Re: st: RE: local variables and running do files

[Maria Ana Vitorino <vitorino@wharton.upenn.edu>]

I am using Stata 11.
But in any case what if I want to run some regressions, for example:

reg y x1 x2 x3

is equiv to

--regtest.do
local x "x1 x2 x3"
reg y `x'
----


but if after running the first 2 lines I want to run the command " sum  
`x' "  it does not work. Is there anyway around this so that I don't  
have to define the local macro again?

Thanks,
Ana



On Oct 28, 2011, at 2:30 PM, Nick Cox wrote:

> The term "local variable" is to be avoided, as explained at
>
> http://www.stata.com/statalist/archive/2008-08/msg01258.html
>
> What you are seeing is a defining feature of a local macro: it is  
> visible only locally, i.e. within the locale in which it is defined,  
> i.e. not visible outside the interactive session, program, do file  
> or do file editor contents within which it is defined.
>
> You need to pass the contents of your local macro to the do-file as  
> an argument. If you write e.g.
>
> ------------ mydo.do
> su `1'
> ------------
>
> And then go
>
> mydo "var1 var2"
>
> then the do file uses the argument you feed to it. Arguments are  
> separated by spaces and bound by " ". This is all explained in the  
> chapter(s) on do-files in [U], which is part of your Stata, as  
> without declaring otherwise it is assumed that you are using Stata 12.
>
> Nick
> n.j.cox@durham.ac.uk
>
> Maria Ana Vitorino
>
> I would like to run a do file in batches (i.e. a few lines at a time)
> but it seems that then the local variables that I defined in the
> beginning do not carry over ...
> Any solution for this?
>
> Here is some output for a simple example so that you can better
> understand what is my issue.
>
> Thanks!!
> Ana
>
>
> . do "/var/folders/Xn/Xnl4Mq-lGR4-mNII1zm-Wk+++TI/-Tmp-// 
> SD17268.000000"
>
> . sum
>
>     Variable |       Obs        Mean    Std. Dev.       Min        Max
> -------------+--------------------------------------------------------
>         var1 |        24        12.5    7.071068          1         24
>         var2 |        24        36.5    7.071068         25         48
>         var3 |        24        61.5    7.071068         50         73
>
> . local var "var1 var2"
>
> .
> end of do-file
>
> . do "/var/folders/Xn/Xnl4Mq-lGR4-mNII1zm-Wk+++TI/-Tmp-// 
> SD17268.000000"
>
> . sum `var'
>
>     Variable |       Obs        Mean    Std. Dev.       Min        Max
> -------------+--------------------------------------------------------
>         var1 |        24        12.5    7.071068          1         24
>         var2 |        24        36.5    7.071068         25         48
>         var3 |        24        61.5    7.071068         50         73
>
>
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