From: david@edenroad.demon.co.uk   
      
   On Wed, 19 Oct 2005 17:27:25 -0500, Dick Silk - The Computer Tutor wrote:   
      
   > "David Mitchell"  wrote in message   
   > news:pan.2005.10.19.21.39.02.821311@edenroad.demon.co.uk...   
   >> On Wed, 19 Oct 2005 14:34:34 -0500, Dick Silk - The Computer Tutor wrote:   
   >   
   >>> From this, the "rules" you refer to involve different *methods* of   
   >>> distilling down all that "noise" (qualitative data) into meaningful   
   >>> results:   
   >>> what ARE the major ideas on the minds of the respondents?   
   >>   
   >> So that would be "using quantitative data to generate "qualitative"   
   >> rules.", as I said.   
   >   
   > sort of, but not exactly.  It's typically the data that helps you to create   
   > the rule system.  Yes, you can purchase or borrow or copy or adopt someone   
   > else's canned rules, usually in the form of computer software, but you can   
   > also create your own methodology -- thus, the data creates the rules.   
      
   Good grief.   
      
   >> So that would be "using quantitative data to generate "qualitative"   
   >> rules.", as I said.   
      
   As I said!   
      
   >   
   >> Nothing to do with what we were talking about: the use of qualitative data   
   >> from anecdotal evidence.   
   >   
   > (here we go again...) anecdotal evidence, in sufficient quantity, can   
   > provide interesting results from studying the qualitative data.  THESE   
   > results can then be quantified.  Data is the new "gold" in today's   
   > market-driven societies.   
      
   If you're suggesting that anyone is doing large-scale extraction of   
   qualitative data from "anecdotes", I'd like to see a cite.   
      
   Certainly nothing you've provided so far is anything like that: the first   
   company you mentioned certainly process their data (to remove duplicates   
   and old addresses), but their data is addresses, not anecdotes.   
      
      
   --   
   =======================================================================   
   = David    --- If you use Microsoft products, you will, inevitably, get   
   = Mitchell --- viruses, so please don't add me to your address book.   
   =======================================================================   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)