Saving version 8.0 file as 6.0 - possible?

[Moshe Braner]

gare...@my-dejanews.com wrote:
: I have been working with version 8.0 of SPSS and a colleague of mine needs to
: use my file on his machine which only uses version 6.0. When I looked in the
: 'save as' options, I can only save as 7.0. Can anybody help me solve this
: problem? If you can, could you mail me ASAP at the address below:

There is something different about the 8.0 data (.sav) files, but in
practice I have had no problems reading them into 6.1.4. When you
save the file in 8.0, look for the message in the output (if you
have messages turned on) that says "saved file ... file is compatible
with SPSS versions prior to 7.5". I always thought that is a rather
silly message, it should say "file is compatible with SPSS versions
X.Y and up". But I _think_ that that message is saying that there
is nothing about this specific data file that makes it incompatible
with, e.g., version 6.1.4.

If you do run into problems, you can have 8.0 save it as an SPSS/PC
(5.x, .sys) file, or as a portable file. It also has the option
to save it as an SPSS 7.0 file, which I believe is the same as
the 6.x format? I have seen some software (SUDAAN) refuse to
read the SPSS 7.0 format (and the 8.0) but that seems to be
unnecessarily cautious behavior on the part of that software.
As I said, SPSS 6.1.4 has successfully read every 8.0 data file
I've given it thus far.

- Moshe

[Jonathan Fry]

The data file formats for releases 6.0 and 7.0 are compatible, so save
as 7.0.

Jonathan Fry
SPSS Inc.
Developer
SPSS questions to sup...@spss.com, please
------------------------------------------------

gare...@my-dejanews.com wrote:
>
> I have been working with version 8.0 of SPSS and a colleague of mine needs to
> use my file on his machine which only uses version 6.0. When I looked in the
> 'save as' options, I can only save as 7.0. Can anybody help me solve this
> problem? If you can, could you mail me ASAP at the address below:

> g.hagger...@shef.ac.uk
>
> Thanks
> Gareth Hagger-Johnson
>
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