SPSS (originally, Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) has been around for quite awhile now. But its impact on the social sciences has been great (as other software packages such as SAS). In graduate school, we began with a program designed for Biomedical users. In those days, one had to type commands and statements on Hollerith cards, using a card punch. Take the cards to a window in the computer center, watch someone bring your tape with data on it, install it on a tape drive, and run the program on the data.
SPSS was a major step forward, and subsequent versions have become more powerful. Also, more complex. So is is absolutely predictable that SPSS would become the subject for the ". . .for Dummies" series. And this volume does a decent job helping the reader get through SPSS. . . .
