[R] Package norm has been removed. What to use for Maximum Likelihood Missing Data Imputation?

[Daniel Abbott]

Hello,

I apologize if an answer to my questions is available, or if I
submitted this question incorrectly. I have read the mailing lists, as
well as the R Project and CRAN homepages. However, I may have missed
something.

I noticed the package 'norm' has been removed. Its page
http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/norm/index.html now reads:

"Package ‘norm’ was removed from the CRAN repository.

Formerly available versions can be obtained from the archive."

My questions are:

1. Why was norm removed? I used the package and found it to be very
useful. Is there a serious error in the package or another problem?

2. If norm should no longer be removed, what is another good package
for ML (maximum likelihood) missing data imputation? I have seen
several recommendations online, but I wonder which one is currently
the "reigning champ."

Thank you very much. I appreciate your time!