From: Philip Ryan <[email protected]>
Reply-To: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: RE: st: PDF Stata 8 manuals Date: Wed, 16 Jul 2003 09:46:16 +0930
I too want Stata prices to remain "reasonable" (however that term is
construed), StataCorp to remain viable, and the excellent reference manuals
to be available in paper form. On the other, many is the time I have been
travelling and need to decide what is the _one_ volume of the manual I
cannot do without, and won't tip the airline scales. Invariably I make the
wrong choice. So a complementary electronic form of the manuals - I don't
mind paying - would be welcome. I understand that some would not like the
extra expense "built-in" to the price of Stata, that is, a user-pays
principle would need to be involved. Also, Stata might be a bit wary of
making a CD of its manuals available (although the pdf files can be made
non-printable and non-copyable). Possible solution: the full manual in
electronic form viewable on the web, perhaps in a subscription only site.
(Other companies with somewhat less savoury reputation than StataCorp
manage this. I'm told.)
Phil
At 08:41 PM 15/07/2003 +0200, you wrote:
At our institute we have an educational network license of Stata/SE 8 with
*one* set of manuals. Budget contraints limits us to one set of manuals as
an
additional one is priced at $375 (actually relatively cheap compared to
their
weight...).
This results in people running up and down, back and forth across the
institute trying to find the manuals they currently need. Electronic
documentation would have saved me half a pair of shoes in the last two
years,
I guess. And a lot of time.
In fact I prefer reading hard copies and the Stata manuls are great. But
for
most network licenses online documentation would be more apt as academic
labs
will rarely buy hard-copies for every license they purchase.
Daniel
> -----Original Message-----
> From: [email protected]
> [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of
> Dupont, William
> Sent: Tuesday, July 15, 2003 8:00 PM
> To: [email protected]
> Subject: RE: st: PDF Stata 8 manuals
>
>
> I have no idea how much profit Stata makes from their
> manuals, but I would assume that Stata is primarily a
> statistical software company and only secondarily a
> publishing company. I believe that improving the quality and
> value of their software product is their most likely route to
> further prosperity. Stata is of limited value without the
> documentation and the manuals are of no value whatsoever
> without Stata. If improving the online documentation will
> decrease profits from paper manuals, then I for one, would
> recommend improving the online documentation and increasing
> the cost of Stata licenses to make up for the lost revenue
> from book sales.
>
> Bill Dupont
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Philip Ryan
Associate Professor,
Department of Public Health
University of Adelaide 5005
South Australia
tel 61 8 8303 3570
fax 61 8 8223 4075
http://www.public-health.adelaide.edu.au/
*
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* http://www.ats.ucla.edu/stat/stata/
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