I have a variable state that takes integer values from 11 to 99. I need help with changing a variable from numeric to string. Fortunately, stata offers some easy ways for converting string to numeric variables and vice versa. As you have seen, to convert a vector or variable with the character class to numeric is no problem.
Copying data from the internet, csv files, or other sources into stata will record the date as a string variable, shown with red color. How to generate a string variable out of a labeled numeric variable stata. Also, in general, that as the values are just multiples of 60 000 milliseconds and float is adequate, in general anything that comes out of. How can i create a string variable statestring that would have string values without all those numeric values. A very basic question i would appreciate help with. Among these string functions are three functions that are related to regular expressions, regexm for matching, regexr for replacing and regexs for subexpressions. Stata always codes them as string although they are numeric in excel. Otherwise, you can use encode to convert string data into a numeric variable or decode to convert numeric variables to strings. For stata, a string is any data characterthat is not a number or missing value denoted by the full stop. Hi people, i wanna generate a variable string from a numerical variable that has. Similarly, for gz variable, i want to construct a numeric variable gz1 with ny replaced by 01, respectively. Converting string variables to numeric spss code fragments this shows how to convert a string variable race to a numeric variable racen using two methods, the first a bit simpler but more cumbersome, the second method more streamlined but a bit trickier. How can i turn a string variable containing dates into a date. Im fairly new to stata and i have data that i cannot seem to convert from strings to numbers.
In stata, this can be done by using either gen or egen. Or looking at the manual pdf for destring tostring. Also, the replace option of tostring doesnt take other parameters. Convert character to numeric in r example for string. How to convert a string variable to a numeric variable duration. If you have any questions please feel free to post them in the comments section below and i will get back to you as soon as i can. If you have a string variable and want to convert it to a numeric variable, you can use the encode command. The begin data and end data commands enclose the raw data. It is important to realise that the variables have the same values, just different display formats. You can always change a string variable to a longer string type. In spss, to convert a numeric variable to a string variable, use the string function. Even so, because the variable is defined as str2, stata cannot perform any kind of numerical analysis of the variable science. Running this command will cause stata to make a new numeric categorical variable wherein the data has labels that correspond to the old string.
In spss, recoding categorical string variables to numeric codes and converting blank strings to missing values can be done automatically using automatic recode. As example, suppose we have the variables var1, var2, and var3. Ive tried converting some variables in a dataset of about 200k observations from string to numeric the following ways. How to convert numeric date to stata date stataprofessor. Jul 15, 2016 in this video i show you how to convert text data into numeric data. It then alphabetizes that list and assigns numeric codes to each entry. Although the variable science is defined as str2, you can see from the list below that it contains just numeric values.
I have already tried the conversion from string to numeric option, but it says that it is already in numeric format so it cannot convert it. The second line of code uses the date function to generate a new variable date2 from the existing variable datevar. Im on mobile right now, but i think there is a group function associated with egen. Reed college stata help changing string variables to. If a variable has been read as a string but really contains numbers you will want to use the command destring or the function real.
Oct 05, 2010 to concatenate is to join the characters of 2 or more variables from end to end. We will show some examples of how to use regular expression to extract andor replace a portion of a string variable using. I want to change this to a string variable so that i can then substring it and create variables based on just date and just time separately. If the actual values of the var dont matter like categorical variables you could look at creating a new variable based on groups. This video demonstrates how to convert categorical string variables to labeled numeric variables. Watch how to convert a string variable to a numeric variable. This is an example of how to change a numeric variable, id, to character variable. Odd numbers of characters in string variables were soon allowed in stata 2. First off, you can convert a string into a numeric variable in variable view as shown below. Stata is reading in my variables as string instead of numeric.
The videos help you convert from string to numeric, change variable type and finally gives you the basic tools in stata. The second command formats the numeric value so that when stata displays the date, it is in a form that is easy for humans to read. String numeric type variable, format returns the value of the numeric expression as a string. Once the data is entered into stata, it automatically defines the storage type of the data. I want to convert the numeric date variable cdint type. How to convert a string variable to a numeric variable. Destring data that contains non numeric characters. The following document provides an example of how to create string variables from numeric variables, and then concatenate string variables into one. Youll need to identify the non numeric characters and replace them. I have a dataset with a date variable that is in long format. Remember that in a string variable, a missing value is a null, or empty, string. How to convert string into numeric form in spss without. How do i read convert an inputstream into a string in java. Recoding text strings and then converting to numeric.
Recode recodes the string variable sex into the numeric variable nsex. You can only tell the type of a variable by using the describe command. How to convert string into numeric form in spss without losing the data. On one hand, it looks like an spss recode command to change the numeric text combos to string numerics plus an alter type command to convert the string variable to a samenamed numeric f format variable. Luckily, i can use a concatenation function like cats or catx on it, and it becomes a character variable. If for some reason you want to convert a numeric variable into a string variable, you may use the complementary function decode. The put function writes values with a specified format. Not surprisingly, stata requires the numeric variable to be labeled. Note that while using list, and some other data display commands, produces values that look like string dates, the actual values stored by stata are numeric. Not least, most statistical procedures just do not accept string variables. Numeric to character the easy way i have a numeric variable, but i want it to be character. When you use a numeric variable in a string context, sas will interpret it as a character value if it makes sense.
When i want to merge this dataset with the other one, there is a warning that the length of year in these two datasets are different. Changing string variables to numbers in stata pradeep ramulu. String data is commonand examples include geographical information,gender information, think m, think f,or possibly date. Users of any of the software, ideas, data, or other materials published in the. The destring function is a good example of statas builtin functions having a knack for knowing what youre trying to do and providing a pretty. Some users of excel or similar programs get in the habit of putting several lines of header. What command can i use here to extract the 35 characters. February 1, 1960 or 211960 in order to use stata time series commands and tsset this needs to be converted to a number that stat understands. So far ive written a loop to do this, but cant use substr since daten is a numeric variable. Aug 23, 2012 coding of string variable in stata imran sunesara. I have a variable shiftstart that is a numeric variable in the format 01jan2014 06. Converting string dates to a numeric date difficult dates are often given in data sets as string variables e. How to generate a string variable out of a labeled numeric. Stata, like most software, holds numeric data to finite precision and in binary.
How can i quickly convert many string variables to numeric. How can i convert string variables to numeric variables in. The program can process a large number of cases more efficiently with the numeric variable nsex than it can with the string variable sex. Sometimes you may need to convert between numeric and string variables. There may be times that you receive a file that has many or all of the variables defined as strings, that is.
If you have a string variable that has only numbers in it, then you can alternatively use the real function. How to convert numeric to string in spss listendata. The first line of syntax reads in the dataset shown above. Quickly master the trick with a stepbystep example on downloadable practice data. Its a numeric variable, but stata is still reading it as a string variable. One method of converting numbers stored as strings into numerical variables is to use a string function called real that translates numeric values stored as strings into numeric values stata can recognize as such. We wish to run a regression of high blood pressure on race, sex, and age group. The default option is valid, which means that the empty string will be coded as a valid value in the new numeric variable. This is necessary as the date function can work only on string variables. Even though stata can handly string variables, it is clear in many respects that numeric variables are much preferred. How can i turn a string variable containing dates into a. The next alter type command converts all string variables between stringdate1 and stringdate3 in file order with a defined string width of 11 to the numeric date format date11 ddmmmyyyy.
An example of when one might need to do this is if they needed to append several variable sets together, and they needed a unique identifier the included information about the source data set. Ive read about the format procedure in codys book and i dont really understand it. I want to convert it into a string variable indstr, that goes from 01 as opposed to 0 to 20. Running this command will cause stata to make a new numeric categorical variable wherein the data has labels that correspond to the old string values. To convert from string to numeric data in stata, you have your choice between. So i thought of converting every single variable from string to numeric with the gencommand and then copy the data from excel again to the created numeric variables into the data editor, but it also did not work out so easily when copying it. The first line of code converts the numeric variable to string variable. Basic video for converting many string variables to numeric using encode syntax in stata with using loops. As a small matter of history, stata s variable types were not all available from the beginning. The ymd specifies how the datevar has the sorting of year, month, and day.
Since the default variable type in spss is numeric, you need to define your string variable in advance. How to destring nonnumerical values within stata quora. If you have a string variable that has only numbers in. Since string cannot be used for analysis, it should be converted to numeric. Apr 28, 2017 i want to recode the string variable t into numerical variable, say t1, with values denoted in the corresponding parenthesis, and are replaced by the standard. I tried to change the length for this imported dataset, but it failed. The only variable that meets these criteria is stringdate1.
Quick table for converting different dates to stata format. Changing a numeric to a string variable in stata stack. Hi people, i wanna generate a variable string from a numerical variable that has negative signe in front of the number. The easiest way to convert string variables to numeric form is to use the encode command. Spss how to convert string variables into numeric ones. Before we can use the stata timeseries or paneldata capabilities, we need to convert the string date to a stata date. This example uses put function to convert numeric data to character data. Originally, variables could only be numeric, although value labels were possible. String processing is fairly easy in stata because of the many builtin string functions. How can i graph string and numeric variables together in stata. In spss, how do i convert between numeric variables and. Sep 27, 2016 this feature is not available right now. The following document provides an example of how to.
An example of when one might need to do this is if they needed to append. Conversion of numeric data to string equivalents can be problematic. The command to create a new numeric date variable from a string variable and format the new variable so it displays as a date are. Converting numeric into string using the value labels. Convert spss string variables into numeric ones the right way. However, you can only change a string variable to a shorter string type. Hi, i have a numeric variable, ind which goes from 1 to 20. How can i quickly convert many string variables to numeric variables. Written and illustrated tutorials for the statistical software spss. Converting numeric date variable to string variable. In a case where your string variables are in fact strings e. Dec 01, 2016 this video demonstrates how to convert categorical string variables to labeled numeric variables. Change a string variable to a numeric variable duration.
The following document provides an example of how to create. Ive tried converting the numeric variables to string 01jan1982 to string but just got a bunch of numbers, which prevent me from identifying the month correctly. Jul, 2017 convert variables from string to numeric in stata earnings management data. However sometimes the variables which has numerical value is taken as string variable. Changing string variables to numbers in stata youtube. I suspect you want to do this but without seeing your variable names its just. Basic video for converting many string variables to numeric using encode syntax in stata. How can i extract a portion of a string variable using. However, sometimes it makes sense to change all character columns of a data frame or matrix to numeric. Instructor in this session,were going to explore string variables,and learn how can use stata to manipulate string information. Notice, if it matters to you that this does not convert a numeric variable to a string variable. Stata module to decode a numeric variable into a string variable, statistical software components s417702, boston college department of economics, revised 30 sep 20. Code is the variable name and a12 indicates string variable with width 12 3.
If the variable is actually a numeric value that just happens to be stored as a string, see our faq. Storage types are str6 and str, and display formats are %9s and %s, respectively. Mar 01, 2018 have you tried typing code help destringcode. Converting numeric variables to character variables ciser. Example 4 we have a numeric variable named female that records the values 0 and 1.
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