Re: st: New variable based on two other variable

[Nick Cox <njcoxstata@gmail.com>]

Your error with -mvencode- is that -mv(0) is an option, so must follow
the comma. Stata's error message is a misdiagnosis, but the syntax is
explicit in the -help-.

But -mvencode- is not necessary here. You can just -replace- with 0.

replace whatever = 0 if whatever == .

Starting again:

A more general solution splits in two: whether (a) one missing is
sufficient or (b) two missings are necessary for a zero value. If one
is sufficient you want

gen new = cond(missing(old1, old2), 0, max(old1, old2))

If two are necessary then

gen new = cond(missing(old1) & missing(old2), 0, max(old1, old2))

Nick
njcoxstata@gmail.com


On 6 April 2013 10:42, David Ashcraft <ashcraftd@rocketmail.com> wrote:
> Thanks to both Nick and Daniel. I do have missing values. I did manage to produce new variable by using the following command as suggested by Nick:
>
> gen right = max(prishr, govshr)
>
>
> I want to change the missing values to zeros I tried to -mvencode- I got the following results
>
> mvencode govsh mv(0), override
> factor variables and time-series operators not allowed
>
> Based on an old post from Nick, I did the following
>
>
>
>
> . gen gov =  govsh
> (936 missing values generated)
>
> .
> . gen pub =  pubsh
> (1404 missing values generated)
>
> . su  govsh pubh gov pub
>
>     Variable |       Obs        Mean    Std. Dev.       Min        Max
> -------------+--------------------------------------------------------
>        GovSh |       660    40.53545    28.24789         10        100
>        PubSh |       192       36.47    20.73895      10.94         83
>          gov |       660    40.53545    28.24789         10        100
>          pub |       192       36.47    20.73895      10.94         83
>
>
> mvencode  gov pub mv(0)
> factor variables and time-series operators not allowed
> r(101);
>
> Please tell me, how can I encode the missing values to zero?
> Regards
>
> David
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Nick Cox <njcoxstata@gmail.com>
> To: "statalist@hsphsun2.harvard.edu" <statalist@hsphsun2.harvard.edu>
> Cc:
> Sent: Saturday, April 6, 2013 12:05:11 PM
> Subject: Re: st: New variable based on two other variable
>
> Your code does not catch the case of govshr == prishr and it assumes
> that values are positive, which may well be true for your problem.
> Otherwise I don't see why it shouldn't work.
> But there are more direct ways. Here is one
>
> gen right = max(prishr, govshr)
>
> and here is another (although it can give an undesired answer with
> missing values)
>
> gen right = cond(prishr >= govshr, prishr, govshr)
>
> The functions are the least appreciated important part of Stata. For a
> selective review, see
>
> Cox, N.J. 2011. Speaking Stata: Fun and fluency with functions.
> Stata Journal 11: 460-471
>
> Abstract.  Functions are the unsung heroes of Stata. This column is a
> tour of functions that might easily be missed or underestimated, with
> a potpourri of tips, tricks, and examples for a wide range of basic
> problems.
>
> Nick
> njcoxstata@gmail.com
>
> On 6 April 2013 09:52, David Ashcraft <ashcraftd@rocketmail.com> wrote:
>
>> I want to generate a variable based on two existing variables.
>>
>> I have two variables : govshr and prishr and the variable I need is to take the value of govshr or prish whichever is greater.
>> I tried the following but the result is not what I want
>> 1. gen right=0
>> 2. replace right=govshr if govshr>prishr
>> 3. replace right=prishr if prishr>govshr
>>
>> What happend it, stata takes both commands (2 & 3) separately so I end up with the results of either (2) or (1).
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