[Blindmath] Spss 16 nightmare

[Jonathan Godfrey]

Hi,

I'm probably the biggest user of R on the list so I'll step in here...

First, there is a long message that I wrote to the list on getting 
started with R. I wrote it from my work machine so won't find it here 
at home. You'll need to search the archives.

Second, to answer the more specific questions. Yes R can import an 
SPSS file. I haven't needed to do this as it happens but the command 
exists within the R package called "foreign". If your installation 
hasn't included it then you can download from a CRAN site easily. The 
command is called read.spss

Third, R can do everything that can be achieved within SPSS. This is 
because R is fundamentally a programming language/environment where 
the vast majority of common statistical tasks have been programmed by 
someone else already. I would doubt that an undergraduate course in 
statistics would use something that would not be available in base R 
already, or couldn't easily be achieved with a little investigation 
by you or your tutor.

You may wish to direct specific questions to me off list. This is OK, 
but be warned we are gearing up for semester down here and things 
will get busy for me over the next few weeks.

Jonathan


At 08:29 a.m. 1/02/2009, you wrote:
>I am so glad you asked this Vincent, as I also am required to use 
>SPSS for my stats class, but haven't started to tackle it yet.
>I'll be interested to see if anyone can help!
>Diane
>----- Original Message ----- From: "vincent" <vmartin at mindspring.com>
>To: <blindmath at nfbnet.org>
>Sent: Saturday, January 31, 2009 11:55 AM
>Subject: [Blindmath] Spss 16 nightmare
>
>
>>Hello:
>>I am taking a quantitative research methods and Engineering Psychology class
>>this semester and both are requiring me to use SPSS version 16 to calculate
>>results.  I have done everything imaginable to make SPSS talk enough for me
>>to use, but to no avail.  I have installed the old scripts and the Java
>>access bridge.  It speaks somewhat, but not enough to truly function.  The
>>disability services office took my advice and is going to provide me a
>>reader to read the screen for me, so I can at least complete my homework.
>>
>>Does anyone know if the statistical package "R: can do the same things that
>>SPSS will do?  Also, will it read a .sav Spss file or will I have to try and
>>export the data from the spss file.
>>Any assistance would be greatly appreciated, because I just don't have the
>>time to do all the research this weekend myself.  I have to spend time
>>catching up in my JAVA programming class.  Of curse the compiler the school
>>is using was written in JAVA and does not speak enough to use.  I have moved
>>on to Eclipse and am happily coding away.
>>
>>
>>
>>"If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs, you'll be a
>>Man, my son!"
>>
>>Rudyard Kipling
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>
>
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_____
Dr A. Jonathan R. Godfrey
Lecturer in Statistics
Institute of Fundamental Sciences
Massey University
Palmerston North

Room: AH2.82
Phone: +64-6-356 9099 ext 7705
Mobile: +64-29-538-9814
Home Address: 22 Bond St, Palm. Nth.
Home Phone: +64-6-353 2224 (Just think FLEABAG)