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Option 2: User-defined missing values
Here codes defined by the user are declared as missing values, using the missing option in
the define missing values dialogue (this
is accessed via the define variable dialogue).
Once all of the variables are correctly defined, clicking on the Data View tab at the bottom of
the window will return you to the data sheet.
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To save the data
.
Click on the File menu
.
Click on Save As…
. Once you have chosen the correct drive and directory, type
pat_data in the
File name box
. Click on
OK
SPSS adds the extension
.sav to the end of your filename, which helps in recognising the file
as an
SPSS data file for future sessions. The data are now ready to be investigated.
Examples of analyses using these and other data will be shown later in this pack.
Help
SPSS includes an extensive online help system. The
Help menu provides different kinds of
help, including
Topics,
Tutorial and even a
Statistics Coach. The Statistics Coach may be
helpful for choosing the appropriate analysis for a particular dataset.
The Help system also
includes an online version of the SPSS syntax guide, which is useful for more advanced
users.
Exiting SPSS
At any time in your work you may want to exit SPSS. This is achieved with the
following menu command:
. Click on the
File
menu, then on Exit
.
However, do not forget to save your data first if you want to keep the changes you have
made.
Concluding Remarks
This Section has introduced you to SPSS and has covered the
first steps in using the
package to analyse data. This has included entering data, defining variables, saving data and
using the Help system.
