "\n",
+    "Using Docker allows you to encapsulate your entire R environment, including system libraries, R versions, and packages, inside a container. This approach can solve many issues related to external dependencies and ensures that your analysis runs identically across different systems.\n",
+    "\n",
+    "* [`dockerfiler`](https://github.com/colinfay/dockerfiler): An R package for programmatically creating Dockerfiles, making it easier to build reproducible R environments with custom dependencies.\n",
+    "* [`rocker`](https://www.rocker-project.org/): A collection of Docker images for R, maintained by the R community, which you can use as a base for your own projects.\n",
+    "\n",
+    "### R-universe\n",
+    "\n",
+    "[R-universe](https://r-universe.dev/) is an online platform for building, hosting, and distributing R packages—including those not available on CRAN. It can help you:\n",
+    "\n",
+    "* Access packages from multiple sources, not just CRAN.\n",
+    "* Set up custom repositories (collections of R packages) for your team or organisation.\n",
+    "* Centralise package management (as repositories can include public, private and experimental).\n",
     "``````\n",
     "\n",
     "```````\n",