VAR VERSION NES VERSION NUMBER

VAR VERSION   NES VERSION NUMBER                                              
              COLUMNS 1    - 2                                                
              NUMERIC                                                         
              NO MISSING DATA CODES

      Release of this dataset constitutes release of the following            
      components:                                                             
                                                                              
      1) DATA      - ASCII data file; SAS, SPSS transport (portable) files    
      2) CODEBOOK  - ASCII intro, var documentation, appendix files           
      3) .SAS/.SPS - data definition files (i.e. program/syntax files)        
                     for edited use with ASCII data                           
                                                                              
      Because any one of these components may be revised for correction       
      without revision to other components, each component is assigned an     
      independent version number whenever revision is made to that component  
      for release.  Variable  VVERSION  (columns 1-2 in the raw data file)    
      records the version number of the "data" component, unrelated to        
      the version number of the codebook files or of the SAS/SPSS data        
      definition files.                                                       
                                                                              
      In general, the recorded version number that appears within a file      
      is limited to documenting only the component to which the file belongs. 
      The version number of a codebook file (including this file) appears     
      in the first line of the file; the version number of a SAS/SPSS data    
      definition file appears in the 1st line comment.  In data files         
      (1 above), the variable VVERSION is always first.                       
                                                                              
      Note:  Files which together comprise a component are never released     
      separately; even when only 1 file within a component is actually        
      revised, all the files constituting that component are assigned the     
      same, new version number.                                               
                                                                              
      SPECIAL NOTE FOR THE CUMULATIVE DATA FILE:  Addition of data from       
      the latest NES time-series study to existing Cumulative Data File       
      data results in a new dataset rather than a new 'version' of existing   
      component files.  The variable VDSETNO (see next variable) is revised   
      each time the range of NES study years integrated into Cumulative       
      Data is incremented.   Variable VVERSION tracks changes made to         
      component files from a Cumulative Data File dataset covering a          
      specific range of years.                                                
                                                                              
      For more information about releases of specific versions of             
      dataset component files, see the National Election Studies              
      Web site at  http://www.umich.edu/~nes.                                 
                                                                              
                                                                              
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