st: New version of -stcmd- on SSC

[Roger Newson <r.newson@imperial.ac.uk>]

Thanks to Kit Baum, a new version of the -stcmd- package is now 
available for download from SSC. In Stata, use the -ssc- command to do 
this, or -adoupdate- if you already have an old version of -stcmd-.

The -stcmd- package is described as below on my website, and calls the 
Stat/Transfer data conversion program, if the user has it installed, to 
convert datasets to and from Stata. The new version fixes a bug, which 
caused the -inputst- module to ignore Stat/Transfer switches. So, it is 
now possible to input one datasheet from a Microsoft Excel file into a 
Stata dataset in memory, by typing

inputst myfile.xls /tSheet2

or something similar.

I would like to thank Sean Taylor of Chicago Partners for alerting me to 
this bug, and apologise to everybody for not having found such a 
fundamental bug sooner. I would also like to thank Elizabeth Cain of 
Circle Systems (who maintain Stat/Transfer) for her help when I 
encountered a very mysterious interaction between Stat/Transfer and my 
version of Microsoft Windows XP, causing Stat/Transfer to crash randomly 
and unpredictably when reading 1-2-3 files. Fortunately, I do not have 
to convert many 1-2-3 files in my work.

Best wishes

Roger


--
Roger B Newson BSc MSc DPhil
Lecturer in Medical Statistics
Respiratory Epidemiology and Public Health Group
National Heart and Lung Institute
Imperial College London
Royal Brompton Campus
Room 33, Emmanuel Kaye Building
1B Manresa Road
London SW3 6LR
UNITED KINGDOM
Tel: +44 (0)20 7352 8121 ext 3381
Fax: +44 (0)20 7351 8322
Email: r.newson@imperial.ac.uk
Web page: http://www.imperial.ac.uk/nhli/r.newson/
Departmental Web page:
http://www1.imperial.ac.uk/medicine/about/divisions/nhli/respiration/popgenetics/reph/

Opinions expressed are those of the author, not of the institution.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
package stcmd from http://www.imperial.ac.uk/nhli/r.newson/stata10
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TITLE
      stcmd: Run the Stat/Transfer st command from inside Stata

DESCRIPTION/AUTHOR(S)
      The program stcmd runs the Stat/Transfer st command from inside 
Stata, if
      Stat/Transfer is installed on the user's system. Stat/Transfer 
converts
      data sets from one format to another (eg Stata to/from R). It is
      available from Stata Corporation and manufactured by Circle 
Systems, and
      further information can be found at http://www.stattransfer.com/. The
      program inputst converts an existing non-Stata input file into a 
Stata
      dataset in the memory, overwriting any existing data. The program 
outputst
      converts the Stata dataset in the memory to a newly-created non-Stata
      output file. The programs inputst and outputst require stcmd, and 
therefore
      should not be downloaded alone. If the Stat/Transfer directory on the
      user's system is not on the user's default path, then the user 
must set
      the global macro StatTransfer_path to contain the path for the 
Stat/Transfer
      st command, possibly in the profile.do file (see on-line help for 
details).

      Author: Roger Newson
      Distribution-Date: 25april2011
      Stata-Version: 10

INSTALLATION FILES                                  (click here to install)
      stcmd.ado
      inputst.ado
      outputst.ado
      stcmd.sthlp
      inputst.sthlp
      outputst.sthlp
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