“Hello, World!” is the traditional first program that many people write when learning a new programming language. This simple program – which typically just prints the message “Hello, World!” to the screen – serves to illustrate the basics of coding syntax and to verify that the development environment is set up correctly. Despite its simplicity, it is an important sanity check: if even a one-line print statement fails, it’s a sign that something in the toolchain or setup is wrong. In fact, data scientist John Mount jokingly describes it as a “confrontational” test of a system – essentially the programmer saying “I won’t invest more time until I see the system can at least print one line of text!” This tiny two-word program provides a gentle introduction for beginners and a quick diagnostic for experts: novices use it to learn basic syntax, and veterans use it to confirm a new language or setup is working as expected. Over time, “Hello, World!” has become an iconic tradition in computer science, with a rich history behind its humble output.
Notable milestones in the history of “Hello, World!” include:
1967 (Early Origins): Some sources trace the phrase’s debut in computing to around 1967, in an example for the BCPL programming language. (Outside of computing, the exact phrase “Hello, world!” even appeared as a radio DJ’s catchphrase in the 1950s, but it was later independently adopted in programming contexts.)
1972 (First Example in Print): The earliest known program to use “hello, world” was in Brian Kernighan’s 1972 tutorial for the B language. In that text, Kernighan used a small program printing “hello, world!” (all lower-case, no exclamation) to demonstrate external variables. This was a step up from a previous example that printed a simpler “hi!”, and it showed how to handle a longer string in the B language.
1974–1978 (Rise to Popularity): Kernighan included the same example in a Bell Labs internal memo in 1974, and later, he and Dennis Ritchie featured “hello, world” in their seminal book The C Programming Language (1978). The 1978 K&R C book was hugely influential and is credited with making “Hello, World!” famous among programmers. In the book’s first chapter, a C program that prints “hello, world” is the introductory example, solidifying this phrase as the standard first program in countless languages to follow.
Late 1970s and Beyond (Standard Practice): By the late 1970s, the practice of starting with a “Hello, World!” example had spread quickly and was well-known in the programming community. Since then, virtually every programming language (and many programming tutorials) begin with some version of “Hello, World!” to introduce basic syntax. It remains a ubiquitous tradition to this day, symbolizing the initial triumph of getting code to run successfully.
Introduction to the packageSkeleton R Package
As the “Hello, World!” tradition lives on, it even finds its way into modern tools and templates. One example is the packageSkeleton R package – a starter template for R package development, paired with a Quarto-powered documentation website. In essence, packageSkeleton provides a comprehensive, production-ready scaffold for creating a professional R package with minimal setup overhead. The repository comes pre-configured with an integrated Quarto documentation site, automated testing, continuous integration, and GitHub Pages deployment, all set up out-of-the-box. This eliminates much of the tedious groundwork usually required when starting a new package project. For the developer, this means you can focus on writing code and documentation rather than wrestling with configuration. Key tasks like naming your package, adding your own functions, and customizing the documentation website are essentially all you need to do – the skeleton handles the rest of the initial setup for you.
To demonstrate its features, packageSkeleton even includes a built-in example dataset and content. In fact, it’s something of a not-so-simple “Hello, World!” application itself! The package contains a dataset named Hello_World, which stores the phrase “Hello, world!” translated into 47 different languages. This serves as a fun example of including data in your package (with accompanying documentation) and ties back to the theme of a basic “Hello, World!” program, but on a global scale. You can load and inspect this dataset to see how it works. For example, printing the Hello_World data frame in R yields the following:
As you can see, the Hello_World data frame provides a greeting in dozens of languages – from common ones like Spanish, French, and Chinese to less widely taught languages like Latvian or Kannada – along with an optional note (for example, noting that the Chinese version is Simplified Chinese). This example dataset shows how packageSkeleton can incorporate data and documentation into the package website. It’s a playful nod to the classic “Hello, World!” while also demonstrating the package’s capabilities (like embedding data and tables in the documentation).
Future Directions for packageSkeleton
The packageSkeleton package (and its example content) is still evolving. Looking ahead, there are plans to enrich the Hello World example and add new features that make the template even more useful and interactive. Some envisioned future directions include:
Incorporating Country Metadata: Augment the Hello_World dataset with additional information, such as the country or countries where each language is predominantly used. For instance, alongside the greeting in Swahili, the data could note Kenya or Tanzania; for Spanish, it might include Spain, Mexico, and other regions. Adding country metadata provides geographical context to the greetings and sets the stage for visualization.
Interactive Globe or Map Visualization: Using the enhanced dataset, the package could introduce an interactive world map or globe that highlights how to say “Hello, World!” around the globe. Imagine a 3D globe or a world map where each country can be clicked (or hovered over) to display the greeting in the country’s primary language. This would allow users of the package website to visually explore the translations – for example, clicking on Japan would show “こんにちは、世界！”, whereas selecting Brazil might show “Olá, mundo!” Such a feature would transform the static table of greetings into an engaging, educational visualization.
Beyond these specific ideas, the general goal is to make the packageSkeleton template more illustrative and interactive. By connecting a simple programming tradition with real-world languages and locations, users can learn not only about coding but also about world languages and cultures. These enhancements would turn the classic “Hello, World!” example into a globe-spanning demo – enriching the package’s educational value and demonstrating how R packages (with Quarto sites) can combine coding with data and visualization in creative ways.
Overall, the journey from the original “Hello, World!” program to this modern R package example shows how a tiny tradition can inspire broader learning. What began as a two-word test in a console has grown into a multilingual dataset and potentially an interactive map of the world. As packageSkeleton continues to develop, it embodies the spirit of “Hello, World!” – making something complex (like building an R package and website) feel welcoming and accessible, one friendly greeting at a time.