Get hooked on the NOOK!

Sandy Varner
Sandy Varner|February 9, 2012

As a little girl growing up in rural North Carolina, I remember going to my Granddaddy’s fishing pond. My Daddy and Granddaddy loved to fish but as a six-year-old the fishing was boring to me. I was more interested in finding the worms to put on the fish hook.  I’d squeal as I ran my fingers around in the bait cup looking for those worms (yuck). Daddy would shush me and then I’d get so excited when I ran across another worm that I’d squeal again.  The Brim in the pond would eat the bait off Daddy’s hook so fast that I got ‘hooked’ on finding those worms for him. What great memories those are!

Today’s kids growing up in the technology era may have slightly different memories.  Maybe they’ll remember playing games or reading with their parents or grandparents on different devices: Wii, xBox, PlayStation, Nintendo DS, Kindle, iPad, or the NOOK.

Last year at SAS Global Forum, we were surprised by the number of requests we received for SAS books on the Barnes and Noble NOOK device. As with any new endeavor, we found that an ePub format at one reseller is not the same as an ePub format at another reseller.  It takes time, patience, and adaptability to work out the conversion of SAS technical books. Our Production team has gone through the NOOK conversion now and we’re ready to hear from you. What books do you want to read on your NOOK?

I hope you took the time to read SAS Publications Vice President Kathy Council’s post Are you reading ebooks?, and Director Sean Gargan’s recent blog post eBooks, eBooks, eBooks.  Today we offer select titles for these devices:

Apple iBooks – 12 titles

Amazon Kindle – 44 titles

Google eBooks – 32 titles

Barnes and Noble NOOK – 4 titles

Whatever your favorite device, we are working to make your favorite SAS books into ebooks.

I was hooked on fishing because of playing with the bait (and the fun of being with my Daddy). I hope that Moms and Dads in today’s fast-paced world have the opportunity to take their kids fishing - even with so much competition from technology.  If you haven’t already done so, I hope that  you’ll soon try out a reading device or tablet and that you’ll get ‘hooked’ on SAS ebooks. I love print books but I also love the convenience of reading devices and tablets.

Hook ‘em, NOOK!

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eBooks, eBooks, eBooks

Sean Gargan
Sean Gargan|February 7, 2012

More than 1,000 attendees from all facets of the Publishing industry gathered in New York in January for the 2012 Digital Book World Conference.  Not surprisingly, the topic of eBooks and their impact on the industry was a focal point of the three day event.

Many of the presentations, the survey data, sales data, and hallway discussions support the comments we saw in Kathy Council’s recent blog post, Are you reading eBooks?  The answer is yes! 

An emerging topic at this year’s conference was the issue of global distribution of eBook content. The good news for SAS users around the globe is that eBook retailers and distributors recognize the importance of global content distribution and are doing something about it…

Amazon has storefronts in the United States, Canada, China, France, Italy, Germany, Japan, Spain and the United Kingdom. They recently announced a partnership with Junglee to serve the market in India (this program is in Beta but SAS books are there now).

Apple iBookstore  can be accessed from the US, Canada, UK, Australia, Norway, Switzerland, and most of continental Europe.  

Google eBooks are available in the US, Australia, Canada, Italy, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom.

I did not run into anyone from Barnes & Noble at DBW.   And although we recently began offering SAS books on the Nook, they are available only in the US.  

By far the biggest international splash was made by Kobo.  Their VP of Content, Sales and Merchandising, Michael Tamblyn explained how they plan to launch in 12 new countries a year.  

SAS Publishing is committed to support your growing appetite for eBook content.  To keep tabs on our growing library of SAS books available across multiple vendors, be sure to bookmark our eBook Partners resource page.

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Find me at Statistical Practice 2012

Shelley Sessoms
Shelley Sessoms|February 6, 2012

In less than two weeks, I’ll be in sunny Florida attending a brand new conference. According to their Web site, Statistical Practice 2012 aims to bring together hundreds of statistical practitioners, including data analysts, researchers and scientists who engage in the application of statistics to solve real-world problems on a daily basis. The conference will provide an opportunity to learn about the latest statistical methodologies and best practices in statistical design, analysis, programming and consulting.

I hope the conference is an opportunity for attendees to learn specifically about SAS and what we can offer them. Attendees will have access to SAS R&D, SAS Publishing and JMP at this conference. As a member of SAS Publishing, I’ll be on hand with a variety of books that will help solve the daily problems encountered by statisticians and analysts. Attendees can browse these books and place orders (at a 20% discount!) during the conference. I’ll also be looking for new authors on topics such as bayesian analysis, cluster analysis, power and sample size, reliability analysis, and much more.

So make sure you come in out of the sun and warmth for a visit. You never know what you might learn from SAS!

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Today’s book buzz in 140 characters or less

Shelly Goodin
Shelly Goodin|February 2, 2012

Interested in saving 10% on books about rodents today? You’ve come to the right place. No, SAS Publishing isn’t making this discount (or any books about rodents) available, but I have scoped out some of today’s best publishing related tweets (announcements).

If you’re not using Twitter (yet) or even think it’s a waste of time, perhaps the following screen captures of some very recent tweets will change your mind. Just be sure to follow us at @SASPublishing when you do sign up and consider following some of the accounts listed below. You’ll never lack for book recommendations, intriguing discounts, publishing industry news and events.

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SAS author's tip: calculating the critical value

Shelly Goodin
Shelly Goodin|February 1, 2012

Multiple Comparisons and Multiple Tests Using SAS, Second Edition by Peter H. Westfall, Randall D. Tobias, and Russell D. Wolfinger was one of our most anticipated books of 2011. And this week's SAS author's tip comes from this impressive 600+ page resource (from 3 really impressive authors). If you get a chance, you should pick up this hefty, award-winning book and take a look at the many real-life examples and "best bet" procedures. You're guaranteed to give your brain a great workout.

You can also easily read a free chapter from the book and the table of contents here.

The following excerpt is from SAS Press authors Peter H. Westfall, Randall D. Tobias, and Russell D. Wolfinger and their book "Multiple Comparisons and Multiple Tests Using SAS, Second Edition" Copyright © 2011,  SAS Institute Inc., Cary, North Carolina, USA. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. (please note that results may vary depending on your version of SAS software)

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SAS author's tip: Preserving indexes while using the COPY procedure

Shelly Goodin
Shelly Goodin|January 27, 2012

This week's tip comes from Michael Raithel and his timeless book The Complete Guide to SAS Indexes. There are many superlatives that can be used to describe Michael. His enthusiasm for SAS (and life) and ability to really connect with users when sharing his expertise is inspiring. If you've attended one (or more) of Michael's many conference talks, I bet you'll agree. And Michael's books have also made a big impression in the user community. Charles Patridge had this to say about The Complete Guide to SAS Indexes in a review, "I strongly encourage ALL SAS users (beginners to advanced levels) to purchase this manual as an effective learning and reference tool. Your money will be well spent on this book."

I hope that you will find this week's tip helpful and encourage you to take a look at Michael's author page for additional information (including a free chapter from the book). Also, you can read a fantastic guest post that Michael recently wrote for this blog -  26.2 miles, 1 book, and a simple SAS program.

The following excerpt is from SAS Press author Michael Raithel's book "The Complete Guide to SAS Indexes" Copyright © 2006,  SAS Institute Inc., Cary, North Carolina, USA. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. (please note that results may vary depending on your version of SAS software)

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4 new Wiley and SAS Business Series books

Shelley Sessoms
Shelley Sessoms|January 26, 2012

In a unique partnership that builds on the cutting edge business knowledge of SAS and the extensive publishing experience of Wiley, SAS Publishing and John Wiley & Sons, Inc. joined forces to create The Wiley and SAS Business Series. Titles in this series address key issues such as analytics, forecasting, risk, social media, performance management, and more.

With more than 25 titles in the series, it’s growing each and every year. In fact, we added four new titles to the list in the month of January! Two existing Wiley and SAS Business Series authors have signed on for second books: Evan Stubbs (along with James Foster) and Frank Leistner. And we’re adding new authors to the roster: Jean-Paul Isson and Jesse Harriott of Monster Worldwide, and Jason Burke from SAS.

While the titles are still being finalized, I can tell you that the topics cover healthcare analytics, social media, big data/big analytics and practical approaches to business analytics. They’re sure to be popular titles.

What topic would you like to see covered in an upcoming Wiley and SAS Business Series book?

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3 things every elementary statistics student should know

Aimee Rodriguez
Aimee Rodriguez|January 25, 2012

Aimee Rodriguez proudly displays Chris Olsen's new book

We’ve just published Chris Olsen’s Teaching Elementary Statistics with JMP, which offers the latest research on best practices and how JMP can facilitate teaching statistics. To mark the book’s publication, we asked Chris to tell us the top three things every elementary statistics student should know.

  1. Statistics is about numbers in a context. Statistics has a rich trove of numeric and graphic techniques for quantifying and displaying data, and certainly it is important to be able to generate the numbers graphs. But the really interesting and exciting part about statistics is the leap from numbers and graphs to the real world of interpretation. Statistics gives us both knowledge and a healthy skepticism about what we believe we know – a fascinating philosophical tension!
  2. The most crucial part of a statistical study is not the analysis – it is where, when, and how of the data gathering. As we enter our data and calculate and plot our statistical strategies, it is sometimes forgotten at the interpretation stage that each data point, each number, is the product of a fallible machine, human or mechanical.  Care taken at the sampling and observation stage will pay great dividends on the interpretation end of our statistical efforts.
  3. Statistics, of all the mathematical sciences, depends on clear two-way communication, by both the statistician and the non-statistical client/audience. Statistics targets public social and scientific questions of importance. The statistician must be able to communicate with the public, who by and large are not statisticians. The public, for its part, must have enough statistical knowledge to grasp the information the statistician provides. This necessity for communication has profound implications for the inclusion of statistics at all levels in the K-12 and college mathematics curriculum.

Do you agree? What other ideas are key to understanding elementary statistics? Tell us, or read more in Chris Olsen’s new book, also available in Google eBook format.

 

 

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It doesn’t take a magazine to tell us why SAS tops the list

Shelly Goodin
Shelly Goodin|January 20, 2012

Yesterday, FORTUNE Magazine ranked SAS the #3 best company to work for in U.S. There was a palpable buzz all day around the Cary campus and on social media channels (if you’re on Twitter, search on the hashtag #ILoveSAS).  It’s admittedly exciting working for a company that is consistently and publicly lauded as one of the top companies to work for . However, internal validation of why SAS ranks so high among its employees is apparent every day.

On that note, I invited several Publications colleagues to share their thoughts about yesterday’s big announcement:

Kathy Council, Vice President, SAS Publications
Being one of Fortune’s top places to work is important when you work in one of those top companies. For me, it just confirms for me that I really AM lucky to have such a great place to come every morning. I’ve worked at SAS almost 35 years and it has been a great place since the first day I walked in. The company owners say and really believe that their employees are the company’s biggest asset. What more could you possibly ask for than to be appreciated like that?

Emily Scheviak-Livesay, Marketing Operations Specialist
I knew the announcement for the best place to work would be today and was anxious to get on campus to see the banner in front of F to see how we fared. 3 or #103, SAS has always been #1 in my book! So lucky (and proud!) to be a part of the SAS family.

Shelley Sessoms, Acquisitions Editor
Seeing that SAS ranks #3 in the Best Companies to Work For in the U.S. is no surprise to me. I’ve been here for 10 years, and it has always ranked #1 in my book. We have the best employees, software, facilities, and customers! It’s a joy to drive on campus every day.

Jeanine Goodwin, Marketing Specialist
SAS may be ranked #3 on FORTUNE Magazine’s 100 Best Companies, but  will always be #1 in my eyes!  Thanks SAS for making my 26 year career the best.

John West, Acquisitions Editor
SAS is truly the best company to work for!! Not just for the benefits but for having a culture that promotes creativity, honesty, trust, and loyalty among the employees. Congratulations, SAS!!!

Sean Gargan, Director, SAS Publishing
Receiving this accolade is validation that the SAS business model works!  We set the standard for work-life balance and maintain laser focus on providing our customers with exceptional software and service. It's an honor to be part of this great organization and to be recognized as one of the best places to work!

Jennifer Dilley, Technical Publishing Specialist
Somebody pinch me! Being a part of SAS is one of my dreams come true. The high rankings are well deserved--what an exceptional place to be!

Mary Beth Steinbach, Managing Editor
For me, being # three means that for close to 10 years I have worked with people  who are approachable, customer-driven, swift and agile, innovative, and trustworthy. It doesn’t get much better than that.

Julie Platt, Editor-in-Chief, SAS Press
SAS ranked #3 on Fortune Magazine’s Top Places to Work? No matter where we are ranked on the list, SAS is an awesome place to work—interesting work, a corporate culture that supports creativity and innovation, and terrific customers and coworkers to work with. That combination sounds like perfection to me!

Sandy Varner, Operations Manager, SAS Publishing
It’s great that we’re #3 this year and that we’ve been on Fortune Magazine’s top 100 Best Places to Work list for the last 15 years! But really….it doesn’t take a magazine to tell me that I’m working for the best company in the world.  I joined SAS in late 1980 and from day one you could feel the positive energy and passion in the work force. On my first day, my training consisted of ‘answer the phone, get the customer name and address and find out what color book they want to order’.  SAS was growing fast and that’s an example of how busy my manager was. A theme of the early days was ‘learn as you go’ but always do your best for the customer. SAS mixed fun with work and as an employee, I felt valued and appreciated.

Dr. Goodnight dared to dream big; he persevered even when making some tough decisions (like going public or not); and he always placed people above projects. Working at SAS has enabled me to stay fit and healthy (Health Care and Café). I’m surrounded by enthusiastic and innovative individuals. Looking back on my life, getting hired by SAS was one of the best things that’s ever happened to me. SAS is the #1 best place to work in my book.  So Fortune Magazine, rank us #3, or #1 or even #100 but believe me, those of us lucky enough to work here know we’re at THE best place to work!

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The 10 most popular SAS Documentation titles of 2011

Shelly Goodin
Shelly Goodin|January 18, 2012

How many of you routinely refer to SAS Documentation? Are there some heavy hitters you continuously turn to? When looking at the high traffic to documentation pages on the support.sas.com site in 2011, it's evident that some titles are definitely resonating with SAS users.

As promised (in a recent post on the 9 Bestselling SAS Books of November), we've compiled a list of our most frequently viewed SAS Documentation titles. We'll continue to highlight some of our most popular SAS books and documentation throughout 2012 on this blog.

The 10 most popular SAS Documentation titles of 2011:

  1. Base SAS 9.2 Procedures Guide
  2. SAS 9.2 Language Reference: Dictionary, Fourth Edition
  3. SAS/STAT 9.2 User's Guide, Second Edition
  4. Base SAS 9.2 Procedures Guide: Statistical Procedures, Third Edition
  5. SAS/STAT 9.22 User's Guide
  6. SAS/ETS 9.2 User's Guide
  7. SAS 9.2 Language Reference: Concepts, Second Edition
  8. SAS 9.2 Macro Language: Reference
  9. SAS 9.2 Companion for Windows, Second Edition
  10. SAS/GRAPH 9.2: Reference, Second Edition

Are there any surprises here? Or predictions for breakout documentation titles in 2012?

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