Introduction

 

 

 

What Stat/Transfer Does

Stat/Transfer is designed to simplify the transfer of statistical data between different programs.

 

Data generated by one program is often needed in another context either for analysis, for cleaning and correction, or for presentation.  However, not only must the data be transferred, but the variables generally must be re-described for each program with additional information, such as variable names, missing values and value and variable labels.  This process is not only time-consuming, it is error-prone.  For those in possession of data sets with many variables, it represents a serious impediment to the use of more than one program.

 

Stat/Transfer removes this barrier by providing an extremely fast, reliable, and automatic way to move data.

 

Stat/Transfer will automatically read statistical data in the internal format of one program and will transfer as much of the information as is present and appropriate to the internal format of another.

 

Stat/Transfer preserves all of the precision in your data by storing it internally in double precision format.  However, on output, it will, where possible, automatically minimize the size of your output data set by intelligently choosing data storage types that are only as large as necessary to preserve the input precision.  Stat/Transfer also allows precise and easy manual control over the storage format of your output variables, in case this is necessary.

 

In addition to converting the formats of variables, Stat/Transfer also processes missing values automatically.

 

Stat/Transfer can save hours,  even days of manual labor while, at the same time, eliminating error.  Furthermore, you gain this speed and accuracy without losing flexibility, since Stat/Transfer allows you to select only the variables and cases you want to transfer.

 

In addition to the standard graphical user interface, a command processor allows you to run a transfer in batch mode, using a command file.  The user interface can automatically generate a command file to exactly reproduce your data transfer operations. This makes it straightforward to set up fully automatic batch procedures for repetitive tasks and allows you to precisely document the work that you have done.