st: problem with looping and saving macros

[Lim Lee <lee.haklim@gmail.com>]

Hey everyone,  I've tried my best to look for answers on stata list
but can't seem to why there's a break in my code to postfile means
differences and pvalues of t-tests across variables by  looping.

The problem: there's a breakin my loopfile with the error  "equation
[__00000S] not found" occurring  after a certain number of iterations.

here's my code:

local criteria `a' `b' `c' `d' `e' `f' `g'   // where each letter
itself is a macro corresponding to a list of variables (ex: `a' is
local a age sex educ);

tempfile descriptives
tempname describe
postfile `describe' str20 variable control_r4 control_r3
beneficiary_r4 beneficiary_r3 diff pvalue using `descriptives'

foreach x of local criteria {
svy: mean `x'4r, over(beneficiary)
matrix meanr4=e(b)
       local mean1=meanr4[1,1]
       local mean3=meanr4[1,2]
svy: mean `x'3r, over(beneficiary)
matrix meanr3=e(b); matrix subn=e(_N)
local mean2=meanr3[1,1]; local mean4=meanr3[1,2]
tempvar change`x'
gen `change`x''=`x'4r-`x'3r
capt svy: mean `change`x'', over(beneficiary)
gen name="`e(over_namelist)'"
split name, parse("") gen(name)
local name1=name1
local name2=name2
di " `name1' "
di " `name2' "
drop name*
!!!---this is where the error  "equation [__00000S] not found" occurs
after numerous iterations--!!!
lincom [`change`x'']`name1' - [`change`x'']`name2'
local diff=r(estimate)
local pvalue=2*ttail(r(df),abs(r(estimate)/r(se)))
post `describe' ("`x'") (`mean1') (`mean2') (`mean3') (`mean4')
(`diff') (`pvalue')
}

postclose `describe';

I know this error is not due to the local varlists because if the error
occurs during a certain variable in `f ' and i redo the entire loop using
just `f', there is no problem.  I think the break happens after values for
31 variables are posted.  The break also occurs if i separate the variables
and run the loop files for each variable list.  I've read in previous
posts that
there is no limit on the number of macros so I'm not entirely sure why
there is a break.  Though modifications are need, this loopfile
command works in auto.dta.

I'm using Stata 12.0 for Windows (32-bit)
Revision 26 July 2011.

Thanks in advance.

Lim

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