=========================================================================
Date:         Sun, 30 Jul 2006 11:09:14 +0200
Reply-To:     Hillel Vardi <hilel@BGU.AC.IL>
Sender:       "SPSSX(r) Discussion" <SPSSX-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
From:         Hillel Vardi <hilel@BGU.AC.IL>
Subject:      Re: Randomly Sort a variable
Comments: To: Vishal Lala <vlala@PACE.EDU>
In-Reply-To:  <200607251441.k6PAkKvb001571@mailgw.cc.uga.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

Shalom

Here is how to get as many random columns as you need without using any
macro .

title     Randomly Sort a variable.
input program .
loop      i=1 to 12 .
compute    val=trunc(unifrom(200))+1.
end case .
end loop .
end file .
end input program .
execute .
formats val(f4).
* >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> change here to get as many copy as needed <<<<<<
loop      i=1 to 8 .
xsave      outfile=tmp.sav.
end loop .
get     file=tmp.sav.
compute    var1=unifrom(2000000).
sort cases  by i var1 .
add files   file=* /first=start/by i .
numeric     seq(f4).
leave       seq.
if          start eq 1 seq=0.
compute     seq=sum(seq,1) .
sort cases  by seq i .
CASESTOVARS
 /ID = seq
 /INDEX = i
 /seperator=""
 /drop=var1 start
 /GROUPBY = VARIABLE .

Hillel Vardi
Ben Gurion U
Israel






Vishal Lala wrote:
> Hello,
>
> For a paper we are working on, I need to randomly sort data from one
> column/variable into another. So, if the data in the mother
> column/variable is 2, 7, 5, 9, 4, the data in the next column needs to be
> randomly sorted like say 4, 5, 9, 7, 2. One way to do this is to create a
> random id variable and sort based on that but the problem is that "Sort"
> will change the sequence of all cases not just the column of interest. I
> could copy and paste but this will take an inordinately long time for the
> 10,000 random columns we have planned. I would greatly appreciate any
> suggestions.
>
> thanks,
> Vishal
>
>
> Dr. Vishal Lala
> Assistant Professor of Marketing
> Pace University
>