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User guide: updated URLs for new Dynare website 

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doc/userguide/UserGuide.tex
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@ -72,18 +72,18 @@ This is the second version of the Dynare User Guide which is still work in progr
The second thing that a work in progress manuscript comes with is a few internal notes. These are mostly placeholders for future work, notes to myself or others of the Dynare development team, or at times notes to you - our readers - to highlight a feature not yet fully stable. Any such notes are marked with two stars (**). \\
Thanks very much for your patience and good ideas. Please write either direclty to myself: tommaso.mancini@stanfordalumni.org, or \textbf{preferably on the Dynare Documentation Forum} available in the Forum section of the \href{http://www.dynare.org}{Dynare website}.
Thanks very much for your patience and good ideas. Please write either direclty to myself: tommaso.mancini@stanfordalumni.org, or \textbf{preferably on the Dynare Documentation Forum} available in the \href{http://www.dynare.org/phpBB3}{Dynare Forums}.
\chapter*{Contacts and Credits} \label{ch:contacts}
Dynare was originally developed by Michel Juillard in Paris, France. Currently, the development team of Dynare is composed of
\begin{itemize}
\item StŽphane Adjemian (stephane.adjemian``AT''ens.fr)
\item Houtan Bastani
\item Houtan Bastani (houtanb``AT''gmail.com)
\item Michel Juillard (michel.juillard``AT''ens.fr)
\item Ferhat Mihoubi (ferhat.mihoubi``AT''univ-evry.fr)
\item George Perendia
\item Marco Ratto (marco.ratto``AT''jrc.it)
\item George Perendia (george``AT''perendia.orangehome.co.uk)
\item Marco Ratto (marco.ratto``AT''jrc.ec.europa.eu)
\item SŽbastien Villemot (sebastien.villemot``AT''ens.fr)
\end{itemize}

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@ -315,4 +315,4 @@ The explanations given above of each step necessary to translate the \citet{Scho
** TBD
\section{Where is your output stored?}
The output from estimation can be extremely varied, depending on the instructions you give Dynare. The \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/download/manual/index.html}{Reference Manual} overviews the complete set of potential output files and describes where you can find each one.
The output from estimation can be extremely varied, depending on the instructions you give Dynare. The \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/manual}{Reference Manual} overviews the complete set of potential output files and describes where you can find each one.

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@ -64,7 +64,7 @@ UNIFORM\_PDF& $U(p_3,p_4)$ & $[p_3,p_4]$
\\
where $\mu$ is the \texttt{PRIOR\_MEAN}, $\sigma$ is the \texttt{PRIOR\_STANDARD\_ERROR}, $p_3$ is the \texttt{PRIOR 3$^{\textrm{rd}}$ PARAMETER} (whose default is 0) and $p_4$ is the \texttt{PRIOR 4$^{\textrm{th}}$ PARAMETER} (whose default is 1). \textsf{\textbf{TIP!}} When specifying a uniform distribution between 0 and 1 as a prior for a parameter, say $\alpha$, you therefore have to put two empty spaces for parameters $\mu$ and $\sigma$, and then specify parameters $p3$ and $p4$, since the uniform distribution only takes $p3$ and $p4$ as arguments. For instance, you would write \texttt{alpha, uniform\_pdf, , , 0,1;} \\
For a more complete review of all possible options for declaring priors, as well as the syntax to declare priors for maximum likelihood estimation (not Bayesian), see the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=51&Itemid=84}{Reference Manual}. Note also that if some parameters in a model are calibrated and are not to be estimated, you should declare them as such, by using the \texttt{parameters} command and its related syntax, as explained in chapter \ref{ch:solbase}. \\
For a more complete review of all possible options for declaring priors, as well as the syntax to declare priors for maximum likelihood estimation (not Bayesian), see the \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/manual}{Reference Manual}. Note also that if some parameters in a model are calibrated and are not to be estimated, you should declare them as such, by using the \texttt{parameters} command and its related syntax, as explained in chapter \ref{ch:solbase}. \\
\textsf{\textbf{TIP!}} Choosing the appropriate prior for your parameters is a tricky, yet very important endeavor. It is worth spending time on your choice of priors and to test the robustness of your results to your priors. Some considerations may prove helpful. First, think about the domain of your prior over each parameter. Should it be bounded? Should it be opened on either or both sides? Remember also that if you specify a probability of zero over a certain domain in your prior, you will necessarily also find a probability of zero in your posterior distribution. Then, think about the shape of your prior distribution. Should it be symmetric? Skewed? If so, on which side? You may also go one step further and build a distribution for each of your parameters in your mind. Ask yourself, for instance, what is the probability that your parameter is bigger than a certain value, and repeat the exercise by incrementally decreasing that value. You can then pick the standard distribution that best fits your perceived distribution. Finally, instead of describing here the shapes and properties of each standard distribution available in Dynare, you are instead encouraged to visualize these distributions yourself, either in a statistics book or on the Web. \\
@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ For a more complete review of all possible options for declaring priors, as well
bet,normal\_pdf,1,0.05;\\
end;}\\
\textsf{\textbf{TIP!}} Finally, another useful command to use is the \texttt{estimated\_params\_init} command which declares numerical initial values for the optimizer when these are different from the prior mean. This is especially useful when redoing an estimation - if the optimizer got stuck the first time around, or needing a greater number of draws in the Metropolis-Hastings algorithm - and wanting to enter the posterior mode as initial values for the parameters instead of a prior. The \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=51&Itemid=84}{Reference Manual} gives more details as to the exact syntax of this command.\\
\textsf{\textbf{TIP!}} Finally, another useful command to use is the \texttt{estimated\_params\_init} command which declares numerical initial values for the optimizer when these are different from the prior mean. This is especially useful when redoing an estimation - if the optimizer got stuck the first time around, or needing a greater number of draws in the Metropolis-Hastings algorithm - and wanting to enter the posterior mode as initial values for the parameters instead of a prior. The \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/manual}{Reference Manual} gives more details as to the exact syntax of this command.\\
Coming back to our basic example, we would write:\\
\\
@ -95,7 +95,7 @@ end;}\\
\section{Launching the estimation} \label{sec:estimate}
To ask Dynare to estimate a model, all that is necessary is to add the command \texttt{estimation} at the end of the .mod file. Easy enough. But the real complexity comes from the options available for the command (to be entered in parentheses and sequentially, separated by commas, after the command \texttt{estimation}). Below, we list the most common and useful options, and encourage you to view the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=51&Itemid=84}{Reference Manual} for a complete list. \\
To ask Dynare to estimate a model, all that is necessary is to add the command \texttt{estimation} at the end of the .mod file. Easy enough. But the real complexity comes from the options available for the command (to be entered in parentheses and sequentially, separated by commas, after the command \texttt{estimation}). Below, we list the most common and useful options, and encourage you to view the \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/manual}{Reference Manual} for a complete list. \\
\begin{enumerate}
\item datafile = FILENAME: the datafile (a .m file, a .mat file, or an .xls file). Note that observations do not need to show up in any order, but vectors of observations need to be named with the same names as those in \texttt{var\_obs}. In Excel files, for instance, observations could be ordered in columns, and variable names would show up in the first cell of each column.
\item nobs = INTEGER: the number of observations to be used (default: all observations in the file)
@ -115,7 +115,7 @@ rarely satisfactory. This option must be tuned to obtain, ideally, an acceptance
Dynare stores the mode (xparam1) and the hessian (hh) in a file called MODEL NAME\_mode. This is a particularly helpful option to speed up the estimation process if you have already undertaken initial estimations and have values of the posterior mode.
\item mode\_compute=INTEGER: specifies the optimizer for the mode computation.
\subitem 0: the mode isnÕt computed. mode\_file must be specified
\subitem 1: uses Matlab fmincon (see the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=51&Itemid=84}{Reference Manual} to set options for this command).
\subitem 1: uses Matlab fmincon (see the \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/manual}{Reference Manual} to set options for this command).
\subitem 2: uses Lester IngberÕs Adaptive Simulated Annealing.
\subitem 3: uses Matlab fminunc.
\subitem 4 (default): uses Chris SimÕs csminwel.
@ -126,7 +126,7 @@ of starting from scratch. Again, this is a useful option to speed up the process
\item nodiagnostic: doesnÕt compute the convergence diagnostics for Metropolis-Hastings (default: diagnostics are computed and
displayed). Actually seeing if the various blocks of Metropolis-Hastings runs converge is a powerful and useful option to build confidence in your model estimation. More details on these diagnostics are given in Chapter \ref{ch:estadv}.
\item bayesian\_irf: triggers the computation of the posterior distribution of impulse response functions (IRFs). The length of the IRFs are controlled by the irf option, as specified in chapter \ref{ch:solbase} when discussing the options for \texttt{stoch\_simul}. To build the posterior distribution of the IRFs, Dynare pulls parameter and shock values from the corresponding estimated distributions and, for each set of draws, generates an IRF. Repeating this process often enough generates a distribution of IRFs. \textsf{\textbf{TIP!}} If you stop the estimation procedure after calculating the posterior mode, or carry out maximum likelihood estimation, only the corresponding parameter estimates will be used to generate the IRFs. If you instead carry out a full Metropolis-Hastings estimation, on the other hand, the IRFs will use the parameters the posterior distributions, including the variance of the shocks.
\item All options available for stoch\_simul can simply be added to the above options, separated by commas. To view a list of these options, either see the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=51&Itemid=84}{Reference Manual} or section \ref{sec:compute} of chapter \ref{ch:solbase}.
\item All options available for stoch\_simul can simply be added to the above options, separated by commas. To view a list of these options, either see the \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/manual}{Reference Manual} or section \ref{sec:compute} of chapter \ref{ch:solbase}.
\item moments\_varendo: triggers the computation of the posterior distribution of the theoretical moments of the endogenous variables as in \texttt{stoch\_simul} (the posterior distribution of the variance decomposition is also included). ** will be implemented shortly - if not already - in Dynare version 4.
\item filtered\_vars: triggers the computation of the posterior distribution of filtered endogenous variables and shocks. See the note below on the difference between filtered and smoothed shocks. ** will be implemented shortly - if not already - in Dynare version 4.
\item smoother: triggers the computation of the posterior distribution of smoothed endogenous variables and shocks. Smoothed shocks are a reconstruction of the values of unobserved shocks over the sample, using all the information contained in the sample of observations. Filtered shocks, instead, are built only based on knowing past information. To calculate one period ahead prediction errors, for instance, you should use filtered, not smoothed variables.

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@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ Sixth, Bayesian estimation naturally leads to the comparison of models based on
\section{The basic mechanics of Bayesian estimation}
This and the following subsections are based in great part on work by, and discussions with, StŽphane Adjemian, a member of the Dynare development team. Some of this work, although summarized in presentation format, is available in the ``conferences and workshops'' page of the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogsection&id=16&Itemid=94}{Dynare website}. Other helpful material includes \citet{AnSchorfheide2006}, which includes a clear and quite complete introduction to Bayesian estimation, illustrated by the application of a simple DSGE model. Also, the appendix of \citet{Schorfheide2000} contains details as to the exact methodology and possible difficulties encountered in Bayesian estimation. You may also want to take a glance at \citet{Hamilton1994}, chapter 12, which provides a very clear, although somewhat outdated, introduction to the basic mechanics of Bayesian estimation. Finally, the websites of \href{http://www.econ.upenn.edu/~schorf/}{Frank Schorfheide} and \href{http://www.econ.upenn.edu/~jesusfv/index.html}{Jesus Fernandez-Villaverde} contain a wide variety of very helpful material, from example files to lecture notes to related papers. Finally, remember to also check the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_forum&Itemid=95&page=viewforum&f=2&sid=164275ffd060698c8150318e8d6b453e}{open online examples} of the Dynare website for examples of .mod files touching on Bayesian estimation. \\
This and the following subsections are based in great part on work by, and discussions with, StŽphane Adjemian, a member of the Dynare development team. Some of this work, although summarized in presentation format, is available in the ``Events'' page of the \href{http://www.dynare.org/events/workshop-on-learning-and-monetary-policy}{Dynare website}. Other helpful material includes \citet{AnSchorfheide2006}, which includes a clear and quite complete introduction to Bayesian estimation, illustrated by the application of a simple DSGE model. Also, the appendix of \citet{Schorfheide2000} contains details as to the exact methodology and possible difficulties encountered in Bayesian estimation. You may also want to take a glance at \citet{Hamilton1994}, chapter 12, which provides a very clear, although somewhat outdated, introduction to the basic mechanics of Bayesian estimation. Finally, the websites of \href{http://www.econ.upenn.edu/~schorf/}{Frank Schorfheide} and \href{http://www.econ.upenn.edu/~jesusfv/index.html}{Jesus Fernandez-Villaverde} contain a wide variety of very helpful material, from example files to lecture notes to related papers. Finally, remember to also check the \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/examples}{open online examples} of the Dynare website for examples of .mod files touching on Bayesian estimation. \\
At its most basic level, Bayesian estimation is a bridge between calibration and maximum likelihood. The tradition of calibrating models is inherited through the specification of priors. And the maximum likelihood approach enters through the estimation process based on confronting the model with data. Together, priors can be seen as weights on the likelihood function in order to give more importance to certain areas of the parameter subspace. More technically, these two building blocks - priors and likelihood functions - are tied together by Bayes' rule. Let's see how. \\

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@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ There used to be versions of Dynare for \textbf{Scilab} and \textbf{Gauss}. Deve
This User Guide will exclusively \textbf{focus on Dynare version 4.0 and later}.
You may also be interested by another program, \textbf{Dynare++}, which is a standalone C++ program specialized in computing k-order approximations of dynamic stochastic general equilibrium models. Note that Dynare++ is distributed along with Dynare since version 4.1. See the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=53&Itemid=86}{Dynare++ webpage} for more information.
You may also be interested by another program, \textbf{Dynare++}, which is a standalone C++ program specialized in computing k-order approximations of dynamic stochastic general equilibrium models. Note that Dynare++ is distributed along with Dynare since version 4.1. See the \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/dynarepp}{Dynare++ webpage} for more information.
\section{System requirements}
Dynare can run on Microsoft Windows, as well as Unix-like operating systems, in particular GNU/Linux and Mac OS X. If you have questions about the support of a particular platform, please ask your question on \href{http://www.dynare.org/phpBB3}{\textbf{Dynare forums}}.
@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ To run Dynare, it is recommended to allocate at least 256MB of RAM to the platfo
\section{Installing Dynare}
Please refer to the section entitled ``Installation and configuration'' in the Dynare reference manual.
Please refer to the section entitled ``Installation and configuration'' in the \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/manual}{Dynare reference manual}.
\section{MATLAB particularities}

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@ -50,11 +50,10 @@ Each of these steps will become clear as you read through the User Guide, but fo
\section{Additional sources of help}
While this User Guide tries to be as complete and thorough as possible, you will certainly want to browse other material for help, as you learn about new features, struggle with adapting examples to your own work, and yearn to ask that one question whose answer seems to exist no-where. At your disposal, you have the following additional sources of help:
\begin{itemize}
\item \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/download/manual/index.html}{\textbf{Reference Manual}}: this manual covers all Dynare commands, giving a clear definition and explanation of usage for each. The User Guide will often introduce you to a command in a rather loose manner (mainly through examples); so reading corresponding command descriptions in the Reference Manual is a good idea to cover all relevant details.
\item \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=category&sectionid=11&id=96&Itemid=89}{\textbf{Official online examples}}: the Dynare website includes other examples - usually well documented - of .mod files covering models and methodologies introduced in recent papers.
\item \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_forum&Itemid=95&page=viewforum&f=2&sid=10290a11eb7a48243971159f5b86f83e}{\textbf{Open online examples}}: this page lists .mod files posted by users covering a wide variety of examples.
\item \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/manual}{\textbf{Reference Manual}}: this manual covers all Dynare commands, giving a clear definition and explanation of usage for each. The User Guide will often introduce you to a command in a rather loose manner (mainly through examples); so reading corresponding command descriptions in the Reference Manual is a good idea to cover all relevant details.
\item \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/examples}{\textbf{Official online examples}}: the Dynare website includes other examples - usually well documented - of .mod files covering models and methodologies introduced in recent papers.
\item \href{http://www.dynare.org/phpBB3}{\textbf{Dynare forums}}: this lively online discussion forum allows you to ask your questions openly and read threads from others who might have run into similar difficulties.
\item \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=3&Itemid=40}{\textbf{Frequently Asked Questions}} (FAQ): this section of the Dynare site emphasizes a few of the most popular questions in the forums.
\item \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/faq}{\textbf{Frequently Asked Questions}} (FAQ): this section of the Dynare site emphasizes a few of the most popular questions in the forums.
\item \href{http://www.dsge.net}{\textbf{DSGE.net}}: this website, run my members of the Dynare team, is a resource for all scholars working in the field of DSGE modeling. Besides allowing you to stay up to date with the most recent papers and possibly make new contacts, it conveniently lists conferences, workshops and seminars that may be of interest.
\end{itemize}

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@ -5,9 +5,9 @@ This chapter is a collection of topics - not all related to each other - that yo
\section{Dynare features and functionality}
\subsection{Other examples}
Other examples of .mod files used to generate impulse response functions are available on the Dynare website. In particular, Jesus Fernandez-Villaverde has provided a series of RBC model variants (from the most basic to some including variable capacity utilization, indivisible labor and investment specific technological change). You can find these, along with helpful notes and explanations, in the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=category&sectionid=11&id=96&Itemid=89}{Official Examples} section of the Dynare website.\\
Other examples of .mod files used to generate impulse response functions are available on the Dynare website. In particular, Jesus Fernandez-Villaverde has provided a series of RBC model variants (from the most basic to some including variable capacity utilization, indivisible labor and investment specific technological change). You can find these, along with helpful notes and explanations, in the \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/examples}{Official Examples} section of the Dynare website.\\
Also, don't forget to check occasionally the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_forum&Itemid=95}{Open Online Examples} page to see if any other user has posted an example that could help you in your work; or maybe you would like to post an example there yourself?
Also, don't forget to check occasionally the \href{http://www.dynare.org/phpBB3}{Dynare contributions and examples forum} to see if any other user has posted an example that could help you in your work; or maybe you would like to post an example there yourself?
\subsection{Alternative, complete example}
The following example aims to give you an alternative example to the one in chapter \ref{ch:solbase}, to learn the workings of Dynare. It also aims to give you exposure to dealing with \textbf{several correlated shocks}. Your model may have two or more shocks, and these may be correlated to each other. The example below illustrates how you would introduce this into Dynare. Actually, the example provided is somewhat more complete than strictly necessary. This is to give you an alternative, full-blown example to the one described in chapter \ref{ch:solbase}.

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@ -264,7 +264,7 @@ Otherwise, you may be interested to have Dynare take Taylor series expansions in
\section{Specifying steady states and/or initial values} \label{sec:ssshock}
Material in this section has created much confusion in the past. But with some attention to the explanations below, you should get through unscathed. Let's start by emphasizing the uses of this section of the .mod file. First, recall that stochastic models need to be linearized. Thus, they need to have a steady state. One of the functions of this section is indeed to provide these steady state values, or approximations of values. Second, irrespective of whether you're working with a stochastic or deterministic model, you may be interested to start your simulations or impulse response functions from either a steady state, or another given point. This section is also useful to specify this starting value. Let's see in more details how all this works.\\
In passing, though, note that the relevant commands in this section are \texttt{initval}, \texttt{endval} or, more rarely, \texttt{histval} which is covered only in the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=51&Itemid=84}{Reference Manual}. The first two are instead covered in what follows. \\
In passing, though, note that the relevant commands in this section are \texttt{initval}, \texttt{endval} or, more rarely, \texttt{histval} which is covered only in the \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/manual}{Reference Manual}. The first two are instead covered in what follows. \\
\subsection{Stochastic models and steady states}
In a stochastic setting, your model will need to be linearized before it is solved. To do so, Dynare needs to know your model's steady state (more details on finding a steady state, as well as tips to do so more efficiently, are provided in section \ref{sec:findsteady} below). You can either enter exact steady state values into your .mod file, or just approximations and let Dynare find the exact steady state (which it will do using numerical methods based on your approximations). In either case, these values are entered in the \texttt{initval} block, as in the following fashion: \\
@ -396,7 +396,7 @@ var e = sigma $\widehat{}$ 2;\\
end;}\\
\\
\textsf{\textbf{TIP!}} You can actually \textbf{mix in deterministic shocks} in stochastic models by using the commands \texttt{varexo\_det} and listing some shocks as lasting more than one period in the \texttt{shocks} block. For information on how to do so, please see the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=51&Itemid=84}{Reference Manual}. This can be particularly useful if you're studying the effects of anticipated shocks in a stochastic model. For instance, you may be interested in what happens to your monetary model if agents began expecting higher inflation, or a depreciation of your currency. \\
\textsf{\textbf{TIP!}} You can actually \textbf{mix in deterministic shocks} in stochastic models by using the commands \texttt{varexo\_det} and listing some shocks as lasting more than one period in the \texttt{shocks} block. For information on how to do so, please see the \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/manual}{Reference Manual}. This can be particularly useful if you're studying the effects of anticipated shocks in a stochastic model. For instance, you may be interested in what happens to your monetary model if agents began expecting higher inflation, or a depreciation of your currency. \\
\section{Selecting a computation} \label{sec:compute}
So far, we have written an instructive .mod file, but what should Dynare do with it? What are we interested in? In most cases, it will be impulse response functions (IRFs) due to the external shocks. Let's see which are the appropriate commands to give to Dynare. Again, we will distinguish between deterministic and stochastic models. \\
@ -412,7 +412,7 @@ decomposition depends upon the order of the variables in the varexo command.}\\
Impulse response functions are the expected future path of the endogenous variables conditional on a shock in period 1 of one standard deviation.\textsf{\textbf{TIP!}} If you linearize your model up to a first order, impulse response functions are simply the algebraic forward iteration of your model's policy or decision rule. If you instead linearize to a second order, impulse response functions will be the result of actual Monte Carlo simulations of future shocks. This is because in second order linear equations, you will have cross terms involving the shocks, so that the effects of the shocks depend on the state of the system when the shocks hit. Thus, it is impossible to get algebraic average values of all future shocks and their impact. The technique is instead to pull future shocks from their distribution and see how they impact your system, and repeat this procedure a multitude of times in order to draw out an average response. That said, note that future shocks will not have a significant impact on your results, since they get averaged between each Monte Carlo trial and in the limit should sum to zero, given their mean of zero. Note that in the case of a second order approximation, Dynare will return the actual sample moments from the simulations. For first order linearizations, Dynare will instead report theoretical moments. In both cases, the return to steady state is asymptotic, \textsf{\textbf{TIP!}} thus you should make sure to specify sufficient periods in your IRFs such that you actually see your graphs return to steady state. Details on implementing this appear below.\\
If you're interested to peer a little further into what exactly is going on behind the scenes of Dynare's computations, have a look at Chapter \ref{ch:solbeh}. Here instead, we focus on the application of the command and reproduce below the most common options that can be added to \texttt{stoch\_simul}. For a complete list of options, please see the \href{http://www.cepremap.cnrs.fr/juillard/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=51&Itemid=84}{Reference Manual}. \\
If you're interested to peer a little further into what exactly is going on behind the scenes of Dynare's computations, have a look at Chapter \ref{ch:solbeh}. Here instead, we focus on the application of the command and reproduce below the most common options that can be added to \texttt{stoch\_simul}. For a complete list of options, please see the \href{http://www.dynare.org/documentation-and-support/manual}{Reference Manual}. \\
\textbf{Options following the \texttt{stoch\_simul} command:}
\begin{itemize}