{tilemakr}

{tilemakr} is a package for R that creates custom tile map data for...anything. Turn a matrix layout into coordinates that feed {ggplot2} layers.

If you've ever wanted to adopt the US tile map design for your own layout, this package is for you.

Getting Started

To get started with the package, install using remotes:

install.packages("remotes")

remotes::install_github(
  "adambushman/tilemakr", 
  build_vignettes = TRUE
)

Once installed, load the package using the library command below or reference individual components using the :: framework:

# Load the entire library into the session

library("tilemakr")

Making Your First Tile Map

It's really easy to go from a tabular layout to a tile map with {tilemaker}. Create a layout in matrix form (see make_tiles() documentation for layout best practices), transform it to shape data coordinates, and visualize your tile map:

# Tabular layout in matrix form
layout <-
  matrix(
    c("A", 0, 0, 0, 0, "B", "C", 0, 
      0, 0, "D", 0, "E", "F", 0, 0), 
    nrow = 4, ncol = 4, byrow = TRUE
  )

# Hexagon tile map
shape_data <- tilemakr::make_tiles(layout, "hexagon")
tilemakr::plot_tiles(shape_data)

Recreate the beloved US States tile map or use the same approach to create any tile map variation you choose.

Tile Shapes

We can make all sorts of tile shapes with the package functions. Just pass the right parameter to make_tiles() and get the right shape data. Below are the currently supported shape types:

• square
• hexagon
• circle
• diamond

You can preview these shapes with a demo layout using the preview_shapes() function:

preview_shapes()

Possibilities

Using {tilemakr}, we can create the foundations of tile maps that turn immaculate once styled with {ggplot2}. Take a look at just some of the possibilities.

Credits

Authored and Maintained by Adam Bushman