In the spotlight: JDBC, Stata 17, and Wharton Research Data Services
Are your simulations taking longer and longer to run? Have you ever had to manage multiple data subscription services? Do you need numerous software packages for your research? More and more researchers are turning to Cloud environments to conduct their research because of these common problems. Cloud computing providers offer computing power, single-point access to manage data services, and preinstalled and configured analytical software bundles for researchers. One such Cloud service is Wharton Research Data Service (WRDS). WRDS allows you to efficiently manage your computing power, analytical software bundles, and data services in one environment.
Stata users can work with data from WRDS in one of two ways. The first method is to download data directly to your local machine from the WRDS website. Downloading data to your device would be the preferred way of working when the dataset is small. The second method is to log in to the WRDS Cloud using ssh and work from a Unix terminal. This method allows you to leverage the WRDS processing power, preinstalled software packages, and WRDS data sources.
Working with WRDS data in Stata is now even easier. Previously, you could access WRDS data via ODBC.
Stata 17 now allows you to work with data stored in remote databases via Java™ database connectivity (JDBC). JDBC is similar to ODBC but has two distinct advantages: JDBC is cross-platform compatible, and JDBC is easier to set up. Whether you download WRDS data to your local machine or you work in the Cloud, the command to use in Stata for JDBC is jdbc. If your local machine is a Mac but you sometimes need to log in to the WRDS Unix platform to speed up your analyses, the steps to configure jdbc are the same.
To see how easy it is to use jdbc to access WRDS or other popular databases or Cloud platforms, see my blog post Wharton Research Data Services, Stata 17, and JDBC.
— by Kevin Crow
Software Architect
