Overview (DOCUMENT command)

DOCUMENT saves a block of text of any length in data files saved in IBM® SPSS® Statistics format. The documentation can be displayed with the DISPLAY command. (See also ADD DOCUMENT.)

When GET retrieves a data file, or when ADD FILES, MATCH FILES, or UPDATE is used to combine data files, all documents from each specified file are copied into the active dataset. DROP DOCUMENTS can be used to drop those documents from the active dataset. Whether or not DROP DOCUMENTS is used, new documents can be added to the active dataset with the DOCUMENT command.

Basic Specification

The basic specification is DOCUMENT followed by any length of text. The text is stored in the file dictionary when the data file is saved in IBM SPSS Statistics format.

Syntax Rules

• The text can be entered on as many lines as needed.
• Blank lines can be used to separate paragraphs.
• A period at the end of a line terminates the command, so you should not place a period at the end of any line but the last.
• Multiple DOCUMENT commands can be used within the command sequence. However, the DISPLAY command cannot be used to exhibit the text from a particular DOCUMENT command. DISPLAY shows all existing documentation.

Operations

• The documentation and the date it was entered are saved in the data file’s dictionary. New documentation is saved along with any documentation already in the active dataset.
• If a DROP DOCUMENTS command follows a DOCUMENT command anywhere in the command sequence, the documentation added by that DOCUMENT command is dropped from the active dataset along with all other documentation.