The Edit tab in the Edit Variable dialog box (see Edit Variable dialog box) and the New Variable dialog box (see New Variable dialog box) lists the items that will be shown by default when the variable is included on the side or top of a table.

The Edit tab in the Edit Axis dialog box (see Edit Axis dialog box) defines how the variable will be shown in the current table only.

Initially the Edit tab lists the changes that have been made to the variable, if any. If not, what is shown depends on the variable type. For a categorical variable, the items are based on the variable's categories and built-in elements, and for all other variable types, only a base is shown.

You can change the name of the items you insert, but not the names of the items that are part of the variable itself. Item names must be unique within the variable. If you change an item's name, you must make sure that the name is valid. See Naming conventions for more information.

This is the text that is shown on the table for the currently selected language. You can change the label.

You can specify the number of decimal places for statistical variables such as mean or standard deviation, and for other items such as totals and unweighted bases. The number of decimals you enter here overrides the value you enter for cell contents in the Preferences tab.

Factors assigned to categories are displayed here. You can change the factors using the Element Properties dialog box.

Check this box if you do not want the category, base, or other item to appear in the table. Note that the values in hidden categories are still counted in the base for the table (for information on excluding a category from the base, see Removing categories from a table).

This shows the syntax for the item's definition. This is blank for categories that are actually built into the variable.

Add one or more items above the selected item. See Insert Item dialog box for more information.

Delete the selected item or items. (If the item is a category in a categorical variable, this removes the category so that it does not appear on the table. However, it does not delete the category from the variable.)

Collapse two or more selected categories into one category. See Combining categories for more information.

Combine two or more selected categories into one category, and retain the selected categories. See Combining categories for more information.

Insert a net containing the selected items. See Creating nets for more information.

Move the selected item or items up the list.

Move the selected item or items down the list.

Set properties for the items. For some of the special elements, you can define whether the value is to be calculated using factors or a specified numeric variable. For category and expression items, you can set the factor value. See Element Properties dialog box for more information.

You can use Ctrl+click and Shift+click to select multiple items.