st: Program within a Program

[Kyle C Longest <klongest@email.unc.edu>]

I have a question about using a program within a program. I have 
created a program and have added a set of options to it. Everything is 
working fine, except one of my options contains another program I wrote 
within it, and I can not figure out how to get it to work properly. 
This particular option runs a bootstrap on the program within it.

Here is the neccesary part of the code I have so far: capture program 
drop testprog
program define testprog
syntax varlist(numeric) [if] [, cluster(varname) modtest(namelist) 
mod2(varlist) RANks]
marksample touse
local v `varlist'
local y : word 1 of `v'

where -modtest- defines the appropriate model test to display and 
-mod2- tells it what the independent variables in the second model 
should be.

Here's the program for the -spread- option (which needs to be an 
available -modtest-)

local check: list posof "spread" in modtest
if `check' > 0 {
capture program drop spread
program define spreadprog, rclass

...spread program generates variables "spread" and "spread2" *based on 
`varlist' and `mod2', as well as returning the difference between the 
two....

end
}

local check: list posof "spread" in settest
if `check' > 0 {
bootstrap diff = r(diff) spread=r(spread) spread2=r(spread2), reps(50): spread
di %9.3f _b[spread] , %9.3f _b[spread2], %9.2f _b[diff]/_se[diff], 
%9.3f 2*(1-normal(_b[diff]/_se[diff]))
}

...rest of testprog continues...

I've tried a couple of ways of doing this and keep running into 
troubles. 1)I tried embedding it within the -testprog- but because I 
put end after the -spreadprog- it does not include the -bootstrap- 
command as part of the -testprog-. 2) If I wait and put end at the very 
end, it returns me to Stata without doing the -bootstrap-, which needs 
the -spreadprog- to `end' to work properly. 3) I tried defining 
-spreadprog- outside of -testprog- and then simply calling it in 
bootstrap (within -testprog-), but when I do this -spreadprog- does not 
seem to be able to find `varlist' or `mod2' as defined by the 
-testprog- so it can not run properly.

[Note: The -spreadprog- program works properly when I run it as a stand 
alone program and manually enter the variables to be used]

I hope this is clear, but just to reiterate I need to run a program (as 
an option) within a master program that relies on locals from the 
master program.

Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated, and I can 
provide more info if that is needed.

Thanks again,
Kyle C. Longest
Phd Student - Dept of Sociology
Univ. of North Carolina - Chapel Hill
klongest@email.unc.edu
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