Even if you collect your data yourself, you might have regrets when the time comes to analyze it. You might wish that you had measured radiuses rather than diameters, or you might find that the cereal package fill weights that you recorded inadvertantly included the weight of the box.
In cases like this, Minitab’s Calculator offers a simple solution, such as dividing that entire column of diameter data by 2 to produce radius measurements or subtracting the weight of the cereal box from the column of fill weights.
But what about text data? You might want to “subtract” extraneous text from a column of labels or to “divide” a column of long identification codes into its smaller, separate components.
One tool, endless applications
You might be surprised to hear that Minitab’s Calculator is just as useful with text as it is with numbers. Here are just a few examples.
Isolate critical information
Sometimes it’s helpful to extract individual words or characters from text data for use in isolation.
The fourth character of these serial numbers denotes the production line that produced that particular television.
The Calculator creates a new column that lists only this value. Now this data can be grouped and analyzed according to production line.
Combine data for added meaning
In other cases, the whole can be greater than the sum of its parts.
The month, day, and year of each observation were originally recorded in separate columns, which complicates graphing.
The Calculator creates a new column that combines the month, day, and year into a single cell.
Replace incorrect portions of text data
A consistent recording error doesn’t have to result in time consuming hand corrections.
A customer service operator who handles product returns has noted the incorrect year portion of the catalog code that is used to reference the item.
The Calculator finds the text and replaces it with the correct year.
These are just a few of the useful functions included in Minitab’s Calculator. And, while the list of available functions may be long, don't worry: the Calculator is used in essentially the same way, regardless of the function.
Using the Calculator in Minitab
Here’s one example of applying a Calculator function to text data.
First and last names were recorded in separate columns of this personnel data sheet, but referencing only a last name occasionally proved problematic because a number of employees share the same last name.
Because you want to create a new column that “concatenates” or combines the first and last names (last name first, separated by a comma), use the Concatenate function.
- Choose Calc > Calculator.
- In Store result in variable, enter Full Name.
- From the list of Functions, select Concatenate.
- Enter the elements you want to combine.
- Click OK.
The new column allows for quick sorting by first and last name and should help avoid any confusion in the future.
Putting it to use
While Minitab’s Calculator can’t turn back time, it can help you change some of the layout and formats that might prevent you from analyzing your data the way you want to. And correcting errors is only the beginning. By using Minitab’s calculator to split, combine, extract, and revise your text (and numeric, and date/time) data, you can also add value to the data that you already have.
