# merlin - a unified framework for data-analysis

merlin stands for Mixed Effects Regression for LInear, Non-linear and user-defined models. merlin can do a lot of things, from simple stuff like fitting a linear regression or a Weibull survival model, to a three-level logistic mixed effects model, or a multivariate joint model of multiple longitudinal outcomes (of different types) and a recurrent event and survival with non-linear effects… the list is rather endless. merlin can do things you or I haven’t even thought of yet.

This page contains information on how to install the package, links to version histories, and a collection of tutorials and examples to fit and obtain a wide variety of models and predictions.

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### Installation:

The current stable version of merlin can be installed from the SSC archive by typing:

ssc install merlin


Any updates can be picked up by typing adoupdate, update. A detailed version history is provided.

The development version of merlin in Stata (which contains new features still in testing), can be installed by typing:

net install merlin, from("https://www.mjcrowther.co.uk/code/merlin/")


and then run adoupdate as normal to pick up any updates. A detailed version history of the development version is also provided.

Following installation, see help merlin for an overview of the package.

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### Tutorials:

For detailed examples see the merlin tutorials in Stata page.

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### Publications:

Below are publications which have contributed to the development of the merlin package.

Weibull CE, Lambert PC, Eloranta S, Andersson TML, Dickman PW, Crowther MJ. A multi-state model incorporating estimation of excess hazards and multiple time scales. Statistics in Medicine 2021; (Accepted). (Pre-print).

Crowther MJ. merlin - a unified framework for data analysis and methods development in Stata. Stata Journal 2020;20(4):763-784. (Pre-print: https://arxiv.org/abs/1806.01615).

Gasparini A, Abrams KR, Barrett JK, Major JK, Sweeting MJ, Brunskill NJ, Crowther MJ. Mixed effects models for healthcare longitudinal data with an informative visiting process: a Monte Carlo simulation study. Statistica Neerlandica 2020;74(1):5-23 (Pre-print: https://arxiv.org/abs/1808.00419)

Crowther MJ. Multilevel mixed effects parametric survival analysis: Estimation, simulation and application. Stata Journal 2019;19(4):931-949. (Pre-print: https://arxiv.org/abs/1709.06633)

Crowther MJ. Extended multivariate generalised linear and non-linear mixed effects models. arXiv:1710.02223.

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### merlin in R

merlin was released on CRAN on 15th August 2018. The version history can be found here

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