Hi,
I am trying to drop blank observations (those observations which are missing an email address in the datafile).

When I add the command 'drop if email == ""' to the do-file and run the file, it returns 'invalid name'.

When I type the same command directly into the command window, it drops the unwanted observations successfully.

I am at a loss as to what I am doing wrong, as I am typing (and retyping) the same command, using the same keyboard, each time. I have tried searching here and online, but the keywords I am using seem too common to find anything relevant.

The output is:

drop if email == “”
“” invalid name
r(198);

end of do-file

r(198);

. drop if email == ""
(11 observations deleted)

Many thanks.