Re: st: how does insheet determine datatypes? (response from Bill Gould)

[Phil Schumm <pschumm@uchicago.edu>]

Begin forwarded message:
> From: wgould@stata.com (William Gould, Stata)
> Date: January 5, 2007 2:03:56 PM CST
> To: pschumm@uchicago.edu
> Subject: Re: st: how does insheet determine datatypes?
>
> Phil Schumm <pschumm@uchicago.edu> asked,
>
> > Does anyone know how -insheet- determines datatypes --  
> > specifically, how it distinguishes between numeric and string?  If  
> > I read a large file and a column that is otherwise strictly  
> > numeric has a non-numeric value toward the end, can I rely on  
> > Stata to retain that observation and set the column to string (as  
> > opposed to setting the non-numeric value to missing)?
> Phil can rely on Stata setting the column to a string.  -insheet-  
> reads the entire dataset twice, once to determine types and then  
> again to record the values in variables of the appropriate  
> (determined) types.
>
> -- Bill
> wgould@stata.com

I don't believe Bill's response made it to the list, so I'm  
forwarding it for other's benefit.  This was exactly what I wanted to  
hear -- thanks.


-- Phil

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