st: RE: reduce a variables numbers of digits to 4 counting from left

["Nick Cox" <n.j.cox@durham.ac.uk>]

Lassen, Peter,
 
> I have a numeric variable of 9-12 digits, of wich only the 
> first 4 digits counting from the left is of importance. I 
> therefore have to get rid of the remaining 5-8 digits.

gen y = real(substr(string(x),1,4)) 

Nick 
n.j.cox@durham.ac.uk 
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