This problem is a variation on
two previously discussed on this list.
1. You want to -drop- variables if and only
if the names specified are full variable names.
Canned solution: -safedrop- on SSC
2. You want to separate a set of names
into variable names and others. (Compare a very
recent thread.)
Canned solution: -isvar- on SSC
In each case, a useful trick is throw
something at -unab-.
If it returns an error, that something is
ambiguous or not a variable name.
If you get back exactly what you
sent, that something is a complete variable name.
Otherwise it must be incomplete. Incomplete
here includes valid wildcards.
Here is a sketch:
*! NJC 1.0.0 25 September 2005
* safedrop NJC 1.1.0 11 February 2003
* safedrop NJC 1.0.0 13 November 2000
program isfullvarname, sclass
version 8.0
foreach v of local 0 {
capture unab V : `v'
if _rc local blist `blist' `v'
else if "`V'" == "`v'" local flist `flist' `v'
else local ilist `ilist' `v'
}
sreturn clear
di
local n : word count `blist'
if `n' {
local what "ambiguous or non-existent"
di "{p}{txt}`what': {res}`blist'{p_end}"
sreturn local notvarlist "`blist'"
}
local n : word count `ilist'
if `n' {
local what = plural(`n',"incomplete variable name")
di "{p}{txt}`what': {res}`ilist'{p_end}"
sreturn local notfullvarlist "`ilist'"
}
local n : word count `flist'
if `n' {
local what = plural(`n',"full variable name")
di "{p}{txt}`what': {res}`flist'{p_end}"
sreturn local fullvarlist "`flist'"
}
end
Nick
[email protected]
Enzo Coviello
> how can Stata 8 verify that a name match "exactly" the name
> of an existing
> variable, i.e. ignoring names that are abbreviations of other
> variables?
>
> "confirm varlist, exact" in Stata 9 resolves this problem,
> but in Stata 8?
*
* For searches and help try:
* http://www.stata.com/support/faqs/res/findit.html
* http://www.stata.com/support/statalist/faq
* http://www.ats.ucla.edu/stat/stata/
