Inline c++ functions in R code

Short article on how to do this here:

http://dirk.eddelbuettel.com/blog/2011/09/08/#rcpp_for_recursion

This uses the rcpp package

## inline to compile, load and link the C++ code
require(inline)

## we need a pure C/C++ function as the generated function
## will have a random identifier at the C++ level preventing
## us from direct recursive calls
incltxt <- ' int fibonacci(const int x) { if (x == 0) return(0); if (x == 1) return(1); return (fibonacci(x - 1)) + fibonacci(x - 2); }' ## now use the snippet above as well as one argument conversion ## in as well as out to provide Fibonacci numbers via C++ fibRcpp <- cxxfunction(signature(xs="int"), plugin="Rcpp", incl=incltxt, body =' int x = Rcpp::as(xs);
return Rcpp::wrap( fibonacci(x) );
')

This single R function call cxxfunction() takes the code embedded in the arguments to the body variable (for the core function) and the incltxt variable for the helper function we need to call. This helper function is needed for the recursion as cxxfunction() will use an randomized internal identifier for the function called from R preventing us from calling this (unknown) indentifier. But the rest of the algorithm is simple, and as beautiful as the initial recurrence. Three lines, three statements, and three cases for F(0), F(1) and the general case F(n) solved by recursive calls. This also illustrates how easy it is to get an integer from R to C++ and back: the as and wrap simply do the right thing converting to and from the SEXP types used internally by the C API of R