# Statistic programs and calculators



## R.Caerbannog (Jun 30, 2016)

Anyone here have a favored statistic calculator or program, for solving problems and generating graphs? I am currently using "RStudio" and I am hating life. Does anyone know of a GUI based stat calculator that is a bit more user friendly?


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## Florida173 (Jun 30, 2016)

There's some pretty good guides for successfully using R, but I think my background in using python helped.

Have you tried minitab? Works for graduate level programs.

Have you tried SAS or SPSS?

R is the only free one of the group and I'd say most powerful. A lot of public surveying companies output to SPSS and I usually only use it to transition to tabular form so I can use in excel and ArcGIS to spatialize.


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## R.Caerbannog (Jun 30, 2016)

Florida173 said:


> There's some pretty good guides for successfully using R, but I think my background in using python helped.
> 
> Have you tried minitab? Works for graduate level programs.
> 
> ...


I haven't tried any of the ones listed other than Excel. Thank you for the info Florida, I'll be looking into all four of these programs.


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## Isiah6:8 (Jun 30, 2016)

Matlab

If you build things out in excel it is really useful going the free route.


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## Totentanz (Jun 30, 2016)

Best GUI?  Matlab. 
Best stats-specific GUI?  Minitab 
SAS University Edition is free as well, but likely won't resolve issues if you're looking for a GUI-driven program. 

Not sure if you qualify but last time I had to use them both Matlab and Minitab had student editions for about $100.


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## AWP (Jun 30, 2016)

Totentanz said:


> Best GUI?  Matlab.
> Best stats-specific GUI?  Minitab
> SAS University Edition is free as well, but likely won't resolve issues if you're looking for a GUI-driven program.
> 
> Not sure if you qualify but last time I had to use them both Matlab and Minitab had student editions for about $100.



Do you even math, bro?


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## 104TN (Jun 30, 2016)

I used SPSS for a couple courses in college. May want to check out JASP. It's free.


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## R.Caerbannog (Jun 30, 2016)

Thanks everyone, y'all are awesome.


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## Salt USMC (Jun 30, 2016)

What's the general consensus on STATA?


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## Isiah6:8 (Jul 1, 2016)

Deathy McDeath said:


> What's the general consensus on STATA?



It is good but I used it in grad school when the university I was at shifted away from Crystal Ball, I haven't used it since then.  

From what I remember it had a pretty straightforward GUI and the scripting was simple enough which was I think one of the benefits to new users (correct me if wrong, thought it was a selling point of it then).  I think with an educational version (grad student) it is somewhere in the $100-200 depending on what level you are buying.


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## holmes163 (Jul 1, 2016)

The best graphical representations of data I ever saw were in Mathematica; Wolfram Alpha may help you out.  

There are some Python programs that people seem to like (I never used them), but R is probably the most mature in the stats realm.  There may be FOSS stuff that can do nice graphs though; sorry if this wasn't super helpful.


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## TLDR20 (Jul 1, 2016)

MATLAB is what my wife used for her entire engineering Ph.D.


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## Salt USMC (Jan 6, 2017)

Briefly strolling by this thread to say "Fuck R forever!"  Shit's been the bane of my existence this semester.


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## Dame (Jan 6, 2017)

Deathy McDeath said:


> Briefly strolling by this thread to say "Fuck R forever!"  Shit's been the bane of my existence this semester.


ROFLMAO! That sucks.
Monday my Stats class begins. No computer software allowed. No apps. Must use calculator. Ugh.
Might find a used HP 50G.


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## TLDR20 (Jan 6, 2017)

Dame said:


> ROFLMAO! That sucks.
> Monday my Stats class begins. No computer software allowed. No apps. Must use calculator. Ugh.
> Might find a used HP 50G.



I used a Ti-83 to fine results in my university statistics class.


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## Isiah6:8 (Jan 6, 2017)

I used an HP 12C and the BA2 which I still use.  That was '07-08

83 should be able to handle just about all of it


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## TLDR20 (Jan 6, 2017)

Dame said:


> ROFLMAO! That sucks.
> Monday my Stats class begins. No computer software allowed. No apps. Must use calculator. Ugh.
> Might find a used HP 50G.



I don't know what level you are at, but at the undergraduate level many of the courses teach to a certain calculator. In my class if you didn't have a TI-83, you basically had to teach yourself on the calculator. If you are in a graduate level course, it may be different. I would look at the syllabus before buying anything.


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## Dame (Jan 6, 2017)

The syllabus says not to buy a graphing calculator just for the class but that if you do have one "you will use it." No recommendations beyond that.


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## TLDR20 (Jan 6, 2017)

Dame said:


> The syllabus says not to buy a graphing calculator just for the class but that if you do have one "you will use it." No recommendations beyond that.



Often people sell TI-83's for drastically reduced cost. They are common in thrift stores and goodwills...


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## Dame (Jan 6, 2017)

I'm still leaning toard the HP, but thanks.


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## Isiah6:8 (Jan 6, 2017)

Dame said:


> The syllabus says not to buy a graphing calculator just for the class but that if you do have one "you will use it." No recommendations beyond that.



Honestly, the calculations you will do if not an advanced stat class can be done on most. The TI BA2 is useful. I guess I abide by the don't break the bank for something Gucci when really mastering the fundamentals is what it is all about.


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## Dame (Jan 7, 2017)

I might try just sticking with my regular HP then. If after the first week it isn't cutting it, then I'll look again. 

This is _not_ an advanced class thank goodness. I farkin' hate stats. Took it at a 100 level ages ago and this is a 200 level. But my office mate has degrees in computer science and math and I've had to "proof" her statistics white papers for work and produce several pages of plots by hand. (Don't ask.) So I know enough to dread the next 8 weeks of an accelerated course in the stuff.


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## x SF med (Jan 7, 2017)

AWP said:


> Do you even math, *geek*?



there, fixed it for you.


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## Dienekes (Jan 8, 2017)

I have a $20 Casio that everyone in my entire engineering curriculum uses. 1 professor even stocks them for students to sell back at cost just because it's perfect. We can't use graphing calculators because you can store shit on them and use on the test which is "cheating". It's solar powered and does it all, integrals, derivatives, matrices, and other mathematical shit that no one ever uses. You can type the equation out and make the thing solve for X which keeps you from screwing up basic algebra stuff and getting the wrong answer. The thing is truly the nipple on the titty for a very reasonable price.


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## Ooh-Rah (Jan 8, 2017)

Dienekes said:


> The thing is truly the nipple on the titty for a very reasonable price.



Not sure when or where, but I will be using that line at some point.


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## CQB (Jan 9, 2017)

As an app, I find Wolfram Alpha pretty good.


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## JohnBender (Jan 15, 2017)

I just finished my Data Analytics class and we used Palisade's Stattools. It's butt-fuck expensive, but students who have the accompanying book can download it for free, after a very...honor system type of verification check. It is very intuitive and generates a lot of work. We used it to do everything from predictive modeling, to multiple regressions, to generating P-Value charts and all sorts of wacky shit that is great for both statistical analysis, business data analysis, and hypothesis testing.

StatTools: Forecasting and Statistical Analysis Software for Excel - Palisade

It's very expensive, but if you buy the book and are a student you can get the program for free for 2 years. All you have to do is register, give your class information, and  AHEM AHEM pass the word-on-the-page type test to see if you have the book. I still have my book, not that you would *ask me to give you the word for the check* because that would be dishonorable and totally immoral. I mean, all you would have to do is ask and I would give that word, but, this is hypothetical and not at all moral and no one here is any of those things.


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## Dame (Jan 16, 2017)

JohnBender said:


> I just finished my Data Analytics class and we used Palisade's Stattools. It's butt-fuck expensive, but students who have the accompanying book can download it for free, after a very...honor system type of verification check. It is very intuitive and generates a lot of work. We used it to do everything from predictive modeling, to multiple regressions, to generating P-Value charts and all sorts of wacky shit that is great for both statistical analysis, business data analysis, and hypothesis testing.
> 
> StatTools: Forecasting and Statistical Analysis Software for Excel - Palisade
> 
> It's very expensive, but if you buy the book and are a student you can get the program for free for 2 years. All you have to do is register, give your class information, and  AHEM AHEM pass the word-on-the-page type test to see if you have the book. I still have my book, not that you would *ask me to give you the word for the check* because that would be dishonorable and totally immoral. I mean, all you would have to do is ask and I would give that word, but, this is hypothetical and not at all moral and no one here is any of those things.


ROFLMAO! 

Marry me.


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## Red Flag 1 (Jan 16, 2017)

Dame said:


> ROFLMAO!
> 
> Marry me.



Hey, I thought it was me you wanted to marry. 

Here I am, just cast aside like a dirty old broken shoe:-".


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## Dame (Jan 16, 2017)

Red Flag 1 said:


> Hey, I thought it was me you wanted to marry.
> 
> Here I am, just cast aside like a dirty old broken shoe:-".



I waited for you, Doc. But unlike men, women have an expiration date. 

ETA: Don't tell the kid mine already passed. He's new around here. I'm hoping he doesn't notice.


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## Red Flag 1 (Jan 16, 2017)

Dame said:


> I waited for you, Doc. But unlike men, women have an expiration date.
> 
> ETA: Don't tell the kid mine already passed. He's new around here. I'm hoping he doesn't notice.



I know: 




I still love ya girl!


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## JohnBender (Jan 16, 2017)

Dame said:


> I waited for you, Doc. But unlike men, women have an expiration date.
> 
> ETA: Don't tell the kid mine already passed. He's new around here. I'm hoping he doesn't notice.




It's true, I notice that mine usually spoil if I don't refrigerate them within a few hours after cooking. 

As for Marriage - Well, depends on whether you can/want to take care of a giant 30 year old man-baby. My pros are that I am witty and funny, my cons are literally everything else.


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## Red Flag 1 (Jan 16, 2017)

[Q


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## JohnBender (Jan 16, 2017)

Red Flag 1 said:


> Know this: Get it wrong with my Dame, and you'll have me on your neck.



"It seems here that Mr. Bender has committed suicide by shooting himself in the back of the head three times, severing his own femoral artery in multiple slashes,  dismembering his own body, sealing himself in a  55 gallon drum, and then tossing himself in the middle of the lake. Looks pretty open and shut to me." - Columbus Detective.


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## Red Flag 1 (Jan 16, 2017)

[Q


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## R.Caerbannog (Jan 16, 2017)

Y'alls conversation has been very entertaining!


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## Red Flag 1 (Jan 17, 2017)

[Q


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## Gunz (Jan 17, 2017)

Excuse me, gay nerds, while I go solve a few partial differential equations.


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## CQB (Jan 18, 2017)

OK, changing gears with a CQB hijack, Not even The Troll has heard this one, volume is mandatory. One way to ungay a thread is with volume.

damian lovelock  - Bing video


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## Dame (Jan 18, 2017)

So far I'm doing ok with a Casio fx-300 ES Plus we had lying around the house. It has stat functions but no real graphing. Also, the professor continues to change his mind on what we can use for homework/tests and when said items are due. We are on our 3rd syllabus and even though the class ends Feb 28, the due dates are pushed out clear into the end of April. Are all stats teachers this scattered?  :wall:


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## Totentanz (Jan 18, 2017)

Dame said:


> So far I'm doing ok with a Casio fx-300 ES Plus we had lying around the house. It has stat functions but no real graphing. Also, the professor continues to change his mind on what we can use for homework/tests and when said items are due. We are on our 3rd syllabus and even though the class ends Feb 28, the due dates are pushed out clear into the end of April. Are all stats teachers this scattered?  :wall:



Depends how long they've been teaching the course.  All of my teachers had been in position for a while and more often than not had taught the class for at least the last five years.  Any mayhem was abated by experience.


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## CQB (Jan 18, 2017)

Can anyone recommend a program to assist with economics?


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## TLDR20 (Jan 18, 2017)

Dame said:


> So far I'm doing ok with a Casio fx-300 ES Plus we had lying around the house. It has stat functions but no real graphing. Also, the professor continues to change his mind on what we can use for homework/tests and when said items are due. We are on our 3rd syllabus and even though the class ends Feb 28, the due dates are pushed out clear into the end of April. Are all stats teachers this scattered?  :wall:



No. I had the same teacher for calculus and stats, and she was the best most squared away teacher you can imagine. I didn't think I was capable of passing either class, because of her I got A+'s in both...


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## Dame (Jan 18, 2017)

My A will be "in spite of" this guy.


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## JohnBender (Jan 23, 2017)

Dame said:


> So far I'm doing ok with a Casio fx-300 ES Plus we had lying around the house. It has stat functions but no real graphing. Also, the professor continues to change his mind on what we can use for homework/tests and when said items are due. We are on our 3rd syllabus and even though the class ends Feb 28, the due dates are pushed out clear into the end of April. Are all stats teachers this scattered?  :wall:



I'll ask my team member today - he's a chemical engineer, a graduate assistant for our stats department, and I'm pretty sure figuring out P-values and confidence intervals  entices him in a way that no woman ever could. 



Ocoka One said:


> Excuse me, gay nerds, while I go solve a few partial differential equations.



Gay Nerd...that's what my mom used to call me, and it makes me nostalgic. 



Red Flag 1 said:


> Ya know, I like the 55 Gallon drum idea, a la "Counselor" rider.



Soak up the ideas now, I have to swear an oath to charge for them after I graduate (if I graduate).


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## Dame (Jan 23, 2017)

JohnBender said:


> I'll ask my team member today - he's a chemical engineer, a graduate assistant for our stats department, and I'm pretty sure figuring out P-values and confidence intervals  entices him in a way that no woman ever could.


I feel so guilty. I gave in. I bought the HP Prime (latest edition). I was having the worst time with standard deviations and I had to find out what I was doing wrong. 
Turns out it wasn't me. The book was wrong. Finding that out... Priceless.


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## JohnBender (Jan 24, 2017)

"I'm not  wrong Col. Sanders, YOU'RE wrong" 

Glad it worked out! If I remember correctly, Standard deviations can be done in excel manually via taking the value of the individual point, multiplying by the probability of that point then subtracting the mean value of all the data. This gives you the variance, and then you square root the variance and BAM - standard deviation for that figure. 

I think that's right, but it's been a while. I kind of forget exactly how to do it, and thinking about it too hard makes my brain start to bleed. Good luck!


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