Thanks for your response Nick,
>> I'm wondering if there is a way save the entire output of
>> any given command to, say, a macro.
>>
>> (I am writing an ado file that runs commands on multiple
>> datasets and would like to be able to suppress output as in
>> -quietly-, but then re-display it with a message that is
>> particular to each dataset - but only if the given command
>> produces an output!)
>
> You could accumulate output as a long string of characters
> in a macro, punctuated by SMCL directives. The limits are
> documented under -help limits-.
>
> Alternatively, you could route output using -file- as lines of
> text to a file and -type- that only under certain conditions.
> Again, SMCL directives would make that most attractive.
>
> Without knowing more about your problem, however,
> I suspect that there are more direct ways to tackle this.
Maybe the best way to elucidate the problem is to give a little example.
My command is called -mido-.
Typing:
- mido recode var1 1=2 -
displays:
-> dataset = _mitemp1.dta
(1077 changes made)
-> dataset = _mitemp2.dta
(1077 changes made)
-> dataset = _mitemp3.dta
(1077 changes made)
-> dataset = _mitemp4.dta
(1077 changes made)
-> dataset = _mitemp5.dta
(1077 changes made)
whereas typing:
- mido generate sex=1 -
currently displays:
-> dataset = _mitemp1.dta
-> dataset = _mitemp2.dta
-> dataset = _mitemp3.dta
-> dataset = _mitemp4.dta
-> dataset = _mitemp5.dta
The terminal output in the -recode- case is fine. However the -generate- output is a little odd. -generate- doesn't normally display anything and I would prefer it if -mido generate..- also didn't produce any terminal output.
I thought that if could suppress the terminal output and save it to a macro, then i could test to see if it's non-empty and only then display it with the "dataset =..".
Nick's first idea of accumulating the output as a long string of characters in a macro might then achieve this - but I don't know how it's done.
Thanks,
Philip
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