Elizabeth:
You can ensure that only "no foreign aid" missing values are recoded to
zero (and all real missing values remain missing) by replacing the line
-recode foreignaid .=0- with -recode foreignaid .=0 if _merge == 1-.
Furthermore, -set obs 4- should have been -set obs 5- (there are five
years between 1990 and 1994).
HTH,
Maarten
-----------------------------------------
Maarten L. Buis
Department of Social Research Methodology
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Boelelaan 1081
1081 HV Amsterdam
The Netherlands
visiting adress:
Buitenveldertselaan 3 (Metropolitan), room Z434
+31 20 5986715
http://home.fsw.vu.nl/m.buis/
-----------------------------------------
*----------- begin new example -------------
clear
tempfile data countries
input Countryid year foreignaid
1 1993 230
1 1994 130
2 1990 100
2 1994 120
end
sort Countryid year
save `data', replace
clear
set obs 2
gen Countryid = _n
save `countries', replace
clear
set obs 5
gen year = 1989 + _n
cross using `countries'
sort Countryid year
merge Countryid year using `data'
sort Countryid year
recode foreignaid .=0 if _merge ==1
/*be careful that all . are due to no aid and not real missing values*/
list
*--------------- end new example -----------------
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