Using bioconda to install external tools

Using environments for packages in R is extremely useful for managing different versions for different projects. Bioinformatics pipelines often have numerous dependencies outside of R, including binary command-line programs and packages from other languages, and it can often be useful to put those under the same sort of management. Tools for that do exist.

Anaconda is a distribution of Python and R that is particularly popular for scientific computing, data science, and machine learning. It includes a large number of pre-installed packages and tools, such as NumPy, SciPy, and Jupyter, making it easy to get started with those technologies. Anaconda also includes the conda package manager, which can be used to install additional packages and manage environments. Bioconda is a distribution of bioinformatics software built on top of conda. It includes a wide variety of bioinformatics tools and libraries, making it easy to install and manage those...