This appendix covers the methods for installing R on your system. You can easily download and install the precompiled binaries, use your package manager on a UNIX-based system, or even install from source if you prefer.
R, in both its base form and user-written packages, is available on the Comprehensive R Archive Network (CRAN) at the R home page, http://www.r-project.org/. Click CRAN and choose a site near you to download the appropriate base package for your operating system (OS).
For most users, installing R is quite simple, regardless of the platform. You can find precompiled binaries for Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X on CRAN. You should be able to simply download the appropriate file and install R.