Prerequisites

Tools

• GitHub account
• POSIX Compliant environment (not git bash, powershell or cygwin)
• VSCode installed
• Git Configured
• Conda installed

Skills

• Creating conda environments
• Comfort with Git & GitHub
• Branching (GitHub Flow)
• Posts answers and links in chat

Setting Up Your Environment

1. Create a new directory for the workshop:

   mkdir -p ~/code/delete-me/quarto-play
   cd ~/code/delete-me/quarto-play

2. Create a Conda environment:

   curl -L -o environment.yml https://shorturl.at/dZII6
   conda env create -f environment.yml -p "$PWD/.conda" 
   conda activate "$PWD/.conda"

3. .gitignore file to git ignore conda environment:

   curl -o .gitignore https://raw.githubusercontent.com/github/gitignore/main/Python.gitignore
   echo -e "\n# Custom ignores\n.conda/\n.env/" >> .gitignore

4. Initialize Git:

   git init --initial-branch=main
   git switch -c basic-markdown

Markdown Code Blocks

code blocks: formatted but not executed in markdown.

Use 3 backticks to create code blocks in markdown & the name of the language.

Python

def greet(name):
   print(f"Hello, {name}!")

R

greet <- function(name) {
   print(paste("Hello", name))
}

Javascript

function greet(name) {
   console.log(`Hello, ${name}!`);
}

Exercise

Add code blocks to your markdown file for Python, Javascript & R.

Introducing qmd

Basic features:

• document metadata YAML format file header:

  ---
  title: "blah"
  format: "html"
  date: "2025-01-22"
  ---

• ::: fenced blocks are used for quarto & custom css divs and classes

  • ::: {.class}
  • ::: {#id}
  • ::: {.class #id}

Example qmd

1. new branch git switch -c qmd-demo

2. Write a small example.qmd file:

   ---   
   title: "Demo"
   format: html
   ---
   # Hello, Quarto!
   
   ::: {.panel-tabset}
   
   ### Tab 1
   Content for tab 1.
   ### Tab 2
   Content for tab 2.
   
   :::

3. Render the file:

   quarto render example.qmd

Exercise

Write a .qmd file with fenced blocks.

Simple qmd Code Blocks

Quarto supports executing code blocks in markdown files.

Use curly braces {} to specify the execution language: {python}, {r}, {julia}.

Use curly braces with a period {.} to specify formatting options, no execution: {.python}, {.r}, {.julia}.

Python

def greet(name):
    print(f"Hello, {name}!")
greet("Quarto")

Hello, Quarto!

R

#| echo: true
#| warning: false
greet <- function(name) {
    print(paste("Hello", name))
}
greet("Quarto") 

“Quarto”

Exercise

Create a .qmd file with a Python and R code block.

#| Code Blocks

The #| syntax adds control over code block execution & display.

   #| echo: true
   #| warning: false
   def greet(name):
      print(f"Hello, {name}!")

Exercise

Create a .qmd file with a Python code block using the #| options like echo, warning, and eval.

Create a Blog Project

1. Create a Quarto blog project:

   quarto create project blog ~/code/delete-me/quarto-blog
   cd ~/code/delete-me/quarto-blog 

Exercise

• Create a blog project & explain the directory structure.
• What is _quarto.yml?
• What is posts/ directory?
• What is style.css?

Create a Blog Conda Environment

1. Create a Conda environment for blog:

   curl -L -o environment.yml https://shorturl.at/dZII6
   conda env create -f environment.yml -p "$PWD/.conda" 
   conda activate "$PWD/.conda"

2. .gitignore file for environment:

   curl -o .gitignore https://raw.githubusercontent.com/github/gitignore/main/Python.gitignore
   echo -e "\n# Custom ignores\n.conda/\n.env/" >> .gitignore

3. Initialize Git:

   git init --initial-branch=main
   git switch -c basic-markdown

Exercise

Verify that the conda blog environment is active.

Writing a Blog Post

Create a new welcome.qmd file in the posts/ folder:

---
title: "My First Blog Post"
date: 2025-01-20
---

# Welcome!

This is my first blog post using Quarto. Here's a dummy classifer on breast cancer data.

   ```{.python}
   import urllib.request

   gist_url = "https://shorturl.at/WZ8hR"

   try:
      with urllib.request.urlopen(gist_url) as response:
         script_content = response.read().decode('utf-8')
      
      print("Executing the script...")
      exec(script_content)  # Execute the script
   except Exception as e:
      print(f"An error occurred: {e}")
   ```

Blog with RStudio

1. Run which R after conda activated environment
2. If all good in 1, then open using open -na rstudio
3. Create new project from RStudio UI
4. Select Quarto Blog project type.
5. Create a new post and render it.
6. Push to GitHub.

Exercise

Create a quarto blog post using RStudio.