This output is completely different to the information output from summary used for the iris dataframe. Summary produces a description of the linear model, describing how it was called ( call), as well as the residuals, coefficients, t-values, p-values, $R^2$, and more. # Residual standard error: 0.8251 on 148 degrees of freedom # lm(formula = Sepal.Length ~ Sepal.Width, data = iris) When applied to an object of class ame, summary shows descriptive statistics (Mean, SD, etc.) for each variable. S3 methods are so named as the methods shipped with the release of the third version of the “S” programming language, which R was heavily based upon Hence, methods for S 3.0 = S3 Methods. S3 methods in the R programming language are a way of writing functions in R that do different things for objects of different classes. This means that if the code breaks, then one simply needs to update the function, rather than finding all of the coded sections that are now broken. Having one function to replace several of the same or similar coded sections simplifies code maintenance as it means that only one section of code needs to be maintained, instead of several. Under this axiom, the copying and pasting of the same or similar code (copypasta), is avoided and instead replaced with a function, macro, or similar. This paper provides a simple and targeted guide to explain what S3 methods are, why people should them, and how they can do it.Ī standard principle of programming is DRY - Don’t Repeat Yourself. Whilst many R users are be adept at creating their own functions, it seems that there is room for many more to take advantage of R’s S3 methods. S3 methods allow for functions to be generalised across different classes and are easy to implement. Writing functions in R is an important skill for anyone using R. It is not a complete guide to S3 methods, but more a primer the on what how, and why S3. So, I thought that it might be good if I instead share the article here on my blog and r bloggers, so that people can comment below and share their thoughts. Unfortunately the article didn’t make it to publication on the R Journal, but admittedly that might have been a bit of a long shot. A few months ago I wrote about my first solo author submission to the R Journal entitled, “A Simple Guide to S3 Methods”.

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