RE: st: "Label define" syntax for "all other values"

["Allan Reese (Cefas)" <allan.reese@cefas.co.uk>]

Dan Waldo responds to solutions from Nick Cox and Eric Booth:
>Thank you, Nick. Having 2 distinct approaches is a consolation for not
having the 3rd approach. Creating a second >variable is a clean and
viable option, although I suspect its viability fades as the number of
variables needing this >treatment increases.

The "Third way" disappeared as an option last weekend [UK joke].

The solutions however do indicate three options, one not being
available:
1) list all levels in the current data and assign a label to each
2) collapse all unlabelled levels to a single value (overwriting or in a
new variable) and add a label
3) syntax that would replace the default blank label with another
string.

I suspect the last is what SAS offers.  Storing the same string for
every (otherwise) unlabelled value is wasteful, and fails if any value
is edited or new data added.  Providing an "unlabelled" label might be
another use of char.

Rather than add more features, the question is whether you would want
"tab x" to list all the levels of x (option 1) or just the labelled
levels plus a single extra line for "all others" (option 2). 


R Allan Reese
Senior statistician, Cefas
The Nothe, Weymouth DT4 8UB 

Tel: +44 (0)1305 206614 -direct
Fax: +44 (0)1305 206601 

www.cefas.co.uk 



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