Release readxl 1.4.4

[jennybc]

Prepare for release:

• git pull
• Check current CRAN check results see below for some remarks
• Polish NEWS
• urlchecker::url_check()
• devtools::build_readme()
• devtools::check(remote = TRUE, manual = TRUE)
• devtools::check_win_devel()
• revdepcheck::cloud_check()
• Update cran-comments.md
• git push

Submit to CRAN:

• usethis::use_version('patch')
• devtools::submit_cran()
• Approve email

Wait for CRAN...

• Accepted 🎉
• usethis::use_github_release()
• usethis::use_dev_version(push = TRUE)

[jennybc]

Discussing some CRAN results as of 2025-02-25

---

Version: 1.4.3
Check: Rd cross-references
Result: NOTE 
  Found the following Rd file(s) with Rd \link{} targets missing package
  anchors:
    cell-specification.Rd: cellranger
  Please provide package anchors for all Rd \link{} targets not in the
  package itself and the base packages.

Solved already in c7c6850.

---

Version: 1.4.3
Check: whether package can be installed
Result: WARN 
  Found the following significant warnings:
    /data/gannet/ripley/R/test-clang/cpp11/include/cpp11/R.hpp:52:31: warning: identifier '_xl' preceded by whitespace in a literal operator declaration is deprecated [-Wdeprecated-literal-operator]
    /data/gannet/ripley/R/test-clang/cpp11/include/cpp11/named_arg.hpp:42:29: warning: identifier '_nm' preceded by whitespace in a literal operator declaration is deprecated [-Wdeprecated-literal-operator]
  See ‘/data/gannet/ripley/R/packages/tests-clang/readxl.Rcheck/00install.out’ for details.
  * used C compiler: ‘clang version 20.1.0-rc2’
  * used C++ compiler: ‘clang version 20.1.0-rc2’

cpp11 issue r-lib/cpp11#447.

---

Version: 1.4.3
Check: compiled code
Result: NOTE 
  File ‘readxl/libs/readxl.so’:
    Found non-API calls to R: ‘Rf_StringFalse’, ‘Rf_StringTrue’
  
  Compiled code should not call non-API entry points in R.

Solved already in 4764967.

[jennybc]

Discussing some CRAN results under "Additional issues" as of 2025-02-25:

• gcc15: see Adapting to gcc 15 #767. I am hopeful that this is fixed by 9e02842.
• gcc-UBSAN: see Warning seen with sanitizers #769, the TL;DR is that this did not get resolved in v1.4.4 but will be the motivation for another patch release, for which I have a new deadline.