\name{observe} \alias{observe} \title{Create a reactive observer} \usage{ observe(x, env = parent.frame(), quoted = FALSE, label = NULL, suspended = FALSE) } \arguments{ \item{x}{An expression (quoted or unquoted). Any return value will be ignored.} \item{env}{The parent environment for the reactive expression. By default, this is the calling environment, the same as when defining an ordinary non-reactive expression.} \item{quoted}{Is the expression quoted? By default, this is \code{FALSE}. This is useful when you want to use an expression that is stored in a variable; to do so, it must be quoted with `quote()`.} \item{label}{A label for the observer, useful for debugging.} \item{suspended}{If \code{TRUE}, start the observer in a suspended state. If \code{FALSE} (the default), start in a non-suspended state.} } \description{ Creates an observer from the given expression An observer is like a reactive expression in that it can read reactive values and call reactive expressions, and will automatically re-execute when those dependencies change. But unlike reactive expression, it doesn't yield a result and can't be used as an input to other reactive expressions. Thus, observers are only useful for their side effects (for example, performing I/O). } \details{ Another contrast between reactive expressions and observers is their execution strategy. Reactive expressions use lazy evaluation; that is, when their dependencies change, they don't re-execute right away but rather wait until they are called by someone else. Indeed, if they are not called then they will never re-execute. In contrast, observers use eager evaluation; as soon as their dependencies change, they schedule themselves to re-execute. } \examples{ values <- reactiveValues(A=1) obsB <- observe({ print(values$A + 1) }) # Can use quoted expressions obsC <- observe(quote({ print(values$A + 2) }), quoted = TRUE) # To store expressions for later conversion to observe, use quote() expr_q <- quote({ print(values$A + 3) }) obsD <- observe(expr_q, quoted = TRUE) # In a normal Shiny app, the web client will trigger flush events. If you # are at the console, you can force a flush with flushReact() shiny:::flushReact() }