Keep the labels from your original file like this:
df = read.table('data.txt', header = T)
If you have columns named x and y, you can address them like this:
df$x
df$y
If you’d like to actually delete the first row from a data.frame, you can use negative indices like this:
df = df[-1,]
If you’d like to delete a column from a data.frame, you can assign NULL to it:
df$x = NULL
Here are some simple examples of how to create and manipulate a data.frame in R:
# create a data.frame with 10 rows
> x = rnorm(10)
> y = runif(10)
> df = data.frame( x, y )
# write it to a file
> write.table( df, 'test.txt', row.names = F, quote = F )
# read a data.frame from a file:
> read.table( df, 'test.txt', header = T )
> df$x
[1] -0.95343778 -0.63098637 -1.30646529 1.38906143 0.51703237 -0.02246754
[7] 0.20583548 0.21530721 0.69087460 2.30610998
> df$y
[1] 0.66658148 0.15355851 0.60098886 0.14284576 0.20408723 0.58271061
[7] 0.05170994 0.83627336 0.76713317 0.95052671
> df$x = x
> df
y x
1 0.66658148 -0.95343778
2 0.15355851 -0.63098637
3 0.60098886 -1.30646529
4 0.14284576 1.38906143
5 0.20408723 0.51703237
6 0.58271061 -0.02246754
7 0.05170994 0.20583548
8 0.83627336 0.21530721
9 0.76713317 0.69087460
10 0.95052671 2.30610998
> df[-1,]
y x
2 0.15355851 -0.63098637
3 0.60098886 -1.30646529
4 0.14284576 1.38906143
5 0.20408723 0.51703237
6 0.58271061 -0.02246754
7 0.05170994 0.20583548
8 0.83627336 0.21530721
9 0.76713317 0.69087460
10 0.95052671 2.30610998
> df$x = NULL
> df
y
1 0.66658148
2 0.15355851
3 0.60098886
4 0.14284576
5 0.20408723
6 0.58271061
7 0.05170994
8 0.83627336
9 0.76713317
10 0.95052671