[R] cgi/servlets/httpd in R

[wwsprague@ucdavis.edu]

Samuelson, Frank* wrote:


> Currently I use such a method on my computing cluster:  All 40 
> compute nodes run an R process/compute server that listens at a socket for
> any 
> connection and subsequent commands from another computer. 
> When the master process disconnects, the R processes go back to listening
> at the socket.  Connecting to the R compute servers this way
> takes < 2 milliseconds rather than the typical ~2 second R startup time.

Your solution seems what I am looking for, actually.  Questions:

1.  How do you communicate with an R process?  I can only think of 
embedded code like SQL in Perl.

2.  How do you find an R node that is open?

2.5  You are haveing cgi scripts connect to the R processes, right?  Or 
are the R processes available for another purpose?

3.  How much of your code are you willing to share :)?  We are 
interested in making demographic analysis tools available online 
(life-table-ish stuff to start with, then as much as we can get grant 
money for).

W