> of the Stata manuals in the said format)? Has anyone prepared a
> template for this already? What are the pros and cons of the PDF
> documentation (which is a de-facto standard for the rest of the
> software) versus SMCL documentation?
See the relevant discussion here.
http://www.stata.com/statalist/archive/2008-04/msg00472.html
I think this idea has a merit as long as it can be implemented in a
format that is EASY FOR EVERYONE. I would suggest a Word template
because (1) it is accessible to everyone, (2) easy to write, which
means you can write it like a paper, and (3) easy to add references at
end. I assume smcl tags can embedded from inside Word document.
And I do propose to have a section for references in the template. If
you going to have a fresh batch of ado file, you do want them placed
into a system that is relatively secure from people with a known
history of plagiarizing programs. Anyone who leaves it blank is liable
to claiming sole creativity over the ado file.
People who don't like Word can think of this as an opportunity to
showcase how much better they can do it with TeX.
Roy
P.S. Here is the secret to writing the help file in smcl: write as
little as possible. It becomes crappy only when you try to make it
better, which is what drives you crazy.
*
* For searches and help try:
* http://www.stata.com/help.cgi?search
* http://www.stata.com/support/statalist/faq
* http://www.ats.ucla.edu/stat/stata/
