Installation Error When Installing Package from R Forge - r

Question

I am trying to update zoo from R Forge.
install.packages("zoo", repo = "http://r-forge.r-project.org")
But I get the following error
Installing package(s) into ‘C:/REVOLU~1/R-COMM~1.3/R-212~1.2/library’
(as ‘lib’ is unspecified)
Warning in install.packages :
cannot open: HTTP status was '404 Not Found'
Warning in install.packages :
cannot open: HTTP status was '404 Not Found'
Warning in install.packages :
unable to access index for repository http://r-forge.r-project.org/bin/windows/contrib/2.12
Warning in install.packages :
package ‘zoo’ is not available
I am using Revolution R Community version 4.3 (64-bit).
install.packages("zoo")
Installs a slightly dated version of zoo

Answer 1

To clarify #DWin's and Gabor's answers slightly more:
You are running into trouble because R-forge only builds binaries for the current (2.14 right now) and development ("2.15", but Brian Ripley will probably get mad if you refer to it that way) versions of packages. In this situation you have the following options:
Upgrade R to the current version (the best idea).
If you have good reasons you can't do that (you don't have administrative rights, you are running a critical analysis that depends on a previous version of R, you need to use Revolution R because of its extensions etc.), then you can try one of the following:
(as suggested by #jthetzel's comment above) follow the links to the binary version of the package, download the binary file (zip in the case of Windows), and try installing from the local copy (with repos=NULL, or from the appropriate menu entry). This will not work if the package depends, implicitly or explicitly, on features in the latest version of R.
try to install the source version of the package: install.packages("thispkg",repos="http://r-forge.r-project.org",type="source"). This will only work if (1) you have the tools for compiling packages from source installed (see the R manual, or (for Windows) the R for Windows FAQ, google for "Rtools", etc., or (for MacOS) the R for MacOS FAQ) or (2) the package contains only R code, not compiled C/FORTRAN code (not true in the case of the zoo package, I think).
download the source package, unpack it, modify the DESCRIPTION file so that the maintainer e-mail is your own, rebuild the source package, and upload it to the CRAN win-builder service. (If you don't modify the DESCRIPTION file then you won't be informed that the package has been built and where to download it -- you'll just annoy and confuse the maintainer of the package, who will receive the e-mail.) (This only works for Windows.)
Some of the resistance you've been getting is directed less at you than at Revolution R. There's nothing wrong (I don't think) with their making money from R, but when providing support for Revolution R adds to the workload of the R community (ordinarily we would just say "upgrade to the latest version of R" and be done with it), people get a little grumpy.

Answer 2

This is the weekend, .... a typical time for site maintenance. A 404 message could be telling you to either wait a few hours or use a different mirror. In this case using a browser shows that the link really does not exist but its stem does and has code only for R versions 2.14 and 2.15.
You have not given enough information to determine why "version 4.3" is not accessing a current version of "zoo" but it would seem more appropriate to contact the Revolution R people or a support group dedicated to that version than post a message on a volunteer website where they seem to have no regular representative. I'm guessing that your "version 4.3" is based on R 2.12.x and that you would get failure if you actually did find a current version. You should be providing sessionInfo() rahter than the RevoR version number. The RevoR product has a Support Forum at http://forums.revolutionanalytics.com/ . My effort to determine what version they are currently shipping are frustrated by their insistence on having every query go through their personal information gathering protocol. I was unable to find online technical specs for their currently available version of "Community version".
EDIT: It appears you have already been discussing this with Gabor. He is an undisputed authority on the behavior of "zoo". You should not be looking elsewhere for advice.