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Learn SAS

Learn about the latest tips, tutorials, upcoming events and certifications

Advanced Analytics | Learn SAS | Students & Educators

Kenneth SanfordDecember 19, 2014 0

Are there jobs for economists in analytics?

SAS will again be participating in the Allied Social Science Association annual meetings in January. This year the event will be held in Boston, and conference organizers expect more than 12,000 participants from a variety of backgrounds, including economics, finance and many other social sciences. One of the primary functions

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Advanced Analytics | Learn SAS

Rick WicklinDecember 15, 2014 0

Elementwise minimum and maximum operators

Like most programming languages, the SAS/IML language has many functions. However, the SAS/IML language also has quite a few operators. Operators can act on a matrix or on rows or columns of a matrix. They are less intuitive, but can be quite powerful because they enable you perform computations without

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Learn SAS

Rick WicklinDecember 8, 2014 0

The direct product (Kronecker product) in SAS

There are many ways to multiply scalars, vectors, and matrices, but the Kronecker product (also called the direct product) is multiplication on steroids. The Kronecker product looks scary, but it is actually simple. The Kronecker product is merely a way to pack multiples of a matrix B into a block

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Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Jim SimonDecember 4, 2014 0

How to eliminate data error notes from the SAS log

A student in a SAS class recently asked if there were a way to eliminate data error notes from the SAS log and, instead, write them to a separate file. Of course there's a way! Here's a simple datastep. Notice the missing dollar sign to indicate the variable GENDER (M,

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Advanced Analytics | Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Compute minimum and maximum of rows and columns in SAS

Rick WicklinDecember 1, 2014 0

Compute maximum and minimum values for rows and columns in SAS

A common question on SAS discussion forums is how to compute the minimum and maximum values across several variables. It is easy to compute statistics across rows by using the DATA step. This article shows how to compute the minimum and maximum values for each observation (across variables) and, for

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Data Visualization | Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Leonid BatkhanNovember 28, 2014 0

Drill, baby, drill—using SAS to drill down through Google maps

➤ DISCLOSURE! In June 2018 Google introduced changes to the way it handles its Maps platform. They now require API key in order to embed a map, plus Google Maps "projects" must now be associated with a billing account. Unless these new Google rules are met, Google maps described in

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Learn SAS

Rick WicklinNovember 24, 2014 0

Overview of new features in SAS/IML 13.1

SAS software contains a lot of features, and each release adds more.To make sure that you do not miss new features that appear in the SAS/IML language, the word cloud on the right sidebar of my blog contains numbers that relate to SAS or SAS/IML releases. For example, you can

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Learn SAS

Rick WicklinNovember 17, 2014 0

The difference between RUN and CALL for SAS/IML subroutines

Have you ever noticed that some SAS/IML programmers use the CALL statement to call a subroutine, whereas others use the RUN statement? Have you ever wondered why the SAS/IML language has two statements that do the same thing? It turns out that the CALL statement and the RUN statement do

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Learn SAS

Rick WicklinNovember 10, 2014 0

An efficient way to increment a matrix diagonal

I was recently asked about how to use the SAS/IML language to efficiently add a constant to every element of a matrix diagonal. Mathematically, the task is to form the matrix sum A + kI, where A is an n x n matrix, k is a scalar value, and I is the

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Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Rick WicklinNovember 3, 2014 0

Recent additions to the SAS/IML file-sharing community

It has been three months since the introduction of the SAS/IML File Exchange, so I thought I'd give a short update on recent submissions and activity. (Note: The File Exchange was merged into the SAS Community Library in 2022.) Users have submitted eight new articles. The application areas include experimental

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Learn SAS

Rick WicklinOctober 31, 2014 0

The next power of 2 and other tricks with logarithms

The other day I was doing some computations that caused me to wonder, "What is the smallest power of 2 that is greater than a given number?" The mathematics is straightforward. Given a number n, find the least value of k such that 2k ≥ n or, equivalently, k ≥

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Advanced Analytics | Learn SAS | Students & Educators

Polly Mitchell-GuthrieOctober 27, 2014 0

Unicorn hunting: finding data scientists outside traditional academic disciplines (part 2)

Finding people with the range of skills classified as data science can be a challenge, which is why some call them unicorns (do they really exist?), so I recently posted ten tips on finding unicorns. In my first post I elaborated on tips 1 and 2 (1. hire from an

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Analytics | Learn SAS

Darius BaerOctober 15, 2014 0

The SAS model factory – a big data solution

Do you have too many models to build, too many to manage, too few analytic resources or too much data? A Model Factory may be your answer. The mindset of analytics is changing. This represents the transformation from a “craftsman” dominated culture in which multiple weeks were spent cycling through

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Data Visualization | Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Leonid BatkhanOctober 13, 2014 0

Circling Google maps with SAS

➤ DISCLOSURE! In June 2018 Google introduced changes to the way it handles its Maps platform. They now require API key in order to embed a map, plus Google Maps "projects" must now be associated with a billing account. Unless these new Google rules are met, Google maps described in

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Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Charu ShankarSeptember 26, 2014 0

Help! Why does the WHERE clause choke on the INPUT function?

A student brought in this coding problem after her manager was struggling with this issue for a while. They played guessing games, but to no avail. Here’s what happened when they submitted data step and proc sql code using a WHERE clause with an INPUT function? data aileen; length hcn

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Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Chris Hemedinger

Chris HemedingerSeptember 21, 2014 0

Using ODS EXCEL and PROC EXPORT to bundle Excel-based reports

I recently wrote about my foray into the experimental world of ODS EXCEL. Using this new destination in SAS 9.4, I was able to create multisheet workbooks -- containing reports and graphs -- in the XLSX format. I outlined some of the benefits -- such as being part of Base

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Data Visualization | Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Leonid BatkhanSeptember 12, 2014 0

The power of SAS-generated InfoWindows in Google maps

➤ DISCLOSURE! In June 2018 Google introduced changes to the way it handles its Maps platform. They now require API key in order to embed a map, plus Google Maps "projects" must now be associated with a billing account. Unless these new Google rules are met, Google maps described in

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Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Chris Hemedinger

Chris HemedingerAugust 29, 2014 0

Experimenting with ODS EXCEL to create spreadsheets from SAS

The ODS ExcelXP tagset has served us well over the years. It provides a reliable method to get formatted SAS output into Microsoft Excel workbooks, where the business world seems to like to live. And it's available in Base SAS, which means that you don't need SAS/ACCESS to PC Files

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Data Visualization | Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Leonid BatkhanAugust 29, 2014 0

Drawing overlays on SAS-generated Google maps

➤ DISCLOSURE! In June 2018 Google introduced changes to the way it handles its Maps platform. They now require API key in order to embed a map, plus Google Maps "projects" must now be associated with a billing account. Unless these new Google rules are met, Google maps described in

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Learn SAS

Rick WicklinAugust 25, 2014 0

Choosing bins for histograms in SAS

When you create a histogram with statistical software, the software uses the data (including the sample size) to automatically choose the width and location of the histogram bins. The resulting histogram is an attempt to balance statistical considerations, such as estimating the underlying density, and "human considerations," such as choosing

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Learn SAS

Rick WicklinAugust 11, 2014 0

Tips for learning the SAS/IML language

A SAS customer wrote, "I have access to PROC IML through SAS OnDemand for Academics. What is the best way for me to learn to program in the SAS/IML language? How do I get started with PROC IML?" That is an excellent question, and I'm happy to offer some suggestions.

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Analytics | Learn SAS

Eric RosslandAugust 4, 2014 0

A tale of two administrators

You are the new SAS Administrator. After the initial shock or excitement, you sit back and wonder, “What does that MEAN???” In an enterprise environment there are often divisions of duties. The SAS Intelligence Platform is no exception. Just take a look at the architecture. Just looking at this picture,

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Learn SAS

Rick WicklinJuly 30, 2014 0

Overview of new features in SAS/IML 12.3

Unless you diligently read the "What's New" chapter for each release of SAS software, it is easy to miss new features that appear in the language. People who have been writing SAS/IML programs for decades are sometimes surprised when I tell them about a useful new function or programming feature.

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Data Visualization | Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Leonid BatkhanJuly 24, 2014 0

Live Google maps in SAS -- multiple markers

➤ DISCLOSURE! In June 2018 Google introduced changes to the way it handles its Maps platform. They now require API key in order to embed a map, plus Google Maps "projects" must now be associated with a billing account. Unless these new Google rules are met, Google maps described in

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Advanced Analytics | Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Rick WicklinJuly 16, 2014 0

How to share SAS/IML programs with the world

Have you written a SAS/IML program that you think is particularly clever? Are you the proud author of SAS/IML functions that extend the functionality of SAS software? You've worked hard to develop, debug, and test your program, so why not share it with others? There is now a location for

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Learn SAS | Programming Tips

Charu ShankarJuly 11, 2014 0

Getting things in order with PROC SQL, macro and a SAS function

Order must be the most frequent cry for help in the SAS classroom. “HELP,” said my student in the classroom. “I work with messy health data. My users want to see data in this order.” T1.col1, t1.col2, t1.col3, t1.col4, t2.col5, t1.col6 and list the remaining columns in column position from

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Learn SAS | SAS Administrators

SAS toolbox: macro functions

Leonid BatkhanJuly 9, 2014 0

Setting up SAS Business Intelligence environments – the right way

When new SAS users get introduced to the SAS Business Intelligence software (SAS BI), along with the thrill of a wide spectrum of new and desirable functionality, almost always comes a state of confusion – if not panic. How do we go about adapting it to our organization IT guidelines?

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Learn SAS

Chris Hemedinger

Chris HemedingerJune 12, 2014 0

New course: Developing Custom Tasks for SAS Enterprise Guide

This probably won't surprise any of my regular readers: "SAS custom tasks" is one of my favorite topics to talk about. Since 2007, I've written blogs about how you can use custom tasks to extend SAS Enterprise Guide and the SAS Add-In for Microsoft Office. I've shared lots of examples,

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Learn SAS

Stephen MistlerJune 10, 2014 0

Producing normal density plots with shading

When teaching statistics, it is often useful to produce a normal density plot with shading under the curve. For example, consider a one-sided hypothesis test. An alpha value of .05 would correspond to a Z-score cutoff of 1.645. This means that 95% of a standard normal curve falls below a

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Advanced Analytics | Learn SAS

Rick WicklinJune 9, 2014 0

How to generate a grid of points in SAS

In many areas of statistics, it is convenient to be able to easily construct a uniform grid of points. You can use a grid of parameter values to visualize functions and to get a rough feel for how an objective function in an optimization problem depends on the parameters. And

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