Re: lost data set?

Posted by David Marso on Dec 03, 2012; 4:28pm
URL: http://spssx-discussion.165.s1.nabble.com/lost-data-set-tp5716590p5716609.html

From what I can gather using various occult techniques (ESPss, InterneTelepathy, voodoo , lighting black candles)... There once upon a time was a data file which existed on a USB storage device and was accessed by SPSS .  Through various unanticipated acts of computer demons and/or undocumented acts of nature and user intervention said file's current existential status is open to debate.  
Aside from having syntax saved (not useful if one has entered the data manually into the data editor - I suspect this to be the case here-).
OTOH:  This may prove to be a very important milestone in Ildra's computer oriented education.
MAKE A BACKUP (or 3) of anything important!!!!  Exercise extreme pessimism WRT the reliability of computers.  Assume the worst case and be prepared for it.
---

Ruben van den Berg wrote

Dear Ildra,
Please note that in SPSS a "DataSet" is something else than a "Data file". A DataSet exists only in working memory (RAM) and simply vanishes as soon as you close SPSS. It only becomes a "Data file" if you save it to a hard disk/usb/CD/whatever.
I think you got some great advice from the list on how to go after your lost data and/or commands in order to recreate your data. Still, I think the importance of saving your syntax can hardly be exaggerated. Many more problems may occur (sooner or later) if you don't.
Kind regards,
Ruben

Date: Mon, 3 Dec 2012 02:29:09 -0800
From: [hidden email]
Subject: lost data set?
To: [hidden email]

Hello,

Yesterday I have been working on a dataset, with a couple of tens of variables and about 500 cases. After I have done some basic statistics (descriptives, explore procedures..) and saved the standardized values for some variables, I closed the dataset. Today, when I searched in the folder were I was keeping it, the set was no longer there. I've tried looking for it in windows with the search option but it just gives me the shortcut which will not open (it says that it has been changed or moved and
 is no longer available). This file was kept on a usb stick but I carefully saw that all programes are closed before ejecting the usb. Since I have put a lot of work in this set, I wouldn't like to take it all over from the beginning. Is there any way to recover my data?

Thank you!
D.N.