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File managers and utilities
PrintFolder Pro is a powerful and flexible utility for creating editable, printable file and directory lists from within Windows Explorer. A freeware version PrintFolder is also available. Both are useful for documenting files.
Clone Cleaner PRO: finds duplicate files and helps you delete them. Handy if you are managing lots of files accumulated over years of work. Clone Cleaner Lite is free.
RED (Remove Empty Directories) simly finds and removes empty directories. It is free and handy when cleaning up a lot of files.
Text editors
There are lots of excellent text editors to chose from. Pick one and stick with it.
UltraEdit: This is what I currently use. It is powerful and unobtrusive. You can also buy UltraCompare which is an excellent utility for comparing files.
TextPad: This editor hasn't kept up with the competition.
See this page for information on text editors and Stata.
Graphics utilities
IrfanView:
iView:
MacroExpress:
SnagIt:
Other software
FinePrint:
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In Windows XP you can search for files with Windows Key, Search for files; Appendix B considers more powerful programs.
The software tools you use for data analysis can make a remarkable difference in how efficiently you can work, the things you can do, and even what you can discover. Given how much time I spend doing data analysis, I use a lot different programs. Since I have met many users who are not aware of these tools and who are working harder than they need to, this appendix briefly reviews the types of software that I find extremely useful for data analysis. I do not recommend specific packages, but the Workflow web site tells you what I use. You can also find information by Googling the name of the class of program (e.g., Google "text editor"). I also encourage you to ask colleagues what they use.
Text editor
An excellent text editor is incredibly valuable for writing do-files and examining log files. Learning to use a full featured text editor is probably the best thing you can do to improve your productivity. There are three types of editors that I do not recommend. First, do not use a word processing program such as Word or Word Perfect. While these program can write do-files that will work with Stata, the features that make the programs useful for writing get in the way and other tools that are handy for programming are missing. Second, the simple text editors that come with most operating systems (e.g., NotePad in Windows, TextEdit in Mac OS) are easier to use than a word processor, but have limited features. Third, while Stata's built-in editor has gotten better over the years, it still has limited features. There are hundreds of text editors to chose from, including many free editors that are very good. For some notes on text editors to use with Stata, Nick Cox maintains a web page at fmwww.bc.edu/repec/bocode/t/textEditors.html.
Full featured text editors have several features that make them particularly useful for data analysis. First, text editors have features that keep your programs looking nice (e.g., automatic indenting). Second, text editors have syntax highlighting which uses color to highlight different types of commands. For example, one color might indicate a Stata command, another color will show comments, and so on. This is great for catching errors. Third, text editors allow multiple windows and split screens for easily working with multiple files. Fourth, they often have a feature that allows you to save fragments of code that you use often, then allow a simple point and click to insert these fragments into your program. Fifth, some editors allow sophisticated comparisons of files to examine differences; this is very useful when comparing results or debugging programs.
Backup utility
To backup files you can use system commands such as Window's xcopy, but special programs for backing up files are much more effective for day-to-day backups of your active work and long term archiving. These programs include many features that speed up the process and increase the accuracy, including bit comparisons, automated profiles, scheduling (e.g., backups automatically occur each night), and much more. See Chapter 8 for further information.
Image viewer and image database
If there are lots of graphs associated with a project, I find it very useful to be able to see each file as a thumbnail so that I can quickly browse the images to select the file I want to look at more carefully. Newer operating systems include thumbnail and file viewers as do many file managers. If you have a lot of graphs that you use regularly, you might also want to use a database for storing graphs. These programs allow you to associate keywords with graphs so that it is easier to find the graph that you need. When you find the graph you want, you can then view a full size version of the images.
Macro utility
A macro utility associates special keystrokes (e.g., Ctrl-Alt-r) or special typed sequences (e.g., ;dt) with some action to be taken by the computer. As a simple example, on my computer if I type ;dt, today's date will be typed November 28, 2007. Since I like to name files by date to keep them organized, I need the dates in a format that sorts. To enter this, I use the shortcut ;ds to get 2007-11-28. Since I run Stata frequently, I program the keystroke Ctrl-Alt-Shift-s to launch Stata. In Stata, I often find that I have lots of viewer Windows open. To close them I can enter the awkward keystrokes alt-w, v, Enter, c. This is too complicated for such a common task so I program a ctrl-w that does the same thing.
Acrobat
jsl
Check on adding comments to pdf files.
The advantage of having a file in PDF format (Adobe Portable Document Format) is that when others print it, it will look the same for everyone even if they are working on a different operating systems. If you have different people print the same Word file on different systems, the printed pages will look different. Having everyone look at the same thing is particularly handy when working in a group. Also, with PDF files you can share content without allowing others to change the content. There are now many programs that allow you to save files in PDF form.
Screen capture utilities
Computer interfaces are largely graphical. As a consequence, sometimes you'll see something on the screen that you want to save or send to someone but that cannot be copied as text. The solution is to use a program that captures the content of the screen and save it as a graphics file. While many operating systems allow you to do this, specialized programs for capturing the screen are extremely easy and powerful. For example, a few keystrokes allows you to capture the screen, create a graphics files, and automatically attach it to an e-mail. You can grab parts of a web page that does not print correctly and many other things.
File compression utilities
File compression is a way to store a given amount of information in a smaller amount of space. The amount of compression depends largely on the content of the file being compressed. For example, you can often reduce the size of a survey dataset to 25 percent or less than its uncompressed size. More importantly, I use compression to keep a group of files together. For example, suppose I have a directory \project that has 500 do-files, log files, and other files associated with the project. I can create a compressed file that will combine all 500 files into one file, called an archive, for convenience. Many compression formats and programs exist. In Windows, ZIP files are most common. But, other formats (e.g., sit, .tar, .rar, .arc) are also used.
Spreadsheet
I use a spreadsheet regularly when doing data analysis for everything from keeping lists, to making quick computations, to constructing tables.
Word processor
You probably use a word processor already. But, there are a few things that are particularly useful for data analysis. First, if you include output in your document, make sure that you use a fixed font so that columns of numbers line up. Second, make the font small enough and/or the margins large enough to allow an entire line of output to print without wrapping. Third, explore the use of hidden text as a way to keep notes within your text file that can document where numbers came from. You don't want this information to print in the final paper. In Word, you can do this by choosing "hidden" as an effect for the font you are using. To view hidden text on the screen, in Word 97-2003, click Show/Hide on the Standard toolbar or click on the ¶ icon. Word allows you to control the printing of hidden text differently than the screen display. Select Options from the Tools menu; select the Print tab; click your mouse on the Hidden Text check box. A check mark indicates that hidden text will print. In Word 2007, press ctrl-* (i.e., ctrl-shift-*) to toggle the visibility of hidden text on the screen. You can also click on the ¶ icon on the Home tab. To determine if hidden text is printed, go to Print Preview, select Options, and under Printing options, check the "Print hidden text" box. In LaTeX, the best solution I have found is to place the text that refers to the source for numbers between a TeX box with the command: \iffalse, followed by what will not be printed, and ending with a text box for \fi.