Questionnaires?

UNCLE PROFESSIONAL imports fixed-position data files of either Column Binary or ASCII (text) format.  Record lengths should not exceed 65,000 positions per case (respondent), with a maximum of 800 records per case.  UNCLE will accept files from any source (such as Excel and SPSS) as long as they adhere to these generous conventions.

SPSS®?

Importing data from an SPSS® database is a simple process of first saving the data as a fixed-position ASCII file.  And, if the SPSS® file is a labeled file, the Variable and Value Labels may also be imported as ready-to-use UNCLE tables.

CATI or Web-Based Interviewing?

As long as the CATI or Web program can generate either ASCII, Column Binary, or SPSS® output, UNCLE can handle it.  And many systems, including Ronin’s Results for Research, Voxco Inc.’s Interviewer, and The Analytical Group’s Query, have interfaces in place and ready to go.

What About Data Created in Programs Such as Excel®?

Save the data as a delimited text file, then use USort to convert it to a fixed-position file.  USort creates a data map of this new file, using column labels as identifiers.

Lookup Cleans?

UNCLE’s logical requests state what your data should be, and then generate a summary report listing all the respondents who failed, and why.

Force Cleans?

Take those logical requests one step further, and tell UNCLE what action to take if a respondent fails.  UNCLE does the rest, and summarizes the changes it makes.

Can I Combine the Two?

Of course.  Locates can be incorporated with the Force requests, allowing you to look at the data before UNCLE makes any changes.

Can I Look at the Data?

Yes, and in a number of different ways.  The database can be looked at on a global level for counts and percentages of codes within data positions and alpha/numeric strings within fields.  Or, your data can be viewed at the case level, displaying all of a single respondent's answers or a subset of same.  Listings of case ID numbers - both present, absent, and duplicate - can also be easily displayed.

What If I Make a Mistake, and Irreparably Damage My Database?

The UNCLE database is a binary copy of your original, raw data file, so recreating the UNCLE database in its native state is achieved with a simple request.

What If My Sample Needs Adjustments or Balancing?

UNCLE’s weighting requests allow you to balance your sample in a fashion most appropriate to your needs.  You can reproportion your data to known percentages of your universe, apply factors that are part of your data set, or use a combination of the two.  And you can project your sample total to any desired n.

How About New Variables?

If you can describe it, you can program it.  And UNCLE’s Expression language allows you to calculate and store the results of almost any arithmetic expression needed.

Are They Difficult To Set Up?

Not at all.  Simply assign a label to the row or column, and tell UNCLE who qualifies for that label.

What If I Need to Define Some Very Complicated Categories?

UNCLE’s qualifications are readily understood and implemented, and you can take them to as many terms as needed.

How Many Columns Can I Have in a Table?

Two hundred and fifty-five!

Tell Me About the Tabular Output?

The results of your tabulations can be directed to any of a number of places: to the screen for interactive viewing, to an ASCII text file for viewing or printing on most any printer with UPrint, to a Rich Text Format (RTF) file for importation into Microsoft® Word, or to workbooks for importation into Microsoft® Excel, Lotus®, or Harvard Graphics®.

Microsoft® Word Output?  Is This Simply a Copy of the ASCII Text File, Opened in Word?

Not at all.  This output is formatted as a Word table, which allows the use of proportional fonts such as Arial.  In addition to the hundreds of Title Control Words and formatting Options available with UNCLE's default output, UNCLE's Word output can be further customized through control of font size and line size, text bolding, centering within table columns, and landscape vs. portrait orientation.

How Do I Write UNCLE’s Specifications?

One of three ways: 1) in UNCLE, on a table-by-table basis, utilizing the helpful interactive prompts and syntax checking; 2) in UNCLE, using the powerful UNCLE Editor, which affords you the ease and speed of full-screen editing of multiple tables; or, 3) outside of UNCLE, with either the UNCLE Editor, another text editor, or a word processor.  Either of the first two methods are an appropriate choice for the novice, with the third method an efficient time-saver for those wishing to work independent of the UNCLE environment.

The UNCLE Editor can be used for editing and sorting unrelated text files, as well. 

What If I Want Graphs?

UNCLE’s graph option automatically inserts bar graphs in the body of your table, based on either horizontal row percents or frequencies.  Or, if you’d prefer, you can direct the results of your tabulations to worksheets for graphing in numerous other programs.
(see GRAPH option sample output)

My Spelling Isn't Very Good.  Will this be a problem?

It shouldn't be.  Simply click on the Spell Check button on the toolbar, and UNCLE will do the rest.  Spelling can be checked globally on all tables, or on any selected subset. 

How Does Weighting Affect My Tables?

Weights can be turned on or off at the table level, or independently for rows and/or columns within a table.  Multiple weight factors may be used within a table, and the Expression language can be used - on the fly - to temporarily alter each case's weight factor before it's applied to a table, row, or column.

How About Statistics?

Mean, Standard Deviation, Standard Error, Median, Percentile, Mode, and Variance are all available, and can be computed on fields of actual values or codes representing ranges of values.  Whichever way your data is stored, UNCLE can perform the statistics that you need.  Summary tables can also be created to display multiple instances of any of these statistics.

Is That All?

No.  UNCLE can also perform chi square, significance tests, and t-tests.  And for the latter two tests, you can specify the probability level(s) for testing or let UNCLE report the probability that the difference in the compared cells is not due to sampling error.  Significance and t-tests may be performed between mutually exclusive groups (independent), as well as those where a subset of the cases may be common to both groups (dependent).

Coded Responses?

Tables of coded responses may incorporate nets and as many levels of sub-nets as required.

How About Ranking?

Ranking of these groups can be performed on frequencies or percents, and in descending or ascending order.  Or, if you’d prefer, you can print a cell’s vertical or horizontal rank number!

What If I Want to Rank On a Subset of Total Sample?

Simply specify the subset of total to be used, and UNCLE does the rest.  And it doesn’t need to be a tabulated portion of the table.

And If I Want to Reorder the Net Groups, But Not Their Detail Rows?

Simply flag the detail rows to retain their original order within the ranked Net Groups.

Can I Reorder the Table's Rows Based on Their Text?

Yes, there's an option to do just that, reordering the rows in an ascending alphanumeric sequence.

What If the Responses Are Verbatim?

If they’re part of your data set, it’s not a problem.  Either incorporate the responses into your UNCLE tabulations, or use one of UNCLE’s many data management requests to output the verbatim comments to a word-processor or worksheet.

Is the UNCLE Database Compatible with Other Programs?

Yes, if those programs can read fixed-position files in either Column Binary or ASCII.  Otherwise, there are tools available (such as our DELIMIT and SPREAD requests) to easily reformat your database to one that is compatible with the other program. 

What about exporting data to SPSS®?

UNCLE's SPSS® request can be used to create an SPSS®-ready Syntax Document and associated data file.  Variable Labels and Value Labels can be pulled from existing UNCLE tables' title lines and row labels.  Create any combination of numeric variables and string variables, for the entire sample or a subset of same.    Numeric variables can be generated from fields with either coded or implied decimals; number of decimals displayed can be different for each variable.  Conversion of non-numeric strings to values, or from one value to another, for any numeric variable.

What Sort of Limitations Are There in UNCLE?

Very few.  There are no practical limits to the size of your database on PCs using the NTFS file system.  PCs using the FAT32 or FAT16 file systems may not have databases exceeding 4,294,967,295 bytes (roughly 4 GB).  Each respondent’s data is limited to 65,000 data positions or 800 card images.  Tables can have up to 255 columns, and many hundreds of rows.  Otherwise, you’re limited only by your imagination!

Is UNCLE a Windows Application?

UNCLE is a 32-bit fully-integrated Windows application that is compatible with the Windows 98SE/2000/XP environments.  UNCLE takes full advantage of the Windows operating system's most attractive and useful attributes, while continuing to utilize UNCLE's time-tested unique and powerful tab language.  UNCLE remains fully compatible with the table libraries and databases created with previous releases of UNCLE.

How About Post-Analysis?

UNCLE’s SPSS® request generates SPSS®-ready variables with Variable Labels and Value Labels derived from your table library.  And with release w04, UNCLE PROFESSIONAL continues to generate the variables and databases used by UNCLE REPORTS, our downloadable 32-bit Windows application that facilitates independent ad hoc analysis for both in-house use and end-user clients alike.

What are some of UNCLE's other features?

For a summary of UNCLE's requests and options, visit the Features page of our site.

Still Have Questions?

Fill out the form on the Information page of our site, or call 800-229-6287, extension 300.  We’ll be happy to answer your questions.

But Is UNCLE Right For My Company?

If you analyze survey data, we think it is.  But don’t just take our word for it: send us a copy of one of your surveys and - ideally - a copy of that survey’s data.  We’ll be happy to set up some representative tabular samples, and the requests required to generate them, for your inspection.  Or, to speed up the process, we can send you samples of the same materials from an in-house demo survey.

If you’d prefer, we can send you a copy of the UNCLE PROFESSIONAL demo for a modest fee.  This is not a self-driven demo; instead, it is a fully-functional evaluation version of the program with only a few imposed limitations for security.  Accompanying it is the Getting Started User’s Guide, as well as a fictitious research questionnaire, its data set, and sample specifications.