Things to Do Before Using StatXact's Monte Carlo Option for Homework
So that I can more easily determine if you did things correctly for the homework, I want
you to set things up so we'll all be using one million Monte Carlo trials and we'll all
use the same random number seed each time we get a Monte Carlo estimate of an exact p-value
using StatXact.
So, as soon as possible, bring up an Options box using
Nonparametrics > Settings for Nonparametric Procedures
On the first screen that appears (for General Options) one can keep the Default settings,
except change the Score Accuracy from 3 to 8 (although we'll often use fewer digits than 8).
Then click the square box to Save Global Parameters Permanently, and finally click OK.
At this point the Options box goes away, but we need to bring it back using (once again)
Nonparametrics > Settings for Nonparametric Procedures
This time ignore the first screen that comes up (the General Options screen) and click on
the Monte Carlo tab to get the Monte Carlo Options screen. First change the Crude Monte
Carlo Sample Size to 1000000. Then click the Fixed button
besides Random Number Seed, and keep the default value of 23456. (Note: For homework I don't
want you to use a "random" seed based on the clock because then you'll get results different
from those I obtain.) Then click the square box to Save Monte Carlo Parameters Permanently,
and finally click OK.
Each time you run a test in StatXact that uses the Monte Carlo option, look at the output
to make sure it used 1,000,000 trials and a seed of 23456. (If it didn't, try changing the
options once more, being sure to indicate to save the changes permanently, and also try
shutting down StatXact and starting it up again before using the Monte Carlo option.)