Author: Philip Holland

Owner and Administrator of Holland Numerics: Blog and Forums.

SAS can correct your spelling!

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The following SAS keywords are recognized even if you don’t spell them correctly:

DATA = dat, dta, daa, ddata, date*
RUN = ru, rn, rnu, urn, ruin, runt*
PROC = pro, prc, poc, porc, pric
QUIT = qut, qui, quti, qit, quite, quiet
SET = sett, sent*
FILE = fil, fill*
OUTPUT = outputsomething, outputnothing*
IF = fi*
THEN = the*
DO = doo*
PUT = putit, putting*
INPUT = imput
END = endit*

This behaviour can be controlled using OPTIONS AUTOCORRECT from SAS 9.3 onwards. To maintain this behaviour use OPTIONS AUTOCORRECT to show warnings in the log, but allow the program to continue, which is the default. OPTIONS NOAUTOCORRECT will show an error in the log at the first incorrect spelling, and then stop the program.

Can you add to my list?

(* Taken from the “Job Security” papers by Art Carpenter and Tony Payne.)

What happened in Vegas?

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I know it should be “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas”, but I really believe you need to hear this!

  • SAS Studio 3.5 is out, but, as it is part of SAS 9.4M3, you will have to request a new download of SAS 9.4M3 to get it, although it will be part of the latest version of SAS University Edition.
  • SAS Viya has been announced and it is a cloud version of SAS, but:
    • I have no idea what impact it will have on SAS users
    • How much it will cost
    • Whether it will benefit small users of SAS more than big users
    • What SAS procedures it will use, and whether new procedures will be needed
    • When I find out more, then I’ll let you know!
  • ODS Graphics continues to expand the number of graphs it can create.
  • The SAS Communities stand had amazingly good swag! They were giving away power banks, coffee mugs and unique shoulder bags made from SAS’ own roll shades and conference material to active members of the SAS Support Communities.

On a personal note I ran a prize draw for my latest book on the Data Presentation/ODS Graphics stand. 36(!) attendees left their business cards and the draw was won by Olivier Goethals from Belgium.

Olivier Goethals won a copy of my book in Las Vegas

My thanks go to everyone who tried to win a copy of my book! I’m sorry that I didn’t bring more copies with me from the UK, but I will be running prize draws again at conferences in the future.

I also met lots of old friends, and made lots of new friends, at the SAS event of the year!

The SAS course now has 4 topics available in the SAS Programming Forum

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The SAS course is made up of sections containing SAS-related topics, with new topics posted over time.

The SAS course now has 2 sections and 4 topics available in the SAS Programming Forum. Note that the course topics are not available to registered members with Free membership, so to upgrade your membership please click here:

More topics and sections are being developed…

Just a reminder that all of my SAS conference papers are FREE to download!

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Over the last few weeks I’ve noticed potential customers for my SAS conference papers NEARLY download them from here, and then give up at the last moment. I want to assure you all that:

  1. You will be required to register on this site for free, if you are not already a registered member
  2. You will have to complete a form to say where you live
  3. You will also be sent to a Checkout page
  4. However, you will be charged nothing, as every conference paper download has a price of £0.00!

To quote “The Hitchhiker’s Guide” by Douglas Adams: DON’T PANIC. This is written in large friendly letters!

The apps “Platforms: How Do You Do This in SAS?” have recently been updated on Google Play, Amazon Appstore and Chrome Web Store.

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“Platforms: How Do You Do This in SAS?” looks at SAS platform-dependencies on Windows, UNIX, Linux and z/OS. This paid-for app has had some of the answer text updated to include SAS 9.4 and Windows 10.

I’ve now updated my “Platforms” apps, which can be installed from Platforms: Do This in SAS? (Google Play), Platforms: How Do You Do This in SAS? (Amazon Appstore), or Platforms: How Do You Do This in SAS? (Chrome Web Store), depending on your preferred platform.

The latest versions of all my apps can be found here.

All of my conference papers are now available for free from the Store

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I’ve just uploaded all of my SAS-related conference papers to my blog store, and will eventually be removing them from http://www.hollandnumerics.com/SASPAPER.HTM. This will mean that only those registered for the blog will be able to access and download them. They will, of course, be free to download for registered members.

A new SAS course for all SAS Programmers is now starting in my SAS Programming Forum

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I’ve seen self-paced SAS courses for around $125 / R.7,000. My new course will be priced at £5 (about $7 / R.475) per month and details can be found here, and you’ll be able to ask me any questions you need answers to at the same time, so it will be cheaper to become a member for 12 months than register for just one self-paced course!

Course topics during the year will include:

  • Data Steps
  • PROC SQL
  • Macros
  • PROC REPORT
  • PROC TABULATE
  • Reading databases
  • Reading text files
  • ODS destinations
  • ODS GRAPHICS
  • Performance considerations
  • Platform differences

The first two topics from the course looking generally at SAS components have been published today:

Still interested, then subscribe now for the SAS Programming Forum here !!

Please update ALL of my apps from Google Play!

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I hadn’t noticed, but I had to update the Google Licensing part of my apps to comply with new rules for Android 5 (Lollipop), which is why ALL of my apps installed from Google Play are no longer working on Android 5+!

Please don’t panic, as I’ve uploaded new versions of the following apps to Google Play that should work now:

  • Data Steps: Do This in SAS?
  • SQL: Do This in SAS?
  • Graphs: Do This in SAS?
  • Platforms: Do This in SAS?
  • EG: Do This in SAS?
  • Macros: Do This in SAS?
  • Efficiency: Do This in SAS?
  • Studio: Do This in SAS?

I’m glad I installed CyanogenMod 12 on my old HP TouchPad recently, so I can now be certain the Android 5 users can use my apps!

I’ve updated my app about Graphs again

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I would certainly recommend installing my Graphs app sooner, rather than later, as the next time I add a new question the price will have to be increased. It can be installed now from Google Play, Amazon Appstore and Chrome Web Store, depending on your preferred platform.

“Graphs: How Do You Do This in SAS?” looks at generating graphs using classic SAS/GRAPH and the new ODS Graphics. I’ve added a question that looks at how an information box (graph inset) can be added to line graphs in ODS Graphics, as compared to using Annotate in SAS/GRAPH.

The latest versions of all the apps can be found here.

4 newly updated apps about Enterprise Guide, SAS macros, platforms and graphs

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I’ve now updated my remaining four apps, which can all be installed from Google Play, Amazon Appstore and Chrome Web Store, depending on your preferred platform.

“EG: How Do You Do This in SAS?” looks at writing and running SAS programs using Enterprise Guide. This paid-for app has had some of the answer text updated, including a link to this blog.

“Macros: How Do You Do This in SAS?” looks at SAS macros. This paid-for app has had some of the answer text updated, including a link to this blog.

“Platforms: How Do You Do This in SAS?” looks at SAS platform-dependencies on Windows, UNIX, Linux and z/OS. This paid-for app has had some of the answer text updated, including a link to this blog.

“Graphs: How Do You Do This in SAS?” looks at generating graphs using classic SAS/GRAPH and the new ODS Graphics. This paid-for app now includes information about how to annotate stacked bar charts in ODS Graphics.

The latest versions of all the apps can be found here.

Newly updated apps about Efficiency and SAS Studio

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Because of the heavy traffic in London the locals complain that “you wait ages for a bus, then 2 arrive at the same time!”. I hope you don’t complain in the same way when I write two blogs posts within days of each other, but I find that this often happens when I get a little spare time to work on my apps.

Unlike in my previous post, these two apps are not in any way related to each other, apart from being named 12 and 13 in my list. Both apps can be installed from Google Play, Amazon Appstore and Chrome Web Store, depending on your preferred platform.

“Efficiency: How Do You Do This in SAS?” looks at how to improve SAS efficiency, whether efficiency means speed of execution, ease of maintenance, or both. This paid-for app has had some of the answer text updated.

“Studio: How Do You Do This in SAS?” looks at the installation, configuration and uses of SAS Studio and SAS University Edition. This paid-for app now includes links about the licensing limits for using SAS University Edition, along with a summary of those restrictions.

The latest versions of all the apps can be found here.