Date:         Mon, 2 Feb 1998 13:21:29 -0800
Reply-To:     Marc Feldesman <feldesmanm@PDX.EDU>
Sender:       "SPSSX(r) Discussion" <SPSSX-L@UGA.CC.UGA.EDU>
From:         Marc Feldesman <feldesmanm@PDX.EDU>
Organization: Portland State University
Subject:      Re: Stupid question

Richard F Ulrich wrote in message <6b5bp6
 
 
>You want to see the values listed in the table,  "in the
same
>order that the variables appear in the file" -  I had to
read
>that about 5 times before I could believe it, because I
have
>never, ever heard that request, or thought of it.
 
Can't say that anymore <g>
 
> Almost always,
>the raw data come in an arbitrary file, in some arbitrary
order,
>which no one ought to touch.
 
 
But not always.  This gets back to an earlier question I
posed about entering data contained in tables found in
published articles.  The data there are NOT in an arbitrary
order.  If I want to reanalyse the author's data or perform
a different analysis, there is a specific reason for
entering the data in the order the author presents them in
the table.
 
> <.snip>
 
 
>Do I want to shuffle a raw data file, to lead a
>program to write out a certain listing of results? - no,
never.
>
 
 
In this case, it isn't a "raw" data file.
 
Your solution is workable.  I just come from a world in
which alpha categorical variables don't routinely have to be
recoded to numeric variables to force a particular result;
consequently, I typically avoid thinking about using numeric
equivalents, even with value labels.
 
Thanks.