With Thanksgiving less than a week away, it’s a time to remember all that we are thankful for. Of course, I think we should remember all year long what we are truly thankful for and what matters most in our lives, but I digress. One of the small things that I am thankful for this year is this past week’s assignment.

Chapter 3 in the Certification Prep Guide is devoted to Editing and Debugging SAS Programs. Thankfully, this is a concept that I have grasped a hold of the first time around. Well, maybe it wasn’t the first time, as I did take a Programming I instructor-based course earlier this year. But I did retain the information and was able to move through the chapter quickly.

I understand the importance of a well-structured and laid out program. It’s easily read now and years later if someone needs to re-write or copy any code. This is a point that Ron Cody makes numerous references to in Programming by Example, and I’m sure in his other titles as well. I’ve seen programs that were so inconsistently written I can’t imagine having to come back to that, sometimes years later, and trying to update it. So another thing I should add to the list of things we should be thankful for are well-written and structured SAS programs.

If you want more information on debugging SAS programs, please look at Michelle Burlew’s book Debugging SAS Programs or Ron Cody’s book Cody’s Data Cleaning Techniques. Also, don’t forget the SAS Help and Documentation included within your software for debugging too.

Have a happy and safe Thanksgiving.