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Access and Using the Data
Access
To
read the data you will need to have installed on your PC one of
the following formats from either the Archive File or the Consolidated
file. The Archive file contains only literal variables, as originally
written in the census manuscript. The Consolidated file contain
all available variables, consolidated in a form convenient for
the user. It is recommend that the user start with the consolidated
database.
Archive File:
SPSS 11.0
SPSS 9.0
SPSS 6.0
EXCEL
TAB-DEL.dat
F-ASCII.dat
DBASE IV.DBF
Consolidated File:
SPSS 11.0
SPSS 9.0
SPSS 6.0
EXCEL
TAB-DEL.dat
F-ASCII.dat
DBASE IV.DBF
Guides and Instructions
Available guides and instructions for sorting the data in search of individuals
(primarily for family historians and genealogists )are provided at the end
of this documentation text for:
• SPSS: The guide was cinstructed using version 9.0. However, the instructions
are essentially the same for all versions of SPSS.
• EXCEL: The guide was constructed using version X.X. However, the instructions
are essentially the same for all versions of Excel.
Using the
Data: Documentation File
This file contains essays on the nature and purpose of the Guadalajara
Censuses Project, and on the historical background of the city of Guadalajara
and of the two censuses of 1821 and 1822. The state of the project as
of the date of issuance is explained and each type of information in
the database is described in the Variable List and in greater detail
in the Codebook. Finally, instructions are provided on searching the
database for individuals. The instructions pertain to two of the six
formats in which the database is organized. One is the most common software
used by historians--the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences,
version 9.0. Note: Although version 11.0 is now available and is included
as one of the two SPSS formats provided in this CD-ROM, 9.0 will be the
most recognized. Most instructions applicable to 9.0 will also apply
to 10.0. The other is Excel, a well known spread sheet. Further information
on the methods and procedures used in creating the Guadalajara Censuses
Database can be had at the project website.
Database File
This file contains two versions of the database (Archive and Consolidated),
each one containing the data in six different formats (SPSS 11.0 and 9.0; Excel;
TAB-DEL.dat; F-ASCII.dat; DBASEIV.DBF).
Archive File
The Archive File contains data entered verbatim as it appears on the pages
of the manuscript census, preserving the original spelling, accent marks (usually
the lack of same) and syntax. The concept of the “archive file” is
to provide an accurate copy of the original document consistent with a statistical
database. Genealogists and family historians may want to use this file in searching
for more common Hispanic surnames when the archaic spelling of family surnames
is known. However, otherwise it is recommended that if one is searching for
a particular individual that you start first with the Consolidated File. It
should be understood, however, that the archive file has not undergone all
the error detection processes and may contain data entry errors which have
since been corrected. When in doubt, the information may be crossed checked
with the “Consolidated” file. Each file is “shadow” indexed,
meaning that except where error has been detected in the presence or absence
of a case (ie individual) or a household, the order of the cases in both files
are the same. Errors caught in the process of data entry have been corrected
in the archival file. It is only errors which were revealed after the data
entry had been completed that remain in the archive file. They have been corrected
in the consolidated file. In brief, the Archive File contains nearly all the “literal” information
which one would find on the original padron or census manuscript page. Such
data would be the names of the residents, their ages, ethnicity (calidad),
place of origin (patria), marital status and the like. The Archive File does
not contain the “constructed” variables described below in the
Consolidated File.
Consolidated File
This file contains 87 variables. The variables are divided into two major categories.
They are alpha-numeric (“string”) and numeric (“coded”).
String variables record the data as written. The job “carpintero” for
example would be entered into the database as “carpintero.” An
example of a coded variable would be marital status, in which the many types
of marital status would be entered by codes (1 = parvulo, 2 = soltero, 3 =
doncella, etc.). Those two categories are then sub-divided into two types–literal
and constructed.
Literal Variables
Literal variables are those pieces of information taken verbatim from the census
manuscript page, as noted in the Archive File. However, in the Consolidated
File that data have been converted into the most common modern spellings and
accent marks for surnames, occupations, place of birth, etc. This includes
the substitution of “v” for the archaic “b,” “j” for “x” (except
where “x” is still used, such as in México.), etc. To facilitate
statistical analysis most string (alphabetic) variables have been paired with
a duplicate numeric variable. To further expedite analysis, variables characterized
by a large number of values (e.g., age, martial status, ethnicity and birthplace)
have also been paired with a consolidated version of that variable. In both
cases, the paired variable is usually identified with a “2" as in
Age2.
Constructed Variables
Constructed variables are those created by GCP staff from the “literal” data
contained in the census. The purpose of constructed variables is to provide
as much information as possible in an easy to use format. Examples of such
variables might be as simple as how many employed persons are present in a
household to complex categories of household and family structure. Because
constructed variables involve various levels of interpretation, the GCP staff
have also created variables which quantitatively measure the nature and degree
of interpretation and assumption. See Database Documentation for details.
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