SAS® Programming Glossary

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accented character

a type of character that is modified by the addition of an accent mark that alters the pronunciation of the character. An example is "ñ", which results from combining the tilde (~) with the character "n".

access descriptor

a SAS/ACCESS file that describes data that is managed by SAS, by a database management system, or by a PC-based software application such as Microsoft Excel, Lotus 1-2-3, or dBASE. After creating an access descriptor, the user can use it as the basis for creating one or more view descriptors. See also view descriptor.

access method

See file access method.

access mode

the level of access that a user has to an item store. The possible access modes are read, write, and update. See also item store.

across variable

in the REPORT procedure, a variable whose formatted values each form a column in the report. If the variable does not have a format, then each unformatted value forms a column.

ActiveX

a technology developed by Microsoft that is used to add interactivity to web pages.

ActiveX control

a type of web application that is developed specifically for the Windows operating environment. ActiveX controls can provide web users with interactive capabilities.

activities data set

in the CALENDAR procedure, a SAS data set that defines activities such as meetings and special events. The CALENDAR procedure displays these activities in a summary calendar or in a schedule calendar. See also schedule calendar, summary calendar.

AF checkpoint

a SAS catalog entry that identifies the first or last entry from the last SAS/AF application that was executed with the AF command. See also SAS catalog entry.

after-note

in ODS, a note that is displayed after an output object each time the output object is displayed. The text is assigned to an output object by the procedure that produced the object. See also output object, ODS document, before-note.

aggregate storage location

a location in an operating system that can contain a group of distinct files. Depending on the operating system, the location could be a directory, folder, or partitioned data set. See also fileref.

alias

an alternative name, usually a shortened form, for a particular SAS language element. An example of an alias is PWD for PASSWORD.

aliasing

a visual effect in computer-generated images that produces several types of rendering problems, such as jagged edges along straight lines or polygon boundaries. Aliasing can occur when the user attempts to render an object smaller than pixel-size, or a very narrow object. In a complex scene, fine details are sometimes lost or distorted beyond recognition due to aliasing. See also anti-aliasing.

alignment form unit

a group of Xs in a rectangular block that are printed to test whether the output from the FORMS procedure will line up correctly on continuous-feed paper. Alignment form units are the same size as the form units that they represent. See also form layout, form unit.

alphanumeric character

any of the following types of characters: alphabetic letters, numerals, and special characters or blanks. Most computer systems store strictly numeric data differently from alphanumeric or textual data.

American National Standards Institute (ANSI)

the organization that coordinates the development of voluntary consensus standards for products, services, processes, systems, and personnel in the United States. ANSI works with the International Organization for Standardization to establish global standards.

American Standard Code for Information Interchange

See ASCII.

analysis variable

a numeric variable that is used to calculate statistics or to display values. An analysis variable usually contains quantitative or continuous values, though it is not required.

annotation

a label, marker, or note that is not obtained from the data but is placed on a graph independently. Such annotations might or might not be linked to data values in the plot.

ANSI

See American National Standards Institute.

answer field

in CBT entries, the space in which users respond to either fill-in-the-blank or multiple-choice questions.

anti-aliasing

a rendering technique for improving the appearance of text and curved lines in a graph by blurring the jagged edges normally present. The degree of improvement is relative to the nature of the graphical content (for example, vertical and horizontal lines do not benefit from anti-aliasing). Extra processing is required to perform anti-aliasing. See also aliasing.

Application Response Measurement (ARM)

the name of an application programming interface that was developed by an industry partnership and which is used to monitor the availability and performance of software applications. ARM monitors the application tasks that are important to a particular business.

area bar chart

a bar chart that applies an additional magnitude of width to the bars that results in categorized bars. Each bar has both a height and a width measure that can be independent of each other.

arithmetic operator

in SAS, any of the symbols (+, -, /, *, and **) that are used to perform addition, subtraction, division, multiplication, or exponentiation in arithmetic expressions. In SYSTEM 2000 software only, ** is not supported.

ARM

See Application Response Measurement.

ARM agent

a software vendor's implementation of the ARM API. Each ARM agent is a set of executable routines that can be called by applications. The ARM agent runs concurrently with SAS. The SAS application passes transaction information to the agent, which collects the ARM transaction records and writes them to the ARM log.

ARM log

an external file that contains records of ARM transactions. See also external file.

ARM macro

a macro that measures the response time of an application. ARM macros invoke ARM API function calls. They permit conditional execution by setting the appropriate macro parameters and macro variables. ARM macros are not part of the SAS macro facility.

ARM subsystem

a group of internal SAS processing transactions such as PROC and DATA step processing and file input/output processing. The system option ARMSUBSYS= is used to turn on a subsystem or all subsystems.

ARM system option

any of a group of SAS system options that control various aspects of the SAS ARM interface. See also SAS system option.

array

in the SAS programming language, a temporary grouping of SAS variables that have the same data type, are arranged in a particular order, and are identified by an array name. The array exists only for the duration of the current DATA step. See also multidimensional array, one-dimensional array, two-dimensional array.

ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange)

a 7-bit encoding standard that provides a basic set of 128 characters, supporting a variety of computer systems. ASCII encodes the uppercase and lowercase letters of the English alphabet, punctuation marks, the digits 0-9, and control characters. This set of 128 characters is also included in most other encodings. See also EBCDIC, encoding.

ASCII collating sequence

the rules that are used by a specific ASCII encoding for sorting textual data. Sort order is determined by the location of each code point in the code page of an ASCII encoding. In the Windows Latin1 code page, the sort order of precedence is punctuation characters, numbers, uppercase characters, and lowercase characters. Because the uppercase A (code point 41) precedes the lowercase g (code point 67), A is sorted before g. See also EBCDIC collating sequence.

aspect ratio

the ratio of a shape's width to its height in an output area such as a display, plotter, or film recorder.

assignment statement

a DATA step statement that evaluates an expression and stores the result in a variable.

attribute

a property of an object, component, or other entity. Examples of attributes might be name, size, color, label, format, informat, data type, or length. See also field attribute, general attribute.

attribute bundle

a common collection of visual properties associated with a graphical primitive such as a line, marker, or text. For example, all lines have visual properties of pattern, thickness, and color. All markers have visual properties of symbol, size, weight, and color. Attribute bundles can be associated with style elements in order to indirectly assign visual properties.

audit trail

an optional SAS file that users can create in order to log modifications to a SAS data file. Each time an observation is added, deleted, or updated, information is written to the audit trail about who made the modification, what was modified, and when.

authentication provider

a software component that is used for identifying and authenticating users. For example, an LDAP server or the host operating system can provide authentication.

autocall facility

a feature of SAS that enables users to store the source statements that define a macro and to invoke the macro as needed, without having to include the definition in the program.

autocall library

an aggregate storage location that contains individual library members, each of which contains a macro definition. See also aggregate storage location.

autocall macro

a macro whose uncompiled source code and text are stored in an autocall macro library. Unlike a stored compiled macro, an autocall macro is compiled before execution the first time it is called.

autoexec file

a file that contains SAS statements that are executed automatically when SAS is invoked. The autoexec file can be used to specify some of the SAS system options, as well as to assign librefs and filerefs to data sources that are used frequently. See also fileref, libref.

automatic join

a feature of the SQL Query Window that enables the user to predefine join criteria for a specific set of tables. When these tables are selected for a query in a future session, the join criteria are already defined and are ready for use.

automatic lookup

a feature of the SQL Query Window that automatically displays the values of a particular column when that column is selected in the WHERE EXPRESSION window.

automatic macro variable

a macro variable that is defined by SAS rather than by the user and that supplies information about the SAS session. For example, the SYSPROCESSID automatic macro variable contains the process ID of the current SAS process.

autosave file

a copy of the contents of the Program Editor or the Enhanced Editor. SAS automatically saves the editor contents at the default time interval or at a time interval specified in the Preferences dialog box.

AWS

See SAS application workspace.

axis area

an area bounded by axes, which might be enclosed by an axis line.

axis offset

the gaps that normally appear at the ends of an axis line. The gaps enable markers, bars, and other graphic primitives that are drawn at extreme data values to be rendered without clipping. An offset can also be used to add extra space between an axis line and visual elements in the graph.

axis threshold

a numerical bias from 0 to 1 that determines whether an extra tick is added at either end of a non-discrete, interval axis. If the minimum and maximum thresholds are set to 0, then no ticks are added beyond the actual data range. If both minimum and maximum thresholds are set to 1, then the data range is completely bounded by the first and last ticks.

axis tick mark

a short line segment perpendicular to the axis line. A tick can cross the axis line, or be drawn from the axis inside or outside the wall.

axis tick value

a formatted data value represented by a tick mark.

axis type

a keyword that denotes axis functionality. For example, the axis type of interval axes can be LINEAR, TIME, or LOG. The axis type of a discrete axis is DISCRETE.

background processing

processing that takes place without interaction by the user. Background sessions sometimes run somewhat slower than foreground sessions, because background sessions execute as processor time becomes available.

backward compatibility

refers to the ability of a SAS client to read, write, and update a SAS file that was created using an earlier version of SAS. See also forward compatibility.

band plot

a plot that draws a horizontal band with two Y values for each X value, or that draws a vertical band with two X values for each Y value. A band plot is typically used to show confidence, error, prediction, or control limits. The points on the upper and lower band boundaries can be joined to create two outlines, or the area between the boundaries can be filled.

base data set

in the COMPARE procedure, a SAS data set that is used as the basis of a comparison.

Base SAS

the core product that is part of SAS Foundation and is installed with every deployment of SAS software. Base SAS provides an information delivery system for accessing, managing, analyzing, and presenting data.

base version

the most recently created version of a generation data set. The name of the base version does not include the four-character suffix that indicates a generation number. See also generation data set.

baseline

in a font, the imaginary line upon which the characters rest.

batch job

a unit of work that is submitted to an operating system for batch processing. For example, under UNIX, a batch job is a background process; under Windows, a batch job is a task; and under z/OS, a batch job is a set of JCL statements. See also batch mode.

batch mode

a noninteractive method of running SAS programs by which a file (containing SAS statements along with any necessary operating system commands) is submitted to the batch queue of the operating environment for execution.

before-note

in ODS, a note that is displayed before an output object each time the output object is displayed. The text is assigned to the output object by the procedure that produced the object. See also after-note, output object, ODS document.

bidirectional text

text in a writing system such as Arabic and Hebrew that generally runs from right to left, except for numbers and embedded text written in other languages that run from left to right.

big endian

a byte ordering in which higher-significance bytes are written to lower storage addresses in computer memory than are lower-significance bytes. In the SAS System, the following platforms are considered big endian: IBM mainframe, HP-UX, AIX, and Solaris. See also little endian.

bin

one of multiple numeric intervals into which continuous numeric data can be categorized.

binary file

a file that is stored in binary format, which cannot be edited using a text editor. Binary files are usually executable, but they can contain only data.

binned data

data that has been summarized or transformed in some way to facilitate its rendering by a parameterized plot. Continuous numeric data is typically binned by setting a bin width (interval size) and then computing the number of bins, or by setting the number of bins and computing the bin width.

bit mask

a string of bits that has a specific pattern of binary 0s and 1s that you use to compare with other values.

block

See statement block.

block

a group of observations in a data set. By using blocks, thread-enabled applications can read, write, and process the observations faster than if they are delivered as individual observations.

block map

a three-dimensional map that uses blocks of varying heights to represent the value of a variable for each map area.

block plot

a plot that displays one or more rectangles (blocks) along an axis, where each rectangle identifies a block of consecutive observations having the same value for a specified block variable.

BMDP engine

the SAS engine that provides Read-Only access to BMDP files. BMDP is a library of statistical analysis programs that were originally developed at the UCLA Health Sciences Computing Facility. See also engine.

BOM

See byte-order mark.

Boolean numeric expression

a statement that uses Boolean operators to express either a true or false condition. The value of true is 1, and the value of false is 0. See also Boolean operator, logical operator.

Boolean operator

an expression in a programming language that produces a Boolean value (true or false) when evaluated. See also logical operator.

boundary

in the GMAP procedure, a separating line or point that distinguishes between two or more unit areas or segments.

box plot

a graphical display of five statistics (the minimum, lower quartile, median, upper quartile, and maximum) that summarize the distribution of a set of data. The lower quartile (25th percentile) is represented by the lower edge of the box, and the upper quartile (75th percentile) is represented by the upper edge of the box. The median (50th percentile) is represented by a central line that divides the box into sections. The extreme values are represented by whiskers that extend out from the edges of the box.

break

in the REPORT procedure, a section of the report that does one or more of the following: visually separates parts of the report; summarizes statistics and computed variables; displays text; displays values that have been calculated for a set of rows of the report; executes DATA step statements. You can create breaks when the value of a selected variable changes or at the beginning or end of a report. See also break variable.

break line

in the REPORT procedure, a line of a report that contains one or more of the following: characters that visually separate parts of the report; summaries of statistics and computed variables (called a summary line); text; values that have been calculated for a set of rows of the report.

break variable

in the REPORT procedure, a group variable or order variable that you select in order to specify the location of break lines. The REPORT procedure performs the actions that you specify for the break each time the value of the break variable changes.

BY group

a group of observations or rows that have the same value for a variable that is specified in a BY statement. If more than one variable is specified in a BY statement, then the BY group is a group of observations that have a unique combination of values for those variables.

BY value

the value of a BY variable.

BY variable (BY-group variable)

a variable that is named in a BY statement and whose values define groups of observations to process.

BY-group processing

the process of using the BY statement to process observations that are ordered, grouped, or indexed according to the values of one or more variables. Many SAS procedures and the DATA step support BY-group processing. For example, you can use BY-group processing with the PRINT procedure to print separate reports for different groups of observations in a single SAS data set.

BY-group variable

See BY variable.

byte-order mark (BOM)

the Unicode character that indicates the byte order of the Unicode text that follows in the text file or stream. The BOM can also indicate which of several Unicode encodings the text stream is encoded as. In UTF-16, the code point of the byte-order mark is U+FEFF (hexadecimal).

calculated column

a column that does not exist in any of the tables that are accessed, but which is created as a result of a column expression. See also column expression.

calendar data set

in the CALENDAR procedure, a SAS data set that defines one weekly work schedule. Observations in a calendar data set must use character variables named _SUN_, _MON_, _TUE_, _WED_, _THU_, _FRI_, and _SAT_ to specify which work shift applies to which day of the week.

CALL routine

See SAS CALL routine.

capline

the highest point of a normal uppercase letter. In some fonts, the capline might be above the top of the letter to allow room for an accent.

carriage-control character

a symbol that tells a printer how many lines to advance the paper, when to begin a new page, when to skip a line, and when to hold the current line for overprinting.

Cartesian coordinate system

the two- or three-dimensional coordinate system in which perpendicular axes meet at the origin (0,0) or (0,0,0). Typically, Cartesian coordinate axes are called X, Y, and Z.

Cartesian product

a type of join that matches each row from each joined table to each row from all other joined tables. See also cross join, join.

catalog

See SAS catalog.

catalog directory

a part of a SAS catalog that stores and maintains information about the name, type, description, and update status of each member of the catalog.

catalog entry

See SAS catalog entry.

catalog reference (catref)

a name that is temporarily associated with a catalog or with concatenated catalogs. You use a CATNAME statement to assign a catref.

category

in the TABULATE procedure, the combination of unique values of class variables. The TABULATE procedure creates a separate category for each unique combination of values that exists in the observations of the data set. Each category that PROC TABULATE creates is represented by one or more cells in the table where the pages, rows, and columns that describe the category intersect.

category variable

a classification variable with a finite number of distinct (discrete) values. These variables are typically used to split data into subsets. For example, in a bar chart, each unique value is displayed as a bar on a DISCRETE axis. In another example, the variable payment mode can have two values, prepaid and postpaid. Customers can be classified based on this variable as prepaid customers and postpaid customers.

catref

See catalog reference.

CCS

See coded character set.

CEDA

See Cross-Environment Data Access.

cell

See graph cell.

cell

See character cell.

cell block

a block beginning with a CELL statement and ending with an ENDCELL statement that defines the graphical content of a cell. The cell block is available only within a LATTICE layout.

cellvalue

one of the possible values that PROC FREQ can produce for a crosstabulation table. Cellvalues are defined by the DEFINE CELLVALUE statement in a crosstabulation table template.

center point

the location in the GRAPH window that, in conjunction with a radius point, defines the placement and shape of an ellipse or a pie.

central processing unit

See CPU.

CGM

See computer graphics metafile.

character

the smallest component of a writing system that has a semantic value, such as the letters of an alphabet, digits, or ideographs.

character cell (cell)

in device-based SAS/GRAPH procedures, a unit of measure whose size and shape is determined by both the size of the graphics output area and by the number of rows and columns in the graphics output area.

character comparison

a process in which character operands are compared character by character from left to right, yielding a numeric result. If the character operands are equal, the result is the value 1; if they are not equal, the result is the value 0.

character constant (character literal)

a character string that is enclosed in quotation marks in a SAS statement to indicate a fixed value rather than the name of a variable. The maximum number of characters that is allowed is 32,767. Character constants are sometimes referred to as character literals. See also character string.

character encoding

a mapping of an abstract character repertoire to a set of numeric values. Character encodings are used in computation, data storage, and transmission of textual data. A character encoding includes national characters, special characters, the digits 0-9, and control characters.

character format

a set of instructions that tell SAS to use a specific pattern for writing character data values.

character function

a type of function that enables you to manipulate, compare, evaluate, or analyze character strings.

character informat

a set of instructions that tell SAS to use a specific pattern for reading character data values into character variables.

character literal

See character constant.

character string (text string, string)

one or more consecutive alphanumeric characters, other keyboard characters, or both. See also character constant.

character up vector

the angle at which a character is positioned. The character up vector has two components, x and y, which determine the angle.

character value

a value that can contain alphabetic characters, the numeric characters 0 through 9, and other special characters.

character variable

a variable whose values can consist of alphabetic characters and special characters as well as numeric characters.

chart

a representation of data with graphical elements such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart. A chart can represent tabular numeric data, functions or some kinds of qualitative structure and provides different info.

chart statistic

the statistical value calculated for the chart variable: frequency, cumulative frequency, percentage, cumulative percentage, sum, or mean.

chart variable

a variable in the input data set whose values are categories of data represented by bars, blocks, slices, or spines.

chart vertex

a point on a radar chart where a statistical value intersects the spokes.

check box

a window object that presents users with a choice. A check box is displayed as a selection marker followed by text. The marker for a selected choice is filled, and the marker for a choice that is not selected is empty.

child block

a block that is contained within another block when two or more blocks are nested. For example, a CELLHEADER block is always a child of a CELL block.

child entry

in CBT entries, a secondary, or sublevel, CBT entry that is displayed when a user completes the current CBT entry. See also parent entry.

choice group

in PROGRAM entries, fields that have the same Choice group attribute. These fields, called stations, display values from which users can make a single selection.

choropleth map

a two-dimensional map that uses color and fill pattern combinations to represent different categories or levels of magnitude.

CJK

the languages of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, referred to as a collective grouping because all use Chinese characters. The grouping is relevant to translation and information processing. Vietnamese is occasionally included in this grouping (CJKV) because of its use of Chinese characters historically.

class

a template for an object. A class includes data that describes the object's characteristics (such as attributes or instance variables), as well as the operations (methods) that the object can perform.

class variable

See classification variable.

classification level

for a single classification variable, each unique value is regarded as a classification level. For two or more variables, a classification level is one of the unique combinations (crossings) of the unique values of each variable. For example, if three variables have four, two, and three distinct values, there are 24 classification levels.

classification panel

a multi-cell graph in which the cell data is driven by the values of one or more classification variables. The number of the cells is determined by the unique values of the classification variables. Each cell of the panel has the same types of plots.

classification variable (class variable)

a variable whose values are used to classify the observations in a data set into different groups that are meaningful for analysis. A classification variable can have either character or numeric values. Classification variables include group, subgroup, category, and BY variables. See also continuous variable, discrete variable.

client

an application that requests either resources or services from a server, possibly over a network.

client session

a SAS session that is running on a client computer. A client session accepts SAS statements and passes those that are submitted to the server for processing. The client session manages the output and messages from both the client session and the server session.

clip

to truncate a plot or graphical element (such as a line, marker, or band) when it reaches a boundary such as a plot wall.

CMYK

a color coding scheme that specifies a color in terms of the levels of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black components. The level of each component ranges from 0 to 255.

code page

the representation of a character set that associates a hexadecimal value with each character. The term code page originated from IBM's EBCDIC-based mainframe systems, but many vendors use this term including Microsoft, SAP, and Oracle Corporation. Vendors often allocate their own code page number to a character encoding, even if it is better known by another name (for example UTF-8 character encoding has code page numbers 1208 at IBM, 65001 at Microsoft, 4110 at SAP). See also encoding, code page.

code point

See code position.

code position (code point)

a nonnegative integer value that represents a particular character in a coded character set. For example, the code position C4 (hexadecimal) represents the letter "A" (umlaut) in the ISO Latin-1 coded character set. See also code page.

coded character set (CCS)

a mapping of an abstract character repertoire to a set of numeric values. The ISO Latin-1 coded character set provides the Western European alphabet and symbols and their numeric representations. For example, the letter "Ä" is represented as C4 (hexadecimal).

collating sequence

a set of rules that determine how textual data is ordered and compared. See also ASCII collating sequence, EBCDIC collating sequence.

color list

the list of foreground colors that are available for graphics output. The color list is either the default list established from the style, the list created from the device entry, or the list established from the colors specified with the COLORS= graphics option. The colors are derived from either the main color scheme models (NAME, RGB, RGBA, HLS), or from the secondary color scheme models (CMYK, GRAY, HSV).

color map

in SAS/GRAPH software, a table that is used to translate the original colors in graphics output to different colors when replaying graphics output using the GREPLAY procedure. The table is contained in a catalog entry.

column alias

a temporary, alternate name for a column. Aliases can be specified in the SQL procedure's SELECT clause to name or rename columns. An alias is one word.

column attribute

a formatting property that controls aspects of a column, such as the appearance of the cells contents, presentation of data panels, and customization of column headings. Column attributes have a reserved name and value defined in ODS.

column axis

an external axis appearing above or below a column of cells and serving as a common reference for the column of a multi-cell layout, such as a LATTICE, DATAPANEL, or DATALATTICE layout.

column dimension

in the TABULATE procedure, the combination of variables, variable values, and statistics that determine the number and arrangement of columns in the table. See also dimension expression.

column expression

a set of operators and operands that, when evaluated, result in a single data value. The resulting data value can be either a character value or a numeric value.

column expression

in the TABULATE procedure, the part of the TABLE statement that determines the content and appearance of the column dimension by specifying the combination of variables, variable values, and statistics that constitute that dimension.

column gutter

the space between columns of cells in a multi-cell layout.

column header

text that labels the column contents in a multi-cell layout. This text can be aligned above or below the cells in a column. In a LATTICE layout, the column header is not restricted to text (it can contain a plot or a legend, for example).

column input

in the DATA step, a style of input in which column numbers are included in the INPUT statement to tell SAS which columns contain the values for each variable. This style of input is useful when the values for each variable are in the same location in all records.

column major order

an order for populating cells of a layout or entries in a legend when the number of rows is specified. By default, cells or entries are filled starting from the top left and moving down. When the bottom row of the first column is filled, a new column begins filling to the right of the previous column, and so on until all content items have been placed in cells or entries. There might be empty cells or entries in the last column.

column output

in the DATA step, a style of output that specifies column numbers in the PUT statement for writing data in fixed columns.

column percentage

the ratio of a sum or frequency count for a single cell of a table to the total sum or frequency count for the column that contains that cell. This ratio is represented as a percentage.

column weight

in a LATTICE layout, the proportion of width allotted to a specific column of the layout. The sum of all column weights is 1.

column-binary data storage

an older form of data storage that is no longer widely used and is not needed by most SAS users. Column-binary data storage compresses data so that more than 80 items of data can be stored on a single punched card. Because multi-punched decks and card-image data sets remain in existence, SAS provides informats for reading column-binary data. See also column-binary informat.

column-binary informat

a set of instructions that tell SAS how to read data that is stored in column-binary or multi-punched form into character and numeric variables. See also column-binary data storage.

command

a directive to an operating system to perform a particular task.

command-style macro

a macro that is defined with the CMD option in the %MACRO statement. See also statement-style macro, name-style macro.

comment

See comment statement.

comment indicator

in CBT entries, an asterisk that marks the beginning of commented text. The asterisk can be placed either on the frame indicator line or on the feedback indicator line.

comment statement (comment)

information that is embedded in a SAS program and that serves as explanatory text. SAS ignores comments during processing but writes them to the SAS log. Comment syntax has several forms. For example, a comment can appear as a statement that begins with an asterisk and ends with a semicolon, as in * message ;.

comparison data set

in the COMPARE procedure, a SAS data set that the procedure compares to a base data set.

comparison operator

in programming languages, a symbol or mnemonic code that is used in expressions to test for a particular relationship between two values or text strings. For example, the symbol < and its corresponding mnemonic, LT, are used to determine whether one value is less than another.

compilation

See program compilation.

component object

an element in Base SAS that can be created and manipulated by using statements, attributes, methods, and operators in the DATA step. The component objects include the hash, hash iterator, logger, appender, and Java objects.

composite index

an index that locates observations in a SAS data set by examining the values of two or more key variables. See also simple index.

compound expression

an expression that contains more than one operator.

compound name

in the REPORT procedure, a name that has the following form: variable-name.statistic. A compound name refers to the value of a statistic.

compound WHERE expression

a WHERE expression that contains more than one operator, as in WHERE X=1 and Y>3. See also WHERE expression.

compute block

in the REPORT procedure, a set of statements that can be associated with a report item, or with a location in a report or page. A compute block can be used to calculate a computed variable, to define display attributes for a report item, or to generate a customized report summary.

computed plot

a plot in which input data is internally summarized or otherwise transformed to create new data that is actually rendered by the plot. Examples of computed plot statements are BARCHART, BOXPLOT, HISTOGRAM, ELLIPSE, and REGRESSIONPLOT.

computed variable

a variable whose value is calculated.

computer graphics metafile (CGM)

a graphics output file written in the internationally recognized format for describing computer graphics images. This standardization allows any image in a CGM to be imported and exported among different systems without error or distortion.

concatenate

to join the contents of two or more elements, end to end, forming a separate element. Examples of elements are character values, tables, external files, SAS data sets, and SAS libraries.

condition

in a SAS program, one or more numeric or character expressions that result in a value on which some decision depends.

conditional branching

in CBT entries, branching in which a response from a user determines which program or window is called. See also unconditional branching.

conditional logic

syntax that enables one set of statements or an optional alternate set of statements to execute at run time.

conditional operator

in the SQL procedure, the part of the WHERE clause that specifies which rows are to be retrieved.

confidence limits

the upper and lower values of a (usually 95%) confidence interval. In repeated sampling, approximately (1-alpha)*100% of the resulting intervals would contain the true value of the parameter that the interval estimates (where alpha is the confidence level associated with the interval).

configuration file

an external file containing the SAS system options that define the environment in which to run SAS. These system options take effect each time you invoke SAS.

configuration option

a SAS system option that can be specified in the SAS command or in a configuration file. Configuration options affect how SAS interacts with the computer hardware and operating system.

console log

See SAS console log.

constant

in SAS software, a number or a character string that indicates a fixed value.

constant text (model text)

the character strings that are stored as part of a macro or as a macro variable's value in open code, from which the macro processor generates text to be used as SAS statements or other macro program statements. See also open code.

continuous legend

a legend that shows a mapping between a color ramp or color segments and corresponding numeric values. Plots that support a COLORMODEL= option can use this type of legend.

continuous variable

a variable with potentially any number of possible values between a minimum and maximum value. For example, a variable for the measurement of water temperature is continuous because it can have any value from 0 to 100, depending on the precision of the thermometer. See also discrete variable.

contour plot

a three-variable plot that uses line styles or patterns to represent levels of magnitude of z corresponding to x and y coordinates.

control character

a nonprinting character that is represented by a code point in a character set, and that does not itself represent a written symbol. See also carriage-control character.

control level

a determinant of the type of lock that a task obtains on a SAS data set, or on an observation in the data set. The control level specifies how other SAS tasks can access the SAS data set concurrently.

controller

a computer component that manages the interaction between the computer and a peripheral device such as a disk or a RAID. For example, a controller manages data I/O between a CPU and a disk drive. A computer can contain many controllers. A single CPU can command more than one controller, and a single controller can command multiple disks.

coordinate

a value that represents the location of a data point or a graphics element with respect to a coordinate system.

coordinate system

the context in which to interpret coordinates. Coordinate systems vary according to their origin, limits, and units.

correlation

a relationship between two variables in which there is a tendency for the values of one variable to become larger or smaller as the values of the other variable increase or decrease.

correlation coefficient

a statistic that measures the strength of the linear relationship between two series of values. The values of correlation coefficients range from -1 to 1.

CPU (central processing unit)

the main hardware component of a computer. The CPU executes program instructions and controls the operation of other parts of the computer.

CPU time

the amount of time it takes for the central processing unit of a computer system to perform the calculations or other operations that you request.

CPU-bound application

an application whose performance is constrained by the speed at which computations can be performed on the data. Multiple CPUs and threading technology can alleviate this problem.

Critical Success Factor object (CSF object)

a graphical object that shows the relative position of a specific numeric value within a range of values. Many attributes of the object, such as its general shape, the type of arrow indicator, and how or whether the range is segmented, can be customized.

cross join

a type of join that returns the product of joined tables. A cross join is functionally the same as a Cartesian product. See also Cartesian product, join.

Cross-Environment Data Access (CEDA)

a feature of SAS software that enables a SAS data file that was created in a directory-based operating environment to be read by a SAS session in another directory-based environment. See also data representation, foreign file format, native file format.

crossing

a combination of the unique values of one or more classification variables.

crossing

in the TABULATE procedure, the process that combines the effects of two or more elements.

crosstab (crosstabulation table)

a two-dimensional table that shows frequency distributions or other aggregate statistics for the intersections of two or more category data items. In a crosstab, categories are displayed on both the columns and rows, and each cell value represents the data result from the intersection of the categories on the specific row and column. See also frequency table.

crosstabulation table

See crosstab.

CSF object

See Critical Success Factor object.

cube

in three-dimensional graphics, the outlines formed by the intersection of three pairs of parallel planes; each pair is orthogonal to the primary X, Y, and Z axes. The display of the cube is optional.

cumulative frequency

the total number of observations in all ranges up to and including a specified range.

cumulative percent

the percentage of observations in all ranges up to and including a given range.

data area

the portion of the graphics output area in which data values are displayed. The data area is bounded by axes or map areas. In the Annotate facility, the data area defines a coordinate system. See also graphics output area, procedure output area, coordinate system.

data component

a form, similar to a SAS data set, that contains the results (numbers and characters) of a DATA step or PROC step that supports ODS.

data control block (DCB)

on IBM mainframe operating systems such as z/OS, a storage area that contains information about the physical characteristics of an operating system data set.

data error

a type of execution error that occurs when a SAS program analyzes data that contains invalid values. For example, a data error occurs if you specify numeric variables in the INPUT statement for character data. SAS reports these errors in the SAS log but continues to execute the program. See also programming error, syntax error.

data line

a line of unprocessed (raw) data.

data object

a transient version of a SAS data set created by ODS. When an input SAS data set is bound to a compiled graph template, an ODS data object is created, based on all the columns requested in the template definition and any new columns that have been directly or indirectly computed. A data object can persist when used with the ODS OUTPUT statement.

data partition

a physical file that contains data and which is part of a collection of physical files that comprise the data component of a table. See also partition, partitioned data set.

data precision (precision)

the reliability of numeric data in a SAS file that is exchanged between operating environments. Compatible operating environments, which use the same internal representation for storing floating-point numeric data, exchange numeric data with no loss of precision. Precision is lost when numeric data is passed between incompatible operating environments.

data representation

the form in which data is stored in a particular operating environment. Different operating environments use different standards or conventions for storing floating-point numbers (for example, IEEE or IBM 390); for character encoding (ASCII or EBCDIC); for the ordering of bytes in memory (big Endian or little Endian); for word alignment (4-byte boundaries or 8-byte boundaries); and for data-type length (16-bit, 32-bit, or 64-bit).

data set

See SAS data set.

data set label

in a SAS data set, a user-defined attribute of up to 200 characters that is used for documenting the SAS data set.

data set option

See SAS data set option.

DATA step

in a SAS program, a group of statements that begins with a DATA statement and that ends with either a RUN statement, another DATA statement, a PROC statement, or the end of the job. The DATA step enables you to read raw data or other SAS data sets and to create SAS data sets.

DATA step hash object (hash object)

an in-memory lookup table that is declared and used only within the DATA step. The hash object contains key values, along with associated data, if any. Records can be quickly and efficiently stored, searched, and retrieved within the hash object by using the key values. See also hash iterator object.

DATA step interface

a feature of SAS software that enables you to use the DATA step to interact with other components of SAS, such as the macro facility or the Output Delivery System (ODS).

DATA step variable

name of a location in memory where data is stored. DATA step variables appear in the DATA step.

DATA step view

a type of SAS data set that consists of a stored DATA step program. A DATA step view contains a definition of data that is stored elsewhere; the view does not contain the physical data. The view's input data can come from one or more sources, including external files and other SAS data sets. Because a DATA step view only reads (opens for input) other files, you cannot update the view's underlying data.

data tip

data or other detailed information that is displayed when a user positions a mouse pointer over an element in a graph. For example, a data tip typically displays the data value that is represented by a bar, a plot point, or some other element.

data transformation

the process of changing a data value from one form to another (for example, a calendar date to a SAS date value or vice versa).

data type conversion

a numeric-to-character or character-to-numeric conversion that SAS performs automatically.

data value

a unit of character, numeric, or alphanumeric information that is stored as a single item in a data record.

database

an organized collection of related data. A database usually contains named files, named objects, or other named entities such as tables, views, and indexes.

database management system (DBMS)

a software application that enables you to create and manipulate data that is stored in the form of databases. See also relational database management system.

date and time format

instructions that tell SAS how to write numeric values as dates, times, and datetimes.

date and time informat

the instructions that tell SAS how to read numeric values that are represented as dates, times, and datetimes.

date constant

See SAS date constant.

date interval

a unit of measurement that SAS can count within an elapsed period of days or months.

date value

See SAS date value.

datestamp

the date of a transaction that is recorded by the computer. Examples include the date at the beginning of the SAS log or the printed date on an output file; the initialization of a SAS session; and the creation or change of a SAS file.

datetime constant

See SAS datetime constant.

datetime interval

a unit of measurement that SAS can count within an elapsed period of hours, minutes, seconds, days, and months.

datetime value

See SAS datetime value.

DBCS

See double-byte character set.

DBMS

See database management system.

DCB

See data control block.

declarative statement

a statement that supplies information to SAS and that takes effect when the system compiles program statements. See also executable statement.

default directory

the directory that you are working in at any given time. When you log in, your default directory is usually your home directory.

define block

in the TEMPLATE procedure, a define block (beginning with a DEFINE statement and ending with an END statement) creates various types of templates, including STATGRAPH, STYLE, and TABLE.

delimiter

a character that serves as a boundary that separates the elements of a text string.

delimiter line (scrolling indicator)

in SAS/AF PROGRAM entries, a line that contains logical NOT signs in columns 1-3. This line separates the scrollable area from the fixed, nonscrollable area in the PROGRAM entry's DISPLAY window. The nonscrollable area appears above the delimiter line. SAS/AF software recognizes the caret () and the negation character ( ) as NOT signs.

delimiter-sensitive data (DSD)

data in which the individual data values contain embedded delimiters, such as quotation marks, commas, and tabs.

denominator definition

an expression or group of expressions that tell the TABULATE procedure what values to use for calculating the denominator of a percentage. Omitting the denominator definition tells PROC TABULATE to calculate the percentage of the value in one cell in relation to the total for all categories in the table.

density value

a value assigned to each observation in a map data set reflecting the amount of detail (resolution) contributed by the observation.

dependent plot

a plot that cannot be rendered by itself. Dependent plots must be overlaid with a stand-alone plot. Dependent plots do not provide data ranges to establish axes. REFERENCELINE, DROPLINE, and LINEPARM statements produce dependent plots.

descriptive statistic (summary statistic)

a quantity that characterizes, rather than draws inference from, a collection of values. Types of descriptive statistics are measures of central tendency, measures of variation among values, and measures of the shape of the distribution of values.

descriptor information

information about the contents and attributes of a SAS data set. For example, the descriptor information includes the data types and lengths of the variables, as well as which engine was used to create the data. SAS creates and maintains descriptor information within every SAS data set.

design size

the intended size of a graph that is specified in the graph template definition. The DESIGNHEIGHT and DESIGNWIDTH options of the BEGINGRAPH statement set the intended height and width, which are used to determine the scale factors when the graph is resized. The intended height and width are used unless overridden by the ODS Graphics statement HEIGHT or WIDTH options when the template is executed.

destination

See ODS destination.

detail report

output that lists all the data that is processed.

detail row

in the REPORT procedure, a row of a report that contains information from a single observation in the data set or which consolidates the information for a group of observations that have a unique combination of values for all group variables.

device driver

in SAS/GRAPH software, a routine that generates the specific machine-language commands needed to display graphics output on a particular device. SAS/GRAPH device drivers take device-independent graphics information produced by SAS/GRAPH procedures and create the commands required to produce the graph on the particular device.

device entry

a SAS catalog entry of type DEV that stores the values of device parameters (or the characteristics) that are used with a particular output device.

device map

a catalog entry used to convert the SAS/GRAPH internal encoding for one or more characters to the device-specific encoding needed to display the characters in hardware text on a particular graphics output device. See also hardware character set.

device parameter

a value in a device entry that defines a default behavior or characteristic of a device driver. Some device parameters can be overridden by graphics options. See also graphics option.

device-based graphic

a graph created with SAS/GRAPH software for which a user-specified or default device (DEVICE= option) controls certain aspects of the graphical output.

device-independent catalog entry

a SAS catalog entry that contains graphics output in a generic format (not device-specific). A device-independent catalog entry can be replayed on any device supported by SAS/GRAPH software.

device-resident font

a font stored in an output device.

dialog box

in rich-client applications, a type of window that opens to prompt you for additional information or to ask you to confirm a request.

DICTIONARY table

any of a number of read-only SAS data views that provide information about SAS data libraries, SAS data sets, SAS macros, and external files that are either in use or available in the current SAS session. A DICTIONARY table also contains the settings for SAS system options that are currently in effect.

dictionary variable

a type of memory variable that consists of an array that contains a list of numbers or text strings that can be identified by a key. A dictionary variable has, as part of its name, a preceding '$' symbol and a subscript that contains a text string. The text string within the subscript is called a key. For example, the following dictionary variable identifies the entry in the $MyDictionary variable that contains the text-string 'dog': $MyDictionary['dog']. See also ODS event, list variable, memory variable, scalar variable.

dimension

See table dimension.

dimension expression

in the TABULATE procedure, the portion of the TABLE statement that defines the content and arrangement of the rows, columns, or pages of the table. See also column dimension, row dimension, page dimension.

direct access

a technique for retrieving data records in a data set directly, rather than by searching a data set sequentially to find a match.

directory listing

a list of members of a SAS data set or of entries in a SAS catalog, along with information about them.

discrete axis

an axis for categorical data values. The distance between ticks has no significance. A bar chart always has a discrete axis.

discrete legend

a legend that provides values or descriptive information about graphical elements in a grouped or overlaid plot.

discrete variable

a variable that has a countable number of possible values within the measurement range. For example, a variable that counts how often an event occurs over a period of time is discrete because the variable can have only integer values that are less than a realistic maximum value. See also continuous variable.

disk

a device for data storage that enables you to access any record on the disk directly. Disk storage differs from tape storage, which enables only sequential processing of records.

display variable

in the REPORT procedure, a variable that does not affect the order of the rows of the report. A report that contains one or more display variables has a detail row for each observation in the data set. By default, the REPORT procedure treats character variables as display variables.

DISTINCT

a keyword that causes the SQL procedure to remove duplicate rows from the output.

distinct value

a value that occurs one or more times for a particular column in a table or for a particular variable in a data set. In a list of distinct values, each value is listed only once, no matter how many times it occurs in the table or data set.

DO group

a sequence of statements that starts with a simple DO statement and that ends with a corresponding END statement. See also DO loop.

DO loop

a sequence of statements that starts with an iterative DO, DO WHILE, or DO UNTIL statement and that ends with a corresponding END statement. The statements are executed (usually repeatedly) according to directions that are specified in the DO statement. See also DO group.

DOCUMENT destination

a SAS Output Delivery System (ODS) destination that produces a hierarchy of output objects. The DOCUMENT destination enables users to render multiple ODS output formats without rerunning a PROC step or DATA step, and it gives users more control over the structure of the output. See also ODS destination.

document file

a file output by the Output Delivery System (ODS) that contains an image or is used to view an image. Examples include HTML, PDF, RTF, SVG, and PostScript files.

dots per inch (DPI)

a measure of the graph resolution by its dot density.

double trailing at sign

a special symbol @@ that is used to hold a line of data in the input buffer during multiple iterations of a DATA step.

double-byte character set (DBCS)

a character set that requires a variable-width encoding because many characters occupy two bytes of memory. The term DBCS, as traditionally applied to languages such as Japanese, Korean, and Chinese, is somewhat misleading because some DBCS characters actually require only one byte. See also single-byte character set, multi-byte character set.

DPI

See dots per inch.

drop line

a line drawn from a point in the plot area perpendicular to an axis.

DSD

See delimiter-sensitive data.

dummy macro

a macro that the macro processor compiles but does not store.

dynamic variable

a variable defined in a template with the DYNAMIC statement that can be initialized at template run time.

EBCDIC (Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code)

a family of single-byte and multi-byte encodings for the representation of data on IBM mainframe and mid-range computers. See also ASCII, encoding.

EBCDIC collating sequence

the rules that are used by a specific EBCDIC encoding for sorting textual data. Sort order is determined by the location of each code point in the code page of an EBCDIC encoding. For example, in the German EBCDIC code page, the sort order of precedence is punctuation characters, numbers, uppercase characters, and lowercase characters. See also ASCII collating sequence.

elapsed time

the amount of clock time needed to receive the result of a computer program, including time used by the computer to execute your program and the time your program spends waiting for resources (such as memory or a printer).

element

in the TABULATE procedure, a variable, a statistic, a format modifier, the universal class variable ALL, or a combination produced by crossing two or more of these. Elements are used to create expressions in a TABLE statement.

encode

to represent data in a particular character encoding scheme. For example, in ASCII, the letter "A" is represented as 41 (hexadecimal).

encoding

a mapping of a coded character set to code values.

encoding method

the application of established industry rules to a coded character set to produce an encoded character scheme. Such rules prescribe the number of bits required for storing the numeric representation of a specific character and its code position in the encoding. ISO 2022 and UTF-8 are examples of encoding methods.

encryption

the conversion of data by the use of algorithms or other means into an unintelligible form in order to secure data (for example, passwords) in transmission and in storage.

engine (SAS engine)

a component of SAS software that reads from or writes to a file. Various engines enable SAS to access different types of file formats. See also interface library engine, library engine, native library engine, interface view engine, transport engine.

engine/host option

an option that is specified in a LIBNAME statement. Engine/host options specify attributes that apply to all SAS data sets in a SAS library.

entry type

a characteristic of a SAS catalog entry that identifies the catalog entry's structure and attributes to SAS. When you create a SAS catalog entry, SAS automatically assigns the entry type as part of the name. See also SAS catalog entry.

equated axes

in two-dimensional plots, axes that use the same drawing scale (ratio of display distance to data interval) on both axes. For example, an interval of 2 on the X axis maps to the same display distance as an interval of 2 on the Y axis. The aspect ratio of the plot display equals the aspect ratio of the plot data. In other words, a 45-degree slope in data will be represented by a 45-degree slope in the display. Equated axes are always of TYPE=LINEAR. The number of intervals displayed on each axis does not have to be the same.

equijoin

a type of join in the SQL procedure. For example, when two tables are joined in an equijoin, the value of a column in the first table must equal the value of the column in the second table in the SQL expression. See also join.

EUC

See Extended UNIX Code.

exclusion list

a list that tells ODS which output objects to exclude from a specified ODS destination.

executable statement

in the DATA step, a SAS statement that causes some action to occur while the DATA step executes rather than when SAS compiles the DATA step. See also declarative statement.

execution environment

the operating environment in which a user executes applications, as opposed to the development environment in which a developer builds applications. See also operating environment.

execution mode

a method of executing or interacting with SAS software, which can include batch mode, interactive mode (using the SAS windowing environment or other graphical user interfaces), interactive line mode, and noninteractive mode.

execution phase

the stage at which an SCL program is executed, from initialization through termination. During this phase, the program typically validates field values, calculates values for computed variables based on user input, invokes secondary windows, issues queries, executes user-issued commands, and retrieves values from SAS data sets or from external files.

execution stack

a last-in, first-out stack that lists the current and inactive entries that were called during the execution of a SAS/AF, FSEDIT, or FSVIEW application.

execution-time error

an error that occurs when SAS executes a step, as opposed to when it compiles a step.

explicit array

in the DATA step, an array that consists of a valid SAS name, a reference to the number of variables or temporary data elements, and an optional list of the array elements. When referring to an element of an explicit array, you must specify the array element's subscript. See also explicit array reference.

explicit array reference

a description of the element to be processed in an explicit array. See also explicit array.

explicit pass-through

a form of the SQL pass-through facility that passes the user-written, DBMS-specific SQL query code directly to a particular DBMS for processing. See also implicit pass-through.

exponent

in a mathematical expression, the number or expression that indicates the power to which you raise a base number or expression. For example, the exponent is 4 in the following expression: .1234 * 10 raised to the fourth power.

expression

See SAS expression.

extended attribute

a custom attribute that is not part of the standard metadata for an object. Extended attributes can be used to automate tasks that require a custom attribute to be associated with one or more objects. Extended attributes can be added either programmatically or manually (through an application window).

Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code

See EBCDIC.

extended table

a window (in a PROGRAM entry) or a window element (in a FRAME entry) that displays values in a tabular format by repeating a set of fields (or other objects, in a FRAME entry). The number of rows that are displayed is determined by the SAS Component Language program or by an attribute of the extended table object in the FRAME entry. Extended tables are either static or dynamic. For static extended tables, the number of rows is fixed. For dynamic extended tables, the number of rows can vary.

Extended UNIX Code (EUC)

a multibyte encoding scheme used primarily to encode Chinese, Japanese, and Korean writing systems with a maximum of 94 characters in sequences of 7-bit codes.

Extensible Markup Language

See XML.

external axis

an axis that is outside all cells of a layout. An external axis represents a common scale for all plots in a row or column of a multi-cell layout.

external file

a file that is created and maintained by a host operating system or by another vendor's software application. An external file contains both data and stored SAS statements.

feedback indicator line

in CBT entries, a line that the software displays on which the user enters the answer to a question. This line is designated with a pound sign (#) in column 1 that indicates feedback.

field

the smallest logical unit of data in a file.

field attribute

a characteristic that describes and controls how the contents of a field are treated when values are entered or displayed in the field.

field validation

the process of checking user-entered values either against attributes that have been specified for a field or against conditions that have been specified in a SAS Component Language (SCL) program.

file access method (access method)

a set of instructions that an engine uses to read from or write to a file.

file corruption

the result of an operation that changes a file's data or the file's header, causing the file's structure or contents to be inaccessible. A common cause of corruption during file transport is that the transport file contains one or more incorrectly placed carriage returns or line feeds to mark the end of record, which makes the entire file unreadable after it is transferred across a network. Communications software can also cause corruption if it changes file attributes such as logical record length, block size, or record format.

file reference

See fileref.

file shortcut

a Microsoft Windows term for a fileref. See also fileref.

file specification

the name of an external file. This name is the name by which the host operating environment recognizes the file. On directory-based systems, the file specification can be either the complete path name or the relative path name from the current working directory.

File Transfer Protocol (FTP)

a telecommunications protocol that is used for transferring files from one computer to another over a network.

fileref (file reference)

a name that is temporarily assigned to an external file or to an aggregate storage location such as a directory or a folder. The fileref identifies the file or the storage location to SAS. See also libref, logical name.

fill

to apply a color within a bounded area. Many plots, such bar charts and band plots, have bounded areas that can be filled or unfilled. When filled, a color is applied. When unfilled, the areas are transparent.

fill color

the color of a pattern in a filled, closed graphics object, such as a bar segment, a pie slice, or a map area.

FIRST variable

a temporary variable that SAS creates to identify the first observation of each BY group. The variable is not added to the SAS data set.

fit policy

one of several algorithms for avoiding tick-value collision when space allotted to a predefined area does not permit all the text to fit. For example, an axis might have a THIN policy that eliminates the display of tick values for alternate ticks. A ROTATE policy would turn the tick values at a 45-degree angle. A TRUNCATE policy would truncate all long tick values to a fixed length and add an ellipsis (. . .) at the end to imply truncation. A STAGGER policy would create two rows of tick values with consecutive tick values alternating between rows. A compound policy such as STAGGERROTATE could be used to automatically choose the best fit policy for the situation.

floating-point representation

a compact form of storing real numbers on a computer, similar to scientific notation. Different operating systems use different techniques for floating-point representation.

font

a typeface with a specific character shape, spacing, weight, and size. The characters in a font can be figures, symbols, or alphanumeric.

font family

a set of one or more typefaces that share common design characteristics such as serifs, proportional or uniform spacing, or special symbols. For example, Helvetica, Arial, and Albany AMT are members of a sans-serif, proportional font family.

font maximum

in the GFONT procedure, the highest vertical coordinate in a font.

font minimum

in the GFONT procedure, the lowest vertical coordinate in a font.

font unit

in the GFONT procedure, a unit within a range that is defined by coordinates specified in the font data set. For example, a font in which the vertical coordinates range from 10 to 100 has 90 font units.

footer attribute

a formatting property that controls aspects of a footer, such as the appearance of the footer contents and the placement of the footer. The footer attribute has a reserved name and value definted in ODS. See also header attribute.

footnote area

the region below the graph area where text produced by ENTRYFOOTNOTE statements appears.

foreign file format

a relative term that contrasts the internal data representation of a file with that of an operating environment. If the internal formats are not the same, the file format is considered to be foreign to the operating environment. For example, the format of a file that is created in an OS/390 or z/OS operating environment is considered to be foreign to Windows operating environments. Foreign file formats are also referred to as non-native file formats. See also native file format.

foreign key integrity constraint

a referential integrity constraint that links the data values of one or more variables in the foreign key data file to corresponding variables and values in the primary key data file. See also primary key integrity constraint, referential integrity constraint.

form

a SAS catalog entry of type FORM. Forms contain information that is used for formatting printed output.

form layout

the number and arrangement of form units such as mailing labels on a page of continuous-feed paper (a form page). See also form page, form unit.

form page

a sheet of continuous-feed paper on which form units such as mailing labels are printed. A form page has a line size and a page size associated with it. See also form layout, form unit.

form unit

the data that is printed in a rectangular block by the FORMS procedure. For example, a mailing label is a form unit. See also alignment form unit, form layout, form page.

format

See SAS format.

format library

a collection of user-defined formats and informats. The format library can be a FORMATS catalog in a SAS library, or on z/OS it can also be a load library that contains SAS formats and informats in load module form. See also load library.

format modifier

a special symbol that is used in the INPUT and PUT statements and which enables you to control how SAS reads input data and writes output data.

formatted input

a style of input that uses special instructions called informats in the INPUT statement to determine how values that are entered in data fields should be interpreted.

formatted output

a style of output that uses SAS formats in the PUT statement to specify how to write the values of variables.

formatting character

a character such as +, |, or - that can be used to render vertical or horizontal lines for tabular output, as defined in procedures such as CALENDAR, FREQ, and TABULATE.

formula

an expression that calculates the value for a computed variable or that manipulates the value of a data set variable in the FSVIEW window. Formulas can consist of more than one statement, and they can also include any of the elements of SAS Component Language that are valid in SAS/FSP software.

formula entry

a SAS catalog entry of type FORMULA that contains formulas for calculating computed variables, as well as other general parameters of an FSVIEW session. Only one formula entry at a time can be associated with a data set, but the associated formula entry can be changed or replaced during an FSVIEW session.

forward compatibility

the ability of a SAS client that runs a particular version of SAS to read, write, and update a SAS file that was created using a later version of SAS as long as the SAS file does not implement features such as long names that are specific to the later version. The accessing SAS client and the application that run the earlier version of SAS are said to be forward compatible with the SAS file that was created using the later version. See also backward compatibility.

frame indicator line

in CBT entries, a text line that separates frames. This line is indicated either by a question mark in column 1 or by a row of dashes across the width of the DISPLAY window.

FreeType font-rendering

a method of rendering fonts that uses the FreeType engine to access the content of font files in order to render high-quality fonts for ODS and SAS/GRAPH. The FreeType engine can be used in all SAS operating environments.

frequency chart

a graphic illustration of the number of times a value or range of values occurs for a particular variable.

frequency count

the number of times a value or range of values occurs for a particular variable.

frequency table

a table that lists each of the distinct values that a variable has within all of the observations in a SAS data set. For each value, the table also lists the number of observations in which the variable has that value. See also frequency count.

frequency variable

in an input data set, a non-negative and non-zero integer variable that represents the frequency of occurrence of the current observation, essentially treating the data set as if each observation appeared n times, where n is the value of the FREQ variable for the observation.

fringe plot

a plot consisting of short, equal-length line segments drawn from and perpendicular to an axis. Each observation of a numeric variable corresponds to the location for a line segment.

FSBROWSE application

an FSBROWSE session that has an associated SCREEN entry and which uses one or more of the following: a custom display layout, special field attributes, a SAS Component Language program, or custom window parameters.

FSEDIT application

an FSEDIT session that has an associated SCREEN entry and which uses one or more of the following: a custom display layout, special field attributes, a SAS Component Language program, or custom window parameters.

FSVIEW application

an FSVIEW session that has an associated FORMULA entry and which uses one or more of the following: a custom display layout, computed variables, special field attributes, or custom window parameters.

FTP

See File Transfer Protocol.

function

See SAS function.

function key (PF key)

a keyboard key that can be defined to have a specific action in a specific software environment.

fuzz factor

a value that is used when other values are being compared or evaluated in order to offset potential errors that can result from numerical imprecision. If a value does not match or fall within a range exactly but is within the range of the fuzz factor, then the value is considered a match. For example, if an expression evaluates whether a value is greater than or equal to 2.0, and a fuzz factor of .0001 has been specified, then any value that is greater than or equal to 1.9999 would cause the expression to evaluate as true.

GB

See gigabyte.

general attribute

any of several characteristics that are assigned to a SAS catalog entry (such as a PROGRAM entry or a FRAME entry) that displays a window.

general integrity constraint

an integrity constraint that enables you to restrict the values of variables within a single file. There are four types of general integrity constraints: check, not null, unique, and primary key. See also primary key integrity constraint, referential integrity constraint.

generation data set

an archived version of a SAS data set that is created when the data set is updated. Multiple copies of a SAS data set are stored in a generation group, each data set having the same root member name but with a different version number.

generation group

a group of data sets that represent a series of replacements to the original data set. The generation group consists of the base version and a set of historical versions. See also base version, generation data set, historical version.

generation number

a consistently increasing number that identifies one of the historical versions in a generation group. For example, the data set named AIR#272 has a generation number of 272. See also historical version, generation data set, generation group.

geo-variable

in a feature table, the $GEOREF formatted variable that stores the spatial information as a geometry object.

geocoding

the process of assigning geographic coordinates (often expressed as latitude and longitude) to other geographic data such as street addresses, or postal codes.

gigabyte (GB)

a unit of measurement for digital information that is equivalent to one billion bytes. See also kilobyte, megabyte, terabyte.

global command

a command that is valid in all of a particular SAS software product's windows.

global macro variable (global variable)

a macro variable that can be referenced in either global or local scope in a SAS program, except where there is a local variable that has the same name. A global variable exists until the end of the session or program. See also local macro variable.

global scope

in SAS macro programming, indicates broad context boundaries for referencing global macro variables anywhere in the current SAS session or SAS batch program. See also local scope.

global statement

a SAS statement that you can specify anywhere in a SAS program.

global variable

See global macro variable.

glyph

the most basic element (a grapheme or combination of graphemes) of a typeface or font that carries meaning in the text of a writing system. For example, the Z character can be represented by a number of different glyphs--boldface, italic, or in varying font styles, all of which represent the the letter "Z."

graph area

the area of a window in which a graph is created and edited. The graph area contains the axes, titles, footnotes, legends, and one or more cells.

graph cell (cell)

a distinct rectangular subregion of a graph that can contain plots, text, or legends.

graph panel

a graph with multiple cells.

graph segment

in ODS, a file type or output object that contains a graph. Graphs are created in some SAS procedures, including those in SAS/GRAPH. The graph output object is referenced as a GRSEG. See also output object.

Graph Template Language (GTL)

an extension to the Output Delivery System (ODS) that enables users to create sophisticated analytical graphs.

graphic character

in ISO standards, an encoded character that is intended to be written, printed, or otherwise displayed in a form that can be read by humans. Graphic characters are associated with one or more glyphs.

graphics device

See graphics output device.

graphics element

a discrete visual part of a picture. For example, a bar in a chart and a plot's axis label are both graphics elements.

graphics object

a discrete visual element of a graph or picture (for example, a bar in a chart, a polygon, a plot's axis, and so on).

graphics option

in a SAS GOPTIONS statement, an option that controls some attribute of the graphics output. The specified value remains in effect only for the duration of the SAS session. Some graphics options override parameters that have been specified for a graphics output device.

graphics output

output from a graphics program that can be stored as a catalog GRSEG entry or as a graphics stream file. See also device-independent catalog entry, graphics output device.

graphics output area

the area of a graphics output device where the graphics output is displayed or drawn. Typically, the graphics output area occupies the full drawing area of the device, but the dimensions of the graphics output area can be changed with graphics options or device parameters. See also procedure output area, graphics output device.

graphics output device (graphics device, hardcopy device)

any terminal, printer, or other output device that is capable of displaying or producing graphical output.

graphics output file

a file that contains bitmapped or vector graphic information.

graphics primitive

a function that draws a graphics element.

graphics stream file (GSF)

a file that contains device-dependent graphics commands from a SAS/GRAPH device driver. This file can be sent to a graphics device or to other software applications.

graphics template

See ODS template.

gray scale

a color-coding scheme that specifies a color in terms of gray components. Gray-scale color codes are commonly used with some laser printers and PostScript devices.

grid

a uniform arrangement of the rows and columns of a multi-cell layout.

grid point

a grid location in the GRAPH window that is marked by a dot. Grid points are used for precision placement of objects.

grid request

in the G3GRID procedure, the request specified in a GRID statement that identifies the horizontal variables that identify the x, y plane and one or more z variables for the interpolation.

gridded data

input that contains at least three numeric variables. Two of the variables are treated as X and Y variables and the third variable Z is treated as if it were a function of X and Y. The X and Y variable values occur at uniformly spaced intervals (although the size and number of intervals might be different for X and Y). All X,Y pairs are unique, and Z values are interpolated so that every X,Y pair has a Z value. Raw data that has at least three numeric variables can be converted to gridded data with the G3GRID procedure (in SAS/GRAPH). The procedure offers both bivariate and spline interpolation methods for computing Z values.

group

a set of rows or observations that have the same value or values for one or more common columns or variables.

group index

a numeric variable with positive integer values that correspond to values of a group variable. The index values are used to associate GraphData1 GraphDataN style elements with group values.

group variable

a variable in the input data set that is used to categorize chart variable values into groups. A group variable enables the data for each distinct group value to be rendered in a visually different manner. For example, a grouped scatter plot displays a distinct marker and color for each group value.

group variable

a variable that orders the detail rows in a report according to their formatted values. The group variable also consolidates into one row multiple observations that have a unique combination of values for all group variables.

GRSEG

a SAS catalog entry that contains graphic output in a generic, rather than device-specific, format.

GSF

See graphics stream file.

GTL

See Graph Template Language.

handshaking

the exchange of signals between two devices over an interface for control or synchronization purposes. Data flow control is needed to ensure that data are not sent faster than the receiving device can process them. Handshaking usually involves sending signals between the device and the host computer in order to start and stop transmission of data.

Hangul

the name for the Korean alphabet, consisting of 24 consonant and vowel letters, arranged into blocks, one per syllable.

hardcopy device

See graphics output device.

hardware character set

a set of character definitions held internally in a graphics output device. When a hardware character set is used, SAS/GRAPH software does not have to send the device all the commands to draw characters, only the corresponding character codes. Some devices have more than one hardware character set. See also font.

hardware handshaking

a method of data flow control in which the flow of data between the computer and device is regulated by signals sent over separate wires in the connecting cable. See also handshaking.

hash iterator object

a type of object that is declared and used only within the DATA step. It is used to access records in a hash object by traversing or stepping through the records in either ascending or descending order, rather than by using key values.

hash object

See DATA step hash object.

hatch

a fill pattern consisting of parallel lines at any specified angle.

header

part of an internet protocol message, such as a MIME message or an HTTP message, that provides information about the message. Headers can include a subject line, a reply-to address, an SMTP mail-from address, and a from address. See also split character.

header attribute

a formatting property that controls aspects of a header, such as the appearance of the header contents and the placement of the header. The header attribute has a reserved name and value defined in ODS. See also footer attribute.

header routine

a group of DATA step statements that produces page headers in print files. A header routine begins with a statement label and ends with a RETURN statement. You identify with the HEADER= option in the FILE statement.

historical version

an older copy of the base version of a data set. Names of historical versions include a four-character suffix for the generation number, such as #003. See also base version, generation data set, generation group.

HLS color model

a color-coding scheme that specifies a color in terms of its hue, lightness, and saturation components. Hue is the color, lightness is the percentage of white, and saturation is the attribute of a color that determines its relative strength and its departure from gray. Lightness and saturation added to the hue produce a specific shade.

holidays data set

in the CALENDAR procedure, a SAS data set that specifies which holidays to display in a summary calendar or in a schedule calendar. See also schedule calendar, summary calendar.

host

See host operating environment.

host computer

a workstation or minicomputer accessed by a terminal or another workstation.

host font-rendering

a method of rendering fonts that relies on the capabilities of the operating environment.

host operating environment (host)

the operating environment (computer, operating system, and other software and hardware) that is identified by an IP address or by a domain name and that provides centralized control for software applications.

HSV model

a color-coding scheme that specifies a color in terms of its hue, saturation, and value components. Hue is the color. Saturation is the aspect of a color that determines its relative strength and departure from gray. And value, or brightness, is the color's departure from black.

HTML (HyperText Markup Language)

a coding system in which the codes indicate the layout and style of the text in a text file. Other HTML codes enable you to embed electronic objects such as images, sounds, video streams, and applets (small software applications) into HTML documents. All web browsers can process HTML documents.

HyperText Markup Language

See HTML.

I/O time

See input/output time.

I/O-bound application

an application whose performance is constrained by the speed at which data can be delivered for processing. Multiple CPUs, partitioned I/O, threading technology, RAID (redundant array of independent disks) technology, or a combination of these can alleviate this problem.

I18N

See internationalization.

ICU (International Components for Unicode)

the open-source project containing C/C++ and Java libraries that provide Unicode and globalization support for software applications.

identification variable

a variable common to both the map data set and the response data set that the GMAP procedure uses to associate each pair of map coordinates and each response value with a unique map area.

image file

a file that contains bitmapped graphic information. Examples include GIF, PNG, TIFF, and JPEG files. Image files are a subset of graphics output files.

image format

a file format that displays a graphical representation. PNG, GIF, TIFF, and JPEG are examples of image formats, each with different characteristics.

image map

a diagram that associates graphic elements with HTML links to implement drill-down functionality. The graphic elements are represented by sets of coordinates. See also data tip.

implicit pass-through

a form of the SQL pass-through facility that translates SAS SQL query code to the DBMS-specific SQL code, enabling the translated code to be passed to a particular DBMS for processing. See also explicit pass-through.

import

to restore a SAS transport file to its original form (a SAS library, a SAS catalog, or a SAS data set) in the format that is appropriate for the host operating system. You use the CIMPORT procedure to import a SAS transport file that was created by the CPORT procedure.

in-line view

a query expression that is nested in the SQL procedure's FROM clause. An in-line view produces a table internally that the outer query uses to select data. You save a programming step when you use an in-line view, because instead of creating a view and then referring to it in another query, you can specify the view in-line in the FROM clause. An in-line view can be referenced only in the query (or statement) in which it is defined.

index

See SAS index.

infix operator

a symbol that specifies an operation that is applied to two operands, one on each side (for example, the greater-than symbol in 8 > 6 or the plus sign in A + B). There are four general kinds of infix operators: arithmetic, comparison, logical (Boolean), and others (minimum, maximum, and concatenation).

informat

See SAS informat.

initialization phase

in SAS Component Language, the stage at which initialization steps are performed before a window is displayed in SAS/AF software or before an observation is displayed in SAS/FSP software.

inline formatting

a feature of the Output Delivery System (ODS) that allows you to insert simple formatting text into ODS output by using the ODS ESCAPECHAR statement.

inner join

a join between two tables that returns all of the rows in one table that have one or more matching rows in the other table.

input buffer

a temporary area of memory into which each record of data is read when the INPUT statement executes.

input method

a type of character conversion that is designed for interactive data input, generally from a keyboard. The simplest input method works by mapping ASCII characters onto another alphabet. Another method is to use composition, converting sequences of characters into a single letter. Languages like Thai and Korean can use both.

input stack

the most recently read line of input from a SAS program and any text generated by the macro processor that is awaiting processing by the word scanner. See also word scanner.

input/output operation

any operation of physically reading data from a storage medium, such as a disk or tape, or writing data to a storage medium.

input/output time (I/O time)

the time expended in the process of moving data from storage into memory for work and moving the result out of memory to storage, a display, or a printer.

inset

a graphical element such as a legend, line of text, or a table of text that is embedded inside of a graph's plot area.

inset table

a table of statistical values that is placed in or beside a plot that is produced in graphics mode. In process capability analysis, the statistics can include capability indices, specification limits, goodness-of-fit statistics, curve parameters, descriptive statistics, and quantiles.

integer arithmetic

arithmetic that uses only integers (numbers that do not contain a decimal point) and that produces only integers as a result.

integrity constraint

a data validation rule that restricts the data values that can be stored for a variable in a SAS data file. Integrity constraints help preserve the validity and consistency of the data. See also general integrity constraint, referential integrity constraint.

interactive graph

output that features user controls such as menus, buttons, and pictures that a user can manipulate. The controls are driven by the SAS/GRAPH ActiveX control.

interactive line mode (line mode)

a method of running SAS programs in which you enter one line of a SAS program at a time at the SAS session prompt. SAS processes each line immediately after you press the Enter or Return key. Procedure output and informative messages are returned directly to your display device.

interface library engine

a SAS library engine that accesses files that have been formatted by another vendor's software. For example, interface library engines are used to access SPSS, OSIRIS, and BMDP data. An interface view engine is a particular type of interface library engine that is used by SAS/ACCESS software. See also interface view engine, native library engine.

interface view

a SAS data view that is created with SAS/ACCESS software. An interface view enables read or write access to data that is stored in a database management system (DBMS) or a PC data file. Interface views are used as input to DATA steps and procedures. See also view descriptor, SAS/ACCESS view.

interface view engine

a type of SAS engine that SAS/ACCESS software uses to retrieve data from files that have been formatted by another vendor's software. Each SAS/ACCESS interface has its own interface view engine, which reads the interface product data and returns the data in a form that SAS can understand (that is, in a SAS data set). See also engine, interface library engine.

interleaving

a process in which SAS combines two or more sorted SAS data sets into one sorted SAS data set based on the values of the BY variables. See also concatenate, merging.

International Components for Unicode

See ICU.

International Organization for Standardization (ISO)

an organization that promotes the development of standards, and sponsors related activities that foster the sharing of products, services, and information among nations.

internationalization (I18N)

the process of designing a software product without making assumptions that are based on a single language or locale, thereby facilitating localization. Internationalization ensures that international conventions (including rules for sorting strings and for formatting dates, times, numbers, and currencies) are supported. It also facilitates a consistent user experience across different language editions of a product. See also national language support.

interpolate

to estimate values that are between two or more known values.

interquartile range (IQR)

the difference between the third quartile, or 75th percentile, and the first quartile, or 25th percentile.

interval axis

an axis where the distance between tick marks represents monotonically increasing or decreasing numeric units of some scale (like a ruler). The standard interval axis is called a LINEAR axis. Specialized interval axes include a TIME axis and a LOG axis.

IQR

See interquartile range.

ISO

See International Organization for Standardization.

ISO 646 family

a group of 7-bit encodings that are defined in the ISO 646 standard. The encoding contains both the 116 invariant ASCII code positions and the 12 variant code positions that can be replaced by national characters. For example, code position 23 (hexadecimal) is reserved for a variant character. This position is occupied by the pound sign (#) in the US, and the symbol (£) in the UK. The national variants of ISO 646 are largely obsolete.

ISO 8859 family

a group of 16 8-bit encodings that are defined in the ISO 8859 standard. Each encoding contains both the 128 ASCII characters and the 128 extended characters, which are used in the language or languages that are supported by the encoding. For example, ISO 8859-1, also called Latin-1, is a commonly used encoding in the ISO 8859 family that contains the ASCII characters as well as characters used by Western European languages. See also International Organization for Standardization.

item store

a SAS library member that consists of pieces of information that can be accessed independently. The contents of an item store are organized in a directory tree structure, which is similar to the directory structures that are used by UNIX System Services or by Windows. For example, a particular value might be stored and located using a directory path (root_dir/sub_dir/value). The SAS Registry is an example of an item store. See also template store.

job stream

a series of related programs that are run in a prescribed order.

join

an operation that combines data from two or more tables. A join is typically created by means of SQL (Structured Query Language) code or a user interface. See also outer join.

join criteria

the set of parameters that determine how tables are to be joined. Join criteria are usually specified in a WHERE expression or in an SQL ON clause. See also join, outer join.

Joint Photographic Experts Group

See JPEG.

JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group)

the name of an industry-standard file format for compressed images. Saving an image in JPEG format typically provides 10:1 compression with little perceptible loss in image quality.

justify

to position text in relation to the left or right margin or the center of the line.

key map

a SAS catalog entry used to translate the codes generated by the keys on a keyboard into their corresponding SAS/GRAPH internal character encoding. See also device map.

key variable

a variable that resides in both the primary file and the lookup file, and that can be used to index SAS data sets.

KEYS entry

a type of SAS catalog entry that contains function key settings for interactive windowing procedures.

keyword

See SAS keyword.

keyword parameter

a type of macro parameter that is identified by its name, followed by an equal sign. Multiple keyword parameters can be provided in any order, and must follow any positional parameters. See also positional parameter.

kilobyte

2 to the 10th power, or 1024 bytes. See also gigabyte, megabyte, terabyte.

kurtosis

a measure of the "heaviness of the tails" of a distribution relative to the normal distribution, which has a kurtosis of zero.

L10N

See localization.

LAST variable

a temporary variable that SAS creates to identify the last observation of each BY group. This variable is not added to the SAS data set.

latitude

used with maps, the angular measure between the equator and the circle of parallel on which a point lies.

layout

a generic term for a rectangular container that lays out the positions and sizes of its child components.

layout block

a block beginning with a LAYOUT statement and ending with an ENDLAYOUT statement.

layout grid

a multi-cell layout arranged as a grid of cells in rows and columns.

layout row (row)

a set of layout cells that are side-by-side and share the same alignment.

layout type

a keyword indicating the functionality of the layout. For example OVERLAY, LATTICE, and DATAPANEL are layout types.

legend entry

a combination of a graphical element such as a marker or line along with text describing the value or use of the graphical element. A discrete legend can have several legend entries.

legend title

text that explains how to interpret the legend.

length variable

a numeric variable that is used with the $VARYING. informat or format to specify the actual length of a character variable whose values do not all have the same length.

LETTER entry

a SAS catalog entry of type LETTER. A LETTER entry contains the text of a document that was prepared with the FSLETTER procedure. The LETTER entry also stores the attributes of any fields in the document, as well as the name of the associated form for printing the document and the general text editor parameters that were in effect when the document was last edited.

library engine

an engine that accesses groups of files and puts them in the correct form for processing by SAS utility windows and procedures. A library engine also determines the fundamental processing characteristics of the library and presents lists of files for the library directory. See also engine, interface library engine, native library engine.

library member

any of several types of SAS file in a SAS library. A library member can be a data set, a view, a catalog, a stored program, or an access descriptor.

library reference

See libref.

libref (library reference)

a SAS shortcut name that is assigned to the location of a SAS library. For example, in the name MyLib.DataFile, the libref is "MyLib", and "DataFile" is a file in the SAS library. See also SAS library.

light-weight process thread

a single-threaded subprocess that is created and controlled independently, usually with operating system calls. Multiple light-weight process threads can be active at one time on symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) hardware or in thread-enabled operating systems.

line continuation indicator

in CBT entries, a forward slash that is positioned as the last nonblank character on the frame indicator line or on the feedback indicator line. The line continuation indicator appends the following line to the line on which the indicator appears.

line mode

See interactive line mode.

line property

a value that defines the pattern, thickness, or color of a line. By default, the value for a line property is derived from a style element in the current style. See also attribute bundle.

line-hold specifier

a special symbol used in INPUT and PUT statements that enables you to hold a record in the input or output buffer for further processing. Line-hold specifiers include the trailing at sign (@) and the double trailing at sign (@@).

linear axis

an interval axis with ticks placed on a linear scale.

linked action field

in PROGRAM entries, a field with the Type attribute ACTION, which is associated with a station of a choice group. Linked action fields enable users to make a choice by selecting either the field itself or the associated station. See also check box, choice group.

linking

in MENU entries, the process of associating a primary menu with a series of secondary MENU entries so that users can access submenu choices directly from the primary menu.

list input

a style of input in which names of variables, not column locations, are specified in the INPUT statement. List input scans input records for data values that are separated by at least one blank or by some other delimiter.

list output

a style of output in which character strings or variables are specified in a PUT statement without explicit directions that specify where SAS should place the strings or values.

list variable

a type of memory variable that consists of an array that contains a list of numbers or text strings that are indexed. A list variable has, as part of its name, a preceding '$' symbol and a subscript that is empty or contains a number or numeric variable. The number within the subscript is called an index. For example, the list variable $Mylist[2] identifies the second entry in the list variable $Mylist. In this case, the index is 2. See also dictionary variable, ODS event, memory variable, scalar variable.

LISTING destination

an ODS destination that produces traditional SAS output (monospace format). See also ODS destination.

LISTING output

SAS procedure output that is in a monospace font. All text in listing output has the same font size, and no special font styles are applied to it.

literal

a number or a character string that indicates a fixed value. See also numeric constant.

little endian

a byte ordering in which lower-significance bytes are written to lower storage addresses in computer memory than are higher-significance bytes. In the SAS System, the following platforms are considered little endian: OpenVMS Alpha, Digital UNIX, Intel ABI, and Windows. See also big endian.

load library

an external file that contains load modules. These can be modules that are supplied by SAS, or they could be compiled and linked by other sources. See also format library, load module.

load module

a complete machine-level program in a form that is ready to be loaded into main memory and executed.

local macro variable

a macro variable that is available only within the macro in which it was created and within macros that are invoked from within that macro. A local macro variable ceases to exist when the macro that created it stops executing. See also global macro variable.

local scope

in SAS macro programming, indicates narrowed context boundaries for referencing local macro variables within the current macro. See also global scope.

locale

a setting that reflects the language, local conventions, and culture for a geographic region. Local conventions can include specific formatting rules for paper sizes, dates, times, and numbers, and a currency symbol for the country or region. Some examples of locale values are French_Canada, Portuguese_Brazil, and Chinese_Singapore.

localization (L10N)

the process of adapting software for a particular geocultural region (locale). Translation of the user interface, system messages, and documentation is a large part of the localization process. See also internationalization.

loess plot

a curved line showing a loess fit for a set of points.

log

See SAS log.

log axis

an axis displaying a logarithmic scale. A log axis is useful when data values span orders of magnitude.

logical data model

a framework into which engines fit information for processing by SAS. This data model is a logical representation of data or files, not a physical structure.

logical expression

a type of macro expression that consists of a sequence of logical operators and operands. A logical expression returns a value of either true or false when it is executed.

logical name

a reference to a SAS library or an operating environment resource whose representation varies according to the operating environment. Examples are the SAS library named Work and an output device such as a disk or a tape file.

logical operator

an operator that is used in expressions to link sequences of comparisons. The logical operators are AND, OR, and NOT.

logical page

in the TABULATE procedure, all of the rows and columns that are defined by a TABLE statement. A logical page can contain more rows and columns than can fit on one physical page. If the logical page has to be broken into parts, then each part is printed on a separate physical page. When the logical pages are short, you can print several of them on one page by using the CONDENSE option.

logical record length

the number of bytes in a unit of information that consists of related data such as a line in an external file or a SAS observation. Default values for the logical record lengths depend on the operating environment.

logical row

a row of fields or objects that is repeated in an extended table. See also extended table.

logogram

a visual symbol that represents a word or morpheme rather than a speech sound. An example of a logogram in the Chinese language is 山 for the word "mountain".

longitude

used with maps, the angular measure between the reference meridian and the plane intersecting both poles and a point. The reference meridian, called the prime meridian, is assigned a longitude of 0, and other longitude values are measured from there in appropriate angular units (degrees or radians, for example).

lookup data set

a data set that contains information that is used for additional validation of input values in fields that can use a lookup data set.

lookup file

an auxiliary file that is maintained separately from the primary file and that is referenced for one or more of the observations of the primary file. A set of SAS statements can provide values that serve as the lookup file. The values of format tables also serve as lookup files. See also primary file.

lookup result

in table lookup applications, the auxiliary information obtained using the key or keys as a reference into the lookup file.

lookup table

a table that contains lookup keys and their corresponding values. See also automatic lookup.

macro

a SAS catalog entry that contains a group of compiled program statements and stored text.

macro call (macro invocation)

a statement that invokes a stored compiled macro program.

macro compilation

the process of converting a macro definition from the statements that you enter to a form that is ready for the macro processor to execute. The compiled macro is then stored for later use in the SAS program or session.

macro execution

the process of following the instructions that are given by compiled macro program statements in order to generate text, to write messages to the SAS log, to accept input, to create or change the values of macro variables, or to perform other activities. The generated text can be a SAS statement, a SAS command, or another macro program statement.

macro expression

any valid combination of symbols that returns a value when it is executed. The three types of macro expressions are text, logical, and arithmetic. A text expression generates text when it is resolved (executed) and can consist of any combination of text, macro variables, macro functions, and macro calls. A logical expression consists of logical operators and operands and returns a value of either true or false. An arithmetic expression consists of arithmetic operators and operands and returns a numeric value.

macro facility

a component of SAS software that you can use for extending and customizing SAS programs and for reducing the amount of text that must be entered in order to perform common tasks. The macro facility consists of the macro processor and the macro programming language.

macro function

a function that is defined by the macro facility. Each macro function processes one or more arguments and produces a result.

macro invocation

See macro call.

macro language

the programming language that is used to communicate with the macro processor.

macro parameter

a local macro variable that is defined within parentheses in a %MACRO statement. You supply values to a macro parameter when you invoke a macro.

macro processor

the component of SAS software that compiles and executes macros and macro program statements.

macro quoting

a function that tells the macro processor to interpret special characters and mnemonics as text rather than as part of the macro language. See also quoting.

macro variable (symbolic variable)

a variable that is part of the SAS macro programming language. The value of a macro variable is a string that remains constant until you change it.

macro variable reference

a string that contains the name of a macro variable that is referenced in order to substitute a value that is located or defined elsewhere.

main memory

an area that a central processing unit (CPU) can access rapidly and from which it executes instructions and operates on data.

major axis

in the graphics editor, the longest axis of a graphics object.

major tick mark

one of a series of points on an axis that mark the major divisions of the axis scale.

mantissa (significand)

a portion of the representation of a number. Scientific notation, Ew.d format, and floating-point processors in computers all represent a number in terms of a mantissa, exponent, and base, where number=mantissa * (base**exponent).

map

a graphic representation of an area. The area is often a geographic area, but it can also be any other area of any size. See also device map, key map.

map area

See unit area.

map data set

a data set provided by SAS that contains variables whose values are coordinates that define the boundaries of map areas, such as a state or country.

mapping

the process of displaying data values on a map.

marker

a symbol such as a diamond, a circle, or a triangle that is used to indicate the location of, or annotate, a data point in a plot or graph.

marker property

a value that defines the symbol used as a marker, or its size, weight, or color. By default, the value for a marker property is derived from a style element in the current style. See also attribute bundle.

markup family

See ODS markup family.

markup language

a set of codes that are embedded in text in order to define layout and certain content.

master data set

in an update operation, the data set that contains the information that you want to update. See also transaction data set.

match-merging

a process in which SAS joins observations from two or more SAS data sets according to the values of the BY variables. See also one-to-one merging.

matching observations

in the COMPARE procedure, observations that have the same values for all ID variables that you specify. If you do not use the ID statement, then matching observations are observations that occur in the same position in the data sets that are being compared.

matching variables

in the COMPARE procedure, variables that have the same name, or variables that you explicitly pair by using the VAR and WITH statements.

MBCS

See multi-byte character set.

MDDB

See multidimensional database.

measured RTF

a tagset that enables users to specify how and where page breaks occur in RTF documents and when to place titles and footnotes into the body of a page.

megabyte

2 to the 20th power, or 1,048,576 (approximately 1 million) bytes. See also gigabyte, kilobyte, terabyte.

member name

a name that is assigned to a SAS file in a SAS library. See also member type.

member type

a SAS name that identifies the type of information that is stored in a SAS file. Member types include ACCESS, AUDIT, DMBD, DATA, CATALOG, FDB, INDEX, ITEMSTOR, MDDB, PROGRAM, UTILITY, and VIEW.

member-level access

a type of access to a SAS library that permits only one user to use a member (such as a SAS data set) at a time. See also record-level access.

memory

the size of the work area that the central processing unit (CPU) must devote to the operations in a program.

memory variable

within an ODS event, an area of memory that contains numeric data, character data, or lists of numeric or character data. A memory variable can be classified as a dictionary variable if it is created with a subscript that contains a key, or a list variable if it is created with a subscript that is empty or contains an index. If you do not specify a key or an index, then the memory variable is a numeric or character scalar variable, depending on the variable's value. See also dictionary variable, list variable, scalar variable, ODS event.

menu

a window object that presents choices to users. In SAS software, menus include menu bars, pull-down menus, block menus, and selection lists.

merging

the process of combining observations from two or more SAS data sets into a single observation in a new SAS data set. See also match-merging, one-to-one merging.

meridian

an imaginary circle of constant longitude around the surface of the earth perpendicular to the equator. See also parallel.

message area

the area in a window that displays messages from SAS.

metadata

descriptive data about data that is stored and managed in a database, in order to facilitate access to captured and archived data for further use.

metadata LIBNAME engine

the SAS engine that processes and augments data that is identified by metadata. The metadata engine retrieves information about a target SAS library from metadata objects in a specified metadata repository.

metadata object

a set of attributes that describe a table, a server, a user, or another resource on a network. The specific attributes that a metadata object includes vary depending on which metadata model is being used.

metadata repository

a collection of related metadata objects, such as the metadata for a set of tables and columns that are maintained by an application.

metadata server

a server that provides metadata management services to one or more client applications.

metadata-bound library

a physical SAS library that is tied to a corresponding secured library object. All access from SAS to a metadata-bound library is subject to the requesting user’s effective permissions on the corresponding metadata object.

metadata-bound table

a physical SAS data set (a table or view) that is tied to a corresponding secured table object. All access from SAS to a metadata-bound table is subject to the requesting user’s effective permissions on the corresponding metadata object.

metafile

a file, produced by the Metagraphics facility internal driver, that contains device-independent graphics commands in a special format. A user-written external driver routine is required to read and process the metafile.

Metagraphics driver

a type of SAS/GRAPH device driver that can be written by users. A Metagraphics driver consists of an internal driver (supplied with SAS/GRAPH software), which writes a metafile in a special format, and an external driver (written by the user), which decodes the metafile and writes device-specific commands.

midpoint

a value that represents the middle of a range of data values.

minor axis

in the graphics editor, the shortest axis of a graphics object.

minor tick mark

one of a series of points that fall between major tick marks on an axis scale.

missing value

a type of value for a variable that contains no data for a particular row or column. By default, SAS writes a missing numeric value as a single period and a missing character value as a blank space. See also null value.

mnemonic operator

an arithmetic or logical (Boolean) operator that consists of letters rather than symbols (for example, EQ rather than =).

mode

the most frequent value of a variable.

mode of execution

a method of executing or interacting with SAS software, which can include noninteractive mode, batch mode, interactive mode (using the SAS windowing environment or other graphical user interfaces), and interactive line mode.

model text

See constant text.

modified list input

a style of input that uses special instructions called informats and format modifiers in the INPUT statement. Modified list input scans input records for data values that are separated by at least one blank (or by some other delimiter), or in some cases, by multiple blanks.

moving average

an average of a specified number of consecutive values that move according to the current observation.

multi-byte character set (MBCS)

a character set that requires a variable-width encoding because many characters occupy more than one byte of memory. DBCS and MBCS are sometimes used interchangeably, but MBCS is more accurate for describing the character sets of languages such as Japanese, Korean, and Chinese. See also single-byte character set, double-byte character set.

multi-cell layout

a layout that supports a rectangular grid of cells, each of which can contain a graphical element, such as a plot, a legend, a nested layout, and so on.

multi-panel report

output that uses sets of columns on a page to display the values of variables. For example, telephone books are usually arranged in multiple panels of names, addresses, and telephone numbers on a single page.

multidimensional array

a grouping of variables of the same data type under a single name, with at least two dimensions. When processed, this grouping of variables produces results in columns, rows, and, depending on the array, higher dimensions. See also one-dimensional array, two-dimensional array.

multidimensional database (MDDB)

a specialized data storage structure in which data is presummarized and cross-tabulated and then stored as individual cells in a matrix format, rather than in the row-and-column format of relational database tables. The source data can come either from a data warehouse or from other data sources. MDDBs can give users quick, unlimited views of multiple relationships in large quantities of summarized data. See also cube.

multitasking

the ability of an operating system to execute more than one application (or multiple instances of the same application) at the same time, using a single central processing unit. Individual tasks within the applications are scheduled so that the applications appear to be running at the same time and so that the applications do not interfere with each other. Almost all operating systems are capable of multitasking.

MultiVendor Architecture™ (MVA™)

the strategy on which the SAS System is based, where approximately 70% of the code is portable (that is, reusable) on any host (the application layer). The remaining code is divided between core and host code layers, and is largely rewritten on each platform that SAS is released on. MVA SAS applications that are developed using the SAS System are host-independent, and they require the SAS System to be installed in order to execute.

MVA™

See MultiVendor Architecture™.

name literal

a name token that is expressed as a string within quotation marks, followed by the uppercase or lowercase letter n. Name literals enable you to use special characters (including blanks) that are not otherwise allowed in SAS names when you specify a SAS data set or a variable. Blanks between the closing quotation mark and the n are not valid if you specify a name literal. When the name literal of a data set or variable contains any characters that are not allowed when VALIDVARNAME=V7, you must set the VALIDVARNAME= system option to ANY. Although you set the system option to ANY, note that the V6 engine does not support names that have intervening blanks.

name-style macro

a macro that is named and defined with the %MACRO statement. See also command-style macro, statement-style macro.

named input

a style in which equal signs appear in the INPUT statement to read data values in the form variable=data-value.

named output

a style in which equal signs appear in the PUT statement to write variable values in the form variable=data-value.

national character

a character that is specific to a language as it is written in a nation or group of nations. For example, the letter “n” with a tilde (ñ) is a Spanish national character.

national language support (NLS)

the set of features that enable a software product to function properly in every global market for which the product is targeted.

native file format

a relative term that compares the internal data representation of a file with that of an operating environment. If the internal formats are the same, the file format is considered to be native to the operating environment. For example, the format of a file that is created in a Windows operating environment is considered to be native to Windows operating environments. See also foreign file format.

native library engine

a SAS engine that accesses types of SAS files that are created and processed only by SAS. See also engine, interface library engine.

native view

a SAS data view that is created either with a DATA step or with PROC SQL.

natural join

a type of join that returns selected rows from tables in which one or more columns in each table have the same name and the same data type and contain the same value. See also join.

needle plot

a plot in which data points are connected by a vertical line that connects to a horizontal baseline. The baseline intersects the 0 value, or the minimum value on the vertical axis.

nested layout

a layout block that appears within the scope of another layout block.

nibble

half a byte, or 4 bits (binary digits).

NLS

See national language support.

node

a connection point between two or more links. In a node/link diagram, nodes are typically represented as a box and enable you to access information and possibly to traverse the graph by drilling up or down in the structure.

noninteractive mode (noninteractive processing)

a method of running SAS programs in which you prepare a file of SAS statements and submit the program to the operating system. The program runs immediately and comprises your current session.

noninteractive processing

See noninteractive mode.

normal probability plot

a plot that compares the distribution of input data with the normal distribution. In the UNIVARIATE procedure, asterisks (*) represent the input data, and plus signs (+) form the reference line.

normalization

in the analysis of test scores, the process of converting each set of original scores to some standard scale. One method that is commonly used is to determine percentiles of the scores and then to express them as corresponding deviations from the mean of a normal distribution.

null statement

a statement that consists of a single semicolon or four semicolons. The null statement is most commonly used to designate the end of instream data in a DATA step.

null value

a special value that indicates the absence of information. Null values are analogous to SAS missing values. See also missing value.

numeric constant

a number that appears in a SAS expression. See also literal.

numeric format

a set of instructions that tell SAS to use a specific pattern for writing the values of numeric variables.

numeric informat

a set of instructions that tell SAS to use a specific pattern for reading numeric data values.

numeric value

a value that usually contains only numbers, which can include numbers in E-notation and hexadecimal notation. A numeric value can sometimes contain a decimal point, a plus sign, or a minus sign. Numeric values are stored in numeric variables.

numeric variable

a variable that contains only numeric values and related symbols, such as decimal points, plus signs, and minus signs.

observation

a row in a SAS data set. All of the data values in an observation are associated with a single entity such as a customer or a state. Each observation contains either one data value or a missing-value indicator for each variable.

observation number

a number that indicates the relative position of an observation in a SAS data set when you read the entire data set sequentially. This number is not stored internally.

ODS

See Output Delivery System.

ODS destination (destination)

a designation that the Output Delivery System uses to generate a specific type of output. Types of ODS destinations include but are not limited to HTML, XML, listing, PostScript, RTF, and SAS data sets.

ODS document

a hierarchy of output objects created by the DOCUMENT procedure. These objects are in an unformatted form and are placed in a SAS item store. See also item store, output object.

ODS document path

the location of an entry within an ODS document. See also ODS document, ODS entry.

ODS entry

an item in an ODS document. An ODS entry can be either a link, an output object, a file, or a partitioned data set.

ODS event

within a tagset definition, an action that causes output to be generated. Events are usually triggered by SAS but can also be triggered by other events.

ODS Graphics

an extension to ODS that is used to create analytical graphs using the Graph Template Language.

ODS markup family (markup family)

a group of ODS statements that produce SAS output that is formatted using a markup language such as HTML (HyperText Markup Language), XML (Extensible Markup Language), and LaTeX. SAS supplies many markup languages for you to use, ranging from DOCBOOK to TROFF. You can specify a markup language that SAS supplies, or you can create one of your own and store it as a user-defined markup language. See also ODS destination, ODS printer family.

ODS output

formatted output that is generated by any of the ODS destinations. For example, the OUTPUT destination produces SAS data sets, the LISTING destination produces listing output, and the HTML destination produces output that is formatted in Hypertext Markup Language.

ODS package

a container for information or digital content that is generated or collected for delivery to a consumer. ODS packages allow ODS destinations to use the SAS Publishing Framework.

ODS printer family (printer family)

a group of ODS statements that produce output in a format such as PostScript (PS), PDF, or PCL that is suitable for printing on a high-resolution printer.

ODS style (style)

a combination of colors, fonts, lines, marker symbols, and so on that provide a specific appearance for SAS output. A style is defined in ODS by a style template.

ODS table

a table that is created with an IMSTAT procedure statement with the SAVE= option. The contents of the table resemble ODS output and are commonly used with the STORE statement. This enables the ODS output from one statement to be used as input for another statement.

ODS template (graphics template)

a description of how output should appear when it is formatted. ODS templates are stored as compiled entries in a template store (item store). Common template types include STATGRAPH, STYLE, CROSSTABS, TAGSET, and TABLE.

ODS-5

See On-Disk Structure Level 5.

offset

the distance between a graphics object's original position and its new position when it is moved. Offsets can be specified for legends, axes, an entire graph, or other graphics object.

oldest version

the oldest historical version of a data set in a generation group. See also generation group.

On-Disk Structure Level 5 (ODS-5)

a file system structure that is implemented by OpenVMS Alpha for Itanium servers. ODS-5 allows longer file names, supports more legal characters within file names, preserves case within file names, supports deeper directory structures, and provides better compatibility with other file systems such as those used with UNIX or Windows.

one-dimensional array

a grouping of variables of the same type under a single name. When processed, this grouping of variables produces results that can be presented in simple column format. See also multidimensional array, two-dimensional array.

one-to-one matching

the process of combining observations from two or more data sets into one observation, using two or more SET statements to read observations independently from each data set. See also match-merging.

one-to-one merging

the process of using the MERGE statement (without a BY statement) to combine observations from two or more data sets based on the observations' positions in the data sets. See also match-merging.

opaque

a property of a background. Opaque backgrounds are filled with a color. Non-opaque backgrounds are transparent.

open code

the part of a SAS program that is outside any macro definition.

operand

any of the variables and constants in an expression that contain operators, variables, and constants.

operating environment

a computer, or a logical partition of a computer, and the resources (such as an operating system and other software and hardware) that are available to the computer or partition.

operating system data set

a collection of information that IBM mainframe operating systems such as z/OS and OS/390 can identify and manage as a unit. IBM operating system data sets correspond to files under other operating systems. Partitioned data sets (PDSs), sequential data sets, and VSAM data sets are some types of data sets that are supported in IBM mainframe environments. By contrast, SAS data sets are managed by SAS software, not by any operating system, although they can be stored as members of partitioned data sets or in sequential data sets on IBM mainframes. See also partitioned data set, SAS data set.

operator

See SAS operator.

order variable

in the REPORT procedure, a variable that orders the detail rows in a report according to their formatted values. A report that contains one or more order variables has a detail row for every observation in the data set.

origin

in a three-dimensional graph, the point at which the X, Y, and Z axes intersect. In a two-dimensional graph, the point at which the X and Y axes intersect.

OSIRIS engine

the SAS engine that provides read-only access to OSIRIS data files and dictionary files.

outer join

a join between two tables that returns all of the rows in one table, as well as part or all of the rows in the other table. A left or right outer join returns all of the rows in one table (the table on the left or right side of the SQL statement, respectively), as well as the matching rows in the other table. A full outer join returns all of the rows in both of the tables. See also join.

outlier

a data point that differs from the general trend of the data by more than is expected by chance alone. An outlier might be an erroneous data point or one that is not from the same sampling model as the rest of the data.

output buffer

in the DATA step, the area of memory that a PUT statement writes to before it writes to a designated file or output device.

Output Delivery System (ODS)

a component of SAS software that can produce output in a variety of formats such as markup languages (HTML, XML), PDF, listing, RTF, PostScript, and SAS data sets.

output object

a programming object that contains the data that is generated by a DATA step or a PROC step and which can also contain a table definition that provides information about how to format that data.

overhead

in benchmarking, the additional resources that are used to move a component of SAS software (such as a procedure) into main memory the first time a program uses that component.

overlay

a plot that can be superimposed on another plot when specified within an overlay-type layout. A common overlay combination is a fit line on a scatter plot.

overlay layout

a type of layout that supports the superimposition of graphical components, such as plots, legends, and nested layouts.

overprint character

the character that is printed when two or more plotting symbols have the same print position. In most procedures, the default overprint character is the at sign (@).

packed decimal data

a method of encoding decimal numbers in which each byte represents two decimal digits. See also zoned decimal data.

pad character

a special character that is displayed for each character of an empty input field. By default, the pad character is an underscore (_).

padding a value with blanks

in SAS software, a process in which the software adds blanks to the end of a character value that is shorter than the length of the variable.

page dimension

in the TABULATE procedure, the combination of variables, variable values, and statistics that determine the number and arrangement of pages in the table. See also dimension expression.

page expression

in the TABULATE procedure, the part of the TABLE statement that determines the content and appearance of the page dimension by specifying the combination of variables, variable values, and statistics that make up that dimension. See also column expression, row expression.

page size

the number of bytes of data that SAS moves between external storage and memory in one input/output operation. Page size is analogous to buffer size for SAS data sets.

parallel

an imaginary circle of constant latitude around the surface of the earth parallel to the equator. See also meridian.

parallel execution

See parallel processing.

parallel I/O

a method of input and output that takes advantage of multiple CPUs and multiple controllers, with multiple disks per controller to read or write data in independent threads.

parallel processing (parallel execution)

a method of processing that divides a large job into multiple smaller jobs that can be executed simultaneously on multiple CPUs. See also threading.

parameterized plot

a non-computed plot that requires parameterized data. The Graph Template Language offers several plots in both computed and parameterized versions, for example, BARCHART and BARCHARTPARM. Some computed plots such as REGRESSIONPLOT can be emulated with a SERIESPLOT if the input data represented points on a fit line.

parent block

when two or more blocks are nested, any layout block that contains one or more layout blocks is a parent of the contained blocks.

parent entry

the CBT entry that called the current CBT entry.

partition

part or all of a logical file that spans devices or directories. A partition is one physical file. Data files, index files, and metadata files can all be partitioned, resulting in data partitions, index partitions, and metadata partitions, respectively. Partitioning a file can improve performance for very large tables. See also data partition, partitioned data set.

partitioned data set

in the SPD engine, a data set whose data is stored in multiple physical files (partitions) so that it can span storage devices. One or more partitions can be read in parallel by using threads, which improves the speed of I/O and processing for very large data sets. See also parallel processing.

pass-through facility

See SQL pass-through facility.

paste buffer

a temporary storage location that holds text that is stored with the STORE or CUT command. The contents of the paste buffer remain in effect only for the current SAS session.

pattern type

in SAS/GRAPH software, the set of fill patterns that are valid for a particular type of graph. The PATTERN statement supports three pattern types: bar and block patterns, map and plot patterns, and pie and star patterns.

pause indicator

in CBT entries, a line that indicates that a frame should pause. Additional information is displayed when a user presses the ENTER key. This line is designated by three at signs (@) in columns 1-3.

PCL

See Printer Command Language.

PCTN

a statistic that provides the percentage of the frequency in a single cell to a total frequency. The total frequency that is used for computing the percentage is defined by the denominator definition that follows the PCTN statistic.

PCTSUM

a statistic that provides the percentage of the sum in a single cell to another total. The total that is used for computing the percentage is defined by the denominator definition that follows the PCTSUM statistic. This statistic can be requested only for analysis variables.

PDS

in the SPD engine, a data set whose data is stored in multiple physical files (partitions) so that it can span storage devices. One or more partitions can be read in parallel by using threads, which improves the speed of I/O and processing for very large data sets. See also parallel processing.

PDV

See program data vector.

performance statistics

data that contains measurements of the amount of resources a program uses when it is compiled and executed.

permanent SAS data set

a SAS data set that is not deleted after the current program or interactive SAS session ends. Permanent SAS data sets are available for future SAS sessions.

permanent SAS file

a file in a SAS library that is not deleted when the SAS session or job terminates.

permanent SAS library

a SAS library that is not deleted when a SAS session ends, and which is therefore available to subsequent SAS sessions. See also libref.

PF key

See function key.

physical filename

the name that an operating system uses to identify a file.

physical order

the order in which data records or observations appear in their storage structure.

physical page

in the TABULATE procedure, the portion of a table that is formatted to print on a single sheet of paper or a single display. A physical page and a logical page may be the same, or a physical page may not contain the entire logical page, or it may contain several logical pages if the CONDENSE option is specified.

picture

in the FORMAT procedure, a template for printing the values of numeric variables.

picture format

in the FORMAT procedure, a user-defined format for displaying numeric values. Picture formats are defined with the PICTURE statement.

pie chart

a circular chart that is divided into slices by radial lines. Each slice represents the relative contribution of each part to the whole.

pixel

an element of an electronic image. A pixel is the smallest element on a display that can be assigned a separate color.

platform

the operating environment (including both the operating system and the computer hardware) in which a program runs.

plot

a visual representation of data such as a scatter plot, needle plot, or contour plot.

plot area

the space, bounded by the axes, where a visual representation of data, such as a scatter plot, a series line, or a histogram, is drawn.

plot line

the line joining the data points in a plot.

plot type

a plot family such as bar chart (which would include horizontal, vertical, and grouped bar charts), or a classification scheme for plots based on some useful criteria, such as whether the plots are computed or parameterized.

plotter

a class of graphics devices that typically use pens to draw hard-copy output.

plotting symbol

a character that is used to plot the values of plotting variables. By default, the TIMEPLOT procedure uses the first character of the variable name as the plotting symbol.

plotting variable

a numeric variable that can be specified in a PLOT statement.

PMENU entry

a type of catalog entry that contains definitions for pull-down menus, menu bars, and dialog boxes created by the PMENU procedure.

PMENU facility

a menu system in SAS that is used instead of the command line as a way to execute commands. The PMENU facility consists of a menu bar, pull-down menus, and dialog boxes.

PNG

See Portable Network Graphic.

pointer

in the DATA step, a programming tool that SAS uses to keep track of its position in the input or output buffer.

pointer control

the process of instructing SAS to move the pointer before reading or writing data.

polygon font

a SAS/GRAPH font in which the characters are drawn with enclosed areas that can be either filled or empty. See also stroked font.

polyline

in SAS/GRAPH software, a graphics object composed of connected line segments that might have attributes. A polyline is not a closed object; therefore, it cannot be filled with a pattern.

portable

an attribute of a program that enables it to execute in an operating environment other than the one for which it was written.

Portable Network Graphic (PNG)

a file format that returns the graphical output in separate files and that produces a non-interactive image. This format is similar to the GIF format, but has additional features, such as support for true-color images and better compression.

positional parameter

a type of macro parameter that is named (using comma delimiters) in the %MACRO statement at invocation, and is defined in the corresponding position (again using comma delimiters) in the macro execution statement. See also keyword parameter.

PostScript

a device-independent page description language for printing high-resolution integrated text and graphics.

precision

See data precision.

predefined color

one of the set of colors for which SAS/GRAPH software defines and recognizes names (for example, BLACK, BLUE, and CYAN).

prefix operator

an operator that is applied to the variable, constant, function, or parenthetical expression that immediately follows it (for example, the minus sign in -6*a).

primary axis

the X or Y axis contrasted to the X2 or Y2 secondary axis.

primary file

in table lookup applications, the file for which you want to obtain auxiliary information. See also lookup file.

primary key integrity constraint

a type of general integrity constraint that requires that the specified variable(s) contain unique data values and which does not allow null data values. A data file can contain only one primary key. If the primary key integrity constraint in one data file is referenced by a foreign key integrity constraint in another file, then the primary key integrity constraint is a referential integrity constraint. See also general integrity constraint, referential integrity constraint.

primary path

the location in which metadata files are stored, and the default location for other component files. Typically, the other component files (data files and index files) are stored in separate storage paths in order to take advantage of the performance boost of multiple CPUs.

primary plot

the plot in an overlay that determines axis features, such as axis type and axis label.

print file

an external file that contains carriage-control (printer-control) information. See also carriage-control character, external file.

Printer Command Language (PCL)

a command language that was developed by Hewlett-Packard for controlling Hewlett-Packard printers. Each PCL command consists of an escape key followed by a series of code numbers. Different versions of PCL have been developed for use with different models or types of Hewlett-Packard printers.

printer family

See ODS printer family.

prism map

a three-dimensional map that uses prisms (polyhedrons with two parallel surfaces) of varying height to indicate the ordinal magnitude of a response variable.

PROC SQL view

a SAS data set that is created by the SQL procedure. A PROC SQL view contains no data. Instead, it stores information that enables it to read data values from other files, which can include SAS data files, SAS/ACCESS views, DATA step views, or other PROC SQL views. The output of a PROC SQL view can be either a subset or a superset of one or more files.

PROC step

a group of SAS statements that call and execute a SAS procedure. A PROC step usually takes a SAS data set as input.

procedure

See SAS procedure.

procedure output area

the portion of the graphics output area where the output from a graphics procedure is displayed. See also graphics output area, data area.

procedure output file

an external file that contains the result of the analysis that a SAS procedure performs or the report that the procedure produces. Most SAS procedures write output to the procedure output file by default. Reports that are produced by SAS DATA steps, using PUT statements and a FILE statement along with a PRINT destination, also go to this file. See also external file, DATA step.

Profile catalog

See Sasuser.Profile catalog.

program compilation (compilation)

the process of checking syntax and translating a portion of a program into a form that the computer can execute.

program data vector (PDV)

the temporary area of computer memory in which SAS builds a SAS data set, one observation at a time. The program data vector is a logical concept and does not necessarily correspond to a single contiguous area of memory.

programming error

a flaw in the logic of a SAS program that can cause the program to fail or to perform differently than the programmer intended. See also data error, syntax error.

projection

a two-dimensional map representation of unit areas on the surface of a sphere (for example, geographic regions on the surface of the Earth).

prompt character

a character sent by the host computer to a device to signal that the host has finished transmitting data and is ready for a response from the device.

PROMPT facility

in the REPORT procedure, a tool that is implemented through the PROMPTER window. The facility prompts you for information as you add either data set variables or statistics to a report. It steps you through the most commonly used parts of the windows that you would use to add the variables to a report if you were not using the PROMPT facility. The PROMPTER window provides more guidance than the other windows provide.

propagation of missing values

a consequence of using missing values in which a missing value in an arithmetic expression causes SAS to set the result of the expression to missing. Using that result in another expression causes the next result to be missing, and so on.

protected field

a field to which users cannot tab and in which they cannot alter values.

protocol

a set of rules that govern data communications between computers, between computers and peripheral devices, and between software applications. TCP/IP, FTP, and HTTP are examples of protocols.

prototype layout

an overlay plot composite that appears in each cell of a classification panel. Each instance of the prototype represents a different subset (classification level) of the data.

Publishing Framework

a component of SAS Integration Technologies that enables both users and applications to publish SAS files (including data sets, catalogs, and database views), and other digital content to a variety of destinations. The Publishing Framework also provides tools that enable both users and applications to receive and process published information.

quantile

any of the points or values that divide data into groups that contain equal numbers of observations, or any of those groups. Quartiles, quintiles, and percentiles are all examples of quantiles.

query

a set of instructions that requests particular information from one or more data sources.

query expression

in PROC SQL, a SELECT statement that references at least one table and, when executed, creates a temporary table that exists only during the execution of the statement. You can combine the results of multiple table expressions with set operators to create a query expression.

quintile

any of the four points that divide the values of a variable into five groups of equal frequency, or any of those groups.

quoting

the process that causes the macro processor to read certain items as text rather than as symbols in the macro language. Quoting is also called removing the significance of an item and treating an item as text.

quoting function

a macro language function that performs quoting on its argument.

radar chart

a chart that shows the relative frequency of data measures with statistics displayed along spokes that radiate from the center of the chart. The charts are often stacked on top of one another with circular reference lines, thus giving them the appearance of a radar screen. Variations of the radar chart have names based on what they look like; these include star charts, spider charts, wind rose charts, and calendar charts.

radix point

in a positional notation system, a symbol that separates the characters of the integral part of a number from those of the fractional part. For example, in the decimal system, the radix point is called the decimal point.

RAID (redundant array of independent disks)

a type of interleaved storage system that comprises multiple disks to store large amounts of data inexpensively. RAIDs can have several levels. For example, a level-0 RAID combines two or more hard drives into one logical disk drive. Various RAID levels provide differing amounts of redundancy and storage capability. Also, because the same data is stored in different places, I/O operations can overlap, which can result in improved performance. See also redundancy.

random access

in the SAS data model, a pattern of access by which SAS processes observations according to the value of some indicator variable, rather than processing all observations sequentially.

ranking

the process of ordering observations according to values of particular variables.

rasterizer

a device that accepts commands (such as moves and draws) as input and that converts those commands into a bit-map. Rasterizers are connected between host computers and graphics output devices that require bitmapped input.

raw data

in statistical analysis, data (including data in SAS data sets) that has not had a particular operation, such as standardization, performed on it.

raw data file

an external file whose records contain data values in fields. A DATA step can read a raw data file by using the INFILE and INPUT statements.

RDBMS

See relational database management system.

record-level access

a type of access to a SAS data set or other file that permits more than one user to access the SAS data set or file at a time. Only one user can use a single observation or record of the file at a time, but other users can access other observations or records in the same file. See also member-level access.

recursive execution

in the macro facility, a process that occurs when a macro invokes itself or when it invokes another macro that invokes the original macro.

redundancy

a characteristic of computing systems in which multiple interchangeable components are provided in order to minimize the effects of failures, errors, or both. For example, if data is stored redundantly (in a RAID, for example), then if one disk is lost, the data is still available on another disk.

redundant array of independent disks

See RAID.

reference line

a vertical line on a plot that indicate whether the values of plotting variables are less than, greater than, or equal to a particular value.

referential integrity constraint

an integrity constraint that is created when a primary key integrity constraint in one data file is referenced by a foreign key integrity constraint in another data file. The foreign key integrity constraint links the data values of one or more variables in the foreign key data file to corresponding variables and values in the primary key data file. See also foreign key integrity constraint, general integrity constraint.

regression analysis

an analysis that models a dependent (or response) variable as a function of one or more independent (or predictor) variables. The regression line, which is the set of predictions from the model, appears as a line or curve in a plot of the dependent variable against an independent variable.

regression plot

a straight or curved line showing a linear or higher order regression fit for a set of points.

relational database management system (RDBMS)

a database management system that organizes and accesses data according to relationships between data items. The main characteristic of a relational database management system is the two-dimensional table. Examples of relational database management systems are DB2, Oracle, Sybase, and Microsoft SQL Server.

relative coordinate

a coordinate that is measured from a point other than the origin. In the Annotate facility, this point is usually the endpoint of the last graphics element that was drawn.

replay

in ODS, the regeneration of output by the DOCUMENT procedure, in the same or different format, without rerunning analyses or data queries.

replay

in SAS/GRAPH software, to display graphics output that is stored in a catalog entry using the GREPLAY procedure.

report break

in the REPORT procedure, a break at the beginning or end of a report. See also break.

report variable

in the REPORT procedure, a variable that constitutes one or more columns of the report. The variable might or might not appear in one or more code segments. You can suppress the display of a report variable with the NOPRINT option or the NOZERO option in the DEFINITION window or in the DEFINE statement.

required argument

a variable or constant that must be specified in order to evaluate an expression or render a plot, legend, text, or a layout. For example, a scatter plot has two required arguments: X=column and Y=column.

reserved word

a name that is reserved for use by an internal component of a software application and which therefore cannot be assigned by a user of that application to any type of data object.

Resource Measurement Facility (RMF)

a feature of the z/OS and OS/390 operating systems that records information about each job that is processed.

response data set

a SAS data set used by the GMAP procedure that contains data values associated with map areas and one or more identification variables. See also identification variable, response variable.

response levels

the individual values or ranges of values into which the GMAP or GCHART procedure divides the response variable. See also midpoint.

response value

any value of a response variable that the GMAP procedure represents on a map as different pattern/color combinations, or as raised map areas (prisms), spikes, or blocks of different heights. The GCHART procedure represents response values as bars, slices, spines, or blocks. See also midpoint.

response variable

in the GMAP procedure, a variable in the response data set that contains data values that are associated with a map area. See also chart variable, response data set, response levels, target variable.

return code

a numeric value that indicates whether a request was successful. A return code can also indicate a specific error or warning.

returned value

a value that is the result of the execution of a function.

RGB color model

a color-coding scheme that specifies a color in terms of amounts of red, green, and blue components.

RGBA color space

a color-coding scheme that specifies a color in terms of amounts of red, green, and blue components, along with an alpha channel that controls the color opacity. See also RGB color model.

RMF

See Resource Measurement Facility.

role

a description of the purpose that a variable serves in a plot. For example, a series plot has predefined roles named for X , Y, GROUP, and CURVELABEL.

root file location

the top level of a file location in an ODS document. A root file location is not contained within another file location and does not have a name assigned to it. A root file location is similar to the root directory of a Windows operating environment. See also ODS document.

row

See layout row.

row axis

an external axis appearing on the left or right of a row of cells in a multi-cell layout.

row dimension

in the TABULATE procedure, the combination of variables, variable values, and statistics that determine the number and arrangement of rows in the table. See also dimension expression.

row expression

in the TABULATE procedure, the part of the TABLE statement that determines the content and appearance of the row dimension by specifying the combination of variables, variable values, and statistics that make up that dimension. See also column expression, page expression.

row gutter

space between rows of cells of a multi-cell layout.

row header

typically, the text that identifies the row contents in a multi-cell layout. This text can be aligned to the right or left of the cells in a row. The row header is not restricted to text (it can contain a plot or a legend, for example).

row major order

an order for populating cells of a layout or entries of a legend when the number of columns is specified. For example, in the default case: Start at the top left and fill cells or entries left-to-right. When the right-most column is filled, begin a new row below the previous row. Continue this until all content items have been placed in cells or entries. There might be empty cells/entries in the last row.

row percentage

the ratio of a sum or a frequency count for a single cell of a table to the total sum or frequency count for the row that contains that cell. This ratio is represented as a percentage.

row title space (RTS)

the amount of space that is allotted for printing all of the headings for the row dimension of a table as well as two outlining characters. This space is divided equally among all levels of headings for the row dimension.

row weight

in a LATTICE layout, the proportion of height allotted to a specific row of the layout. The sum of all row weights is 1.

RTF destination

an ODS destination that produces output written in Rich Text Format for use with Microsoft Word 2000. See also ODS destination.

RTS

See row title space.

sampling with replacement

a method of taking a sample that allows you to select an item more than once.

sampling without replacement

a method of taking a sample that does not allow you to select an item more than once.

SAS application workspace (AWS, SAS AWS)

a window that contains other windows (child windows) or from which other windows can be invoked, and is not itself a child of a parent window in the same software application.

SAS AWS

See SAS application workspace.

SAS CALL routine (CALL routine)

a type of SAS language element that is used to process one or more arguments and then to return a result that can be used in an expression.

SAS catalog (catalog)

a SAS file that stores many different types of information in smaller units called catalog entries. A single SAS catalog can contain different types of catalog entries. See also SAS catalog entry.

SAS catalog entry (catalog entry)

an individual storage unit within a SAS catalog. Each entry has an entry type that identifies its purpose to SAS. See also entry type.

SAS command

a command that invokes SAS. This command can vary depending on the operating environment and site.

SAS compilation

the process of converting statements in the SAS language from the form in which you enter them to a form that is ready for SAS to use.

SAS console log (console log)

a file that contains information, warning, and error messages if the SAS log is not active. The SAS console log is normally used only for fatal system initialization errors or for late-termination messages. See also SAS log.

SAS data set (data set)

a tabular collection of data (as variables and observations) whose contents are in a SAS file format. A SAS data set includes metadata that describes its attributes.

SAS data set option (data set option)

a SAS language element that specifies actions to apply to a particular SAS data set. For example, data set options enable you to rename variables, to select observations for processing, or to specify a password.

SAS data view

See SAS view.

SAS date constant (date constant)

a string in the form 'ddMMMyy'd or 'ddMMMyyyy'd that represents a date in a SAS statement. The string is enclosed in quotation marks and is followed by the character d (for example, '6JUL01'd, '06JUL01'd, '6 JUL2001'd, or '06JUL2001'd).

SAS date value (date value)

an integer that represents a date in SAS software. The integer represents the number of days between January 1, 1960, and another specified date. For example, the SAS date value 366 represents the calendar date January 1, 1961.

SAS datetime constant (datetime constant)

a string in the form 'ddMMMyy:hh:mm:ss'dt or 'ddMMMyyyy:hh:mm:ss'dt that represents a date and time in SAS. The string is enclosed in quotation marks and is followed by the characters dt (for example, '06JUL2001:09:53:22'dt).

SAS datetime value (datetime value)

an expression or rendering of a value that includes both the date and the time. In SAS software, the integer represents the number of seconds between midnight, January 1, 1960, and another specified date and time. For example, in SAS the datetime value for 9:30 a.m., June 5, 2000, is 1275816600.

SAS engine

See engine.

SAS execution

the process in which SAS follows the instructions given by SAS statements to perform an action.

SAS expression (expression)

a type of macro expression consisting of a sequence of operands and operators that form a set of instructions that are evaluated to produce a numeric value, a character value, or a Boolean value. Examples of operands are constants and system functions. SAS uses expressions in program statements to create variables, to assign values, to calculate new values, to transform variables, and to perform conditional processing.

SAS file

a specially structured file that is created, organized, and maintained by SAS. A SAS file can be a SAS data set, a catalog, a stored program, an access descriptor, a utility file, a multidimensional database file, a financial database file, a data mining database file, or an item store file.

SAS filename extension

a standard file name identifier that conveys information about these file attributes: 1) the SAS engine that was used to create the file, 2) the architecture of the operating environment in which the file was created, and 3) the member type. SAS uses file name extensions to identify the appropriate files for access. See also member type.

SAS format (format)

a type of SAS language element that is used to write or display data values according to the data type: numeric, character, date, time, or timestamp.

SAS function (function)

a type of SAS language element that is used to process one or more arguments and then to return a result that can be used in either an assignment statement or an expression.

SAS index (index)

a component of a SAS data set that enables SAS to access observations in the SAS data set quickly and efficiently. The purpose of SAS indexes is to optimize WHERE-clause processing and to facilitate BY-group processing. See also composite index, simple index.

SAS informat (informat)

a type of SAS language element that is used to read data values according to the data's type: numeric, character, date, time, or timestamp.

SAS initialization

the process of setting global characteristics that must be in effect in order for a SAS session to begin. SAS performs initialization by setting certain SAS system options called initialization options. SAS initialization happens automatically when you invoke SAS.

SAS Installation Representative

the contact person at a SAS customer site who receives either the media, the download information, or the authorization codes that are required in order to install the SAS software or to renew the license for the SAS software. The representative is typically an employee of the SAS customer.

SAS keyword (keyword)

a literal that is a primary part of the SAS language. For example, SAS keywords include DATA, PROC, RUN, names of SAS language elements, names of SAS statement options, and system variables.

SAS language

a programming language that includes procedures for data analysis and reporting, statements and functions for managing SAS files and manipulating data, options that define the SAS environment, a macro facility, Help menus, and a windowing environment for text editing and file management.

SAS language element

a component of SAS software that is used to write SAS programs. SAS language elements include statements, expressions, options, formats, and functions, all of which are common to most programming languages.

SAS library

one or more files that are defined, recognized, and accessible by SAS, and that are referenced and stored as a unit. Each file is a member of the library.

SAS log (log)

a file that contains a record of the SAS statements that you enter, as well as messages about the execution of your program. See also SAS console log.

SAS name

a name that is assigned to items such as SAS variables and SAS data sets. For most SAS names, the first character must be a letter or an underscore. Subsequent characters can be letters, numbers, or underscores. Blanks and special characters (except the underscore) are not allowed. However, the VALIDVARNAME= system option determines what rules apply to SAS variable names. The maximum length of a SAS name depends on the language element that it is assigned to.

SAS naming conventions

the set of rules that describe what constitutes a valid name for SAS variables, data sets, librefs, filerefs, and other constructs of the SAS programming language. See also SAS name.

SAS operator (operator)

in a SAS expression, any of several symbols that request a comparison, a logical operation, or an arithmetic calculation.

SAS procedure (procedure)

a type of SAS language element that refers to a self-contained program for performing a specific task, such as to produce reports, to manage files, or to analyze data.

SAS program

a group of SAS statements that guide SAS through a process or series of processes in order to read and transform input data and to generate output. The DATA step and the procedure step, used alone or in combination, form the basis of SAS programs.

SAS registry

an item store that contains configuration data for one or more SAS software products. For example, the SAS registry stores information about data libraries and file shortcuts that SAS assigns at startup, about menu definitions for the SAS Explorer pop-up menus, and about printers that have been defined. The SAS registry is usually viewed with the Registry Editor, which is invoked with the REGEDIT command. See also item store.

SAS Scalable Performance Data Engine (SPD Engine)

a SAS engine that organizes data into a streamlined file format, enabling rapid delivery of data to applications. See also parallel I/O, parallel processing.

SAS session

the activity between invoking and exiting a specific SAS software product.

SAS statement (statement)

a type of SAS language element that is used to perform a particular operation in a SAS program or to provide information to a SAS program.

SAS system option (system option)

a type of SAS language element that is applied to any of a number of operations during a SAS session. System options can control SAS session initialization, SAS interactions with hardware and software, and input and output processing of SAS files.

SAS time constant (time constant)

a string in the form 'hh:mm:ss't that represents a time in a SAS statement. The string is enclosed in quotation marks and is followed by the character t (for example, '09:53:22't).

SAS time value (time value)

an integer that represents a time in SAS software. The integer represents the number of seconds between midnight of the current day and another specified time value. For example, the SAS time value for 9:30 a.m. is 34200.

SAS variable (variable)

an identifier that is output as a column in a SAS data set or in a SAS data view. The data values for each variable describe a single characteristic for all observations (rows). See also macro variable.

SAS view (SAS data view)

a virtual data set that extracts data values from other files in order to provide a customized and dynamic representation of the data.

SAS XML Mapper

a graphical interface that can be used to create and modify XMLMaps for use by the SAS XMLV2 LIBNAME engine. The SAS XML Mapper analyzes the structure of an XML document and generates basic XML markup for the XMLMap.

SAS/ACCESS view

a type of file that retrieves data values from files that are stored in other software vendors' file formats. You use the ACCESS procedure of SAS/ACCESS software to create SAS/ACCESS views. See also view descriptor.

SAS/GRAPH font

a font stored in the SASHELP.FONTS catalog, and a font created by the user and stored in a GFONTn catalog. These fonts can be used only by SAS/GRAPH procedures or other procedures that generate GRSEG output files. Examples of SAS/GRAPH fonts include Swiss, Simulate, and Marker. These fonts are provided for specialized purposes only.

SAS/SHARE server

the result of an execution of the SERVER procedure, which is part of SAS/SHARE software. A server runs in a separate SAS session that services users' SAS sessions by controlling and executing input and output requests to one or more SAS libraries. See also client, server.

SASEDOC engine

a SAS engine that associates a SAS libref (library reference) with one or more ODS output objects that are stored in an ODS document.

Sashelp library (SASHELP library)

a SAS library supplied by SAS software that stores the text for Help windows, default function-key definitions and window definitions, and menus.

SASHELP library

See Sashelp library.

sasroot

a representation of the name for the directory or folder in which SAS is installed at a site or a computer.

Sasuser library (SASUSER library)

a default, permanent SAS library that is created at the beginning of your first SAS session. The Sasuser library contains a PROFILE catalog that stores the customized features or settings that you specify for SAS.

SASUSER library

See Sasuser library.

Sasuser.Profile catalog (Profile catalog)

a SAS catalog in which SAS stores information about attributes of the SAS windowing environment for a particular user or site. It contains function-key definitions, fonts for graphics applications, window attributes, and other information that is used by interactive SAS procedures. See also SAS catalog.

SBCS

See single-byte character set.

scalability

the ability of a software application to function well and with minimal loss of performance, despite changing computing environments, and despite changes in the volume of computations, users, or data. Scalable software is able to take full advantage of increases in computing capability such as those that are provided by the use of SMP hardware and threaded processing. See also scalable software, server scalability.

scalable software

software that responds to increased computing capability on SMP hardware in the expected way. For example, if the number of CPUs is increased, the time to solution for a CPU-bound problem decreases by a proportionate amount. And if the throughput of the I/O system is increased, the time to solution for an I/O-bound problem decreases by a proportionate amount.

scalar variable

a type of memory variable that contains one-dimensional numeric or character data. Once created, scalar variables are globally available in all events. See also dictionary variable, list variable, memory variable.

scatter plot

a two- or three-dimensional plot that shows the joint variation of two (or three) variables from a group of table rows. The coordinates of each point in the plot correspond to the data values for a single table row (observation).

schedule calendar

in the CALENDAR procedure, procedure output that displays observations from one or more SAS data sets in month-by-month calendars. Unlike summary calendars, a schedule calendar can display activities that can have durations of more than one day.

screen

a division of an FSBROWSE or FSEDIT window. When a data set contains more variables than can fit in an FSBROWSE or FSEDIT window, or when the defined size of a custom display is larger than the current window dimensions, the FSBROWSE or FSEDIT procedure divides the information to be displayed into window-sized units called screens.

SCREEN entry

a SAS catalog entry of type SCREEN that contains information about the custom features of an FSBROWSE or FSEDIT application. If the application includes a SAS Component Language (SCL) program, the program is also stored in the SCREEN entry.

scrolling indicator

See delimiter line.

secondary axis

an X2 or Y2 axis, as contrasted with the primary axes X or Y.

secured data folder

a SAS metadata object that serves as a specialized container for secured library objects, as part of the metadata-bound libraries feature. In each metadata repository, the first secured data folder is Secured Libraries, in the System folder. Additional secured data folders can be added only beneath a Secured Libraries folder.

secured library object

a SAS metadata object to which a physical SAS library is bound. Metadata-layer permissions on each secured library object manage access to its corresponding physical library. Secured library objects are stored beneath a repository’s Secured Libraries folder.

secured table object

a SAS metadata object to which a physical SAS data set (a table or view) is bound. Metadata-layer permissions on each secured table object manage access to its corresponding physical data set. Each secured table object is stored beneath a secured library object.

seed

an initial value from which a random number function or CALL routine calculates a random value.

seek operation

in table lookup applications, the scanning or search operation involved in using the key variable to access the lookup file.

selection field

the portion of a window (shown on the display as an underscore) on which you can enter a short command to perform an action, such as B for browse.

selection-field command

a command that enables you to perform actions from a selection field in a SAS windowing environment. For example, entering D in the selection field beside the name of a SAS data set in the DIRECTORY window enables you to delete that SAS data set.

server

software that provides either resources or services to requesting clients, possibly over a network.

server scalability

the ability of a server to take advantage of SMP hardware and threaded processing in order to process multiple client requests simultaneously. That is, the increase in computing capacity that SMP hardware provides increases proportionately the number of transactions that can be processed per unit of time. See also threaded processing.

session

a single period during which a software application is in use, from the time the application is invoked until its execution is terminated.

session compiled macro

a macro that the macro processor compiles and stores in a SAS catalog in the WORK library. These macros exist only during the current SAS session. Unlike stored compiled macros, session compiled macros cannot be called in any other SAS session.

sidebar

an area of certain multi-cell layouts external to the grid of cells where text or other graphical elements can appear. The LATTICE, DATAPANEL, and DATALATTICE layout support four sidebar areas (TOP, BOTTOM, LEFT, and RIGHT).

significand

See mantissa.

simple expression

a SAS expression that uses only one operator.

simple index

an index that uses the values of only one variable to locate observations. See also composite index.

single-byte character set (SBCS)

a type of encoding for which each character is represented using one byte of computer memory. An example of a single-byte character set is Latin 1. See also double-byte character set, multi-byte character set.

single-cell layout

a layout type that supports only one cell. The OVERLAY, OVERLAY3D, and OVERLAYEQUATED layouts are examples of single-cell layouts.

site number

the number that SAS uses to identify the company or organization to which SAS software is licensed. The site number appears near the top of the log in every SAS session.

skewness

a measure of the deviation from symmetry of a distribution, or the tendency of values to be more spread out on one side of the mean than the other.

SMF

See System Management Facility.

SMP (symmetric multiprocessing)

a type of hardware and software architecture that can improve the speed of I/O and processing. An SMP machine has multiple CPUs and a thread-enabled operating system. An SMP machine is usually configured with multiple controllers and with multiple disk drives per controller.

snap

in the graphics editor, to automatically place graphics objects in the grid display area with precision.

sort indicator

an attribute of a data file that indicates whether a data set is sorted, how it was sorted, and whether the sort was validated. Specifically, the sort indicator attribute indicates the following information: 1) the BY variable(s) that were used in the sort; 2) the character set that was used for the character variables; 3) the collating sequence of character variables that was used; 4) whether the sort information has been validated. This attribute is stored in the data file descriptor information. Any SAS procedure that requires data to be sorted as a part of its process uses the sort indicator.

SOURCE entry

a type of catalog entry that contains text from SAS text editor windows.

sparse data

in classification panels with two or more classifiers, some crossings of the classification values might not be present in the input data. Such input data is called sparse data. By default, a DATAPANEL layout does not generate cells for sparse data, but if requested, it can produce empty cells as place holders for the non-existent crossings.

spawn

to start a process or a process thread such as a light-weight process thread (LWPT). See also thread.

SPD Engine

See SAS Scalable Performance Data Engine.

SPD Engine data file

the data component of an SPD Engine data set. In contrast to SAS data files, SPD Engine data files contain only data; they do not contain metadata. The SPD Engine does not support data views. See also SPD Engine data set.

SPD Engine data set

a data set created by the SPD Engine that has up to four component files: one for data, one for metadata, and two for any indexes. The minimum number of component files is two: data and metadata. Data is separated from the metadata for SPD Engine file organization.

special character

a type of character other than alphanumeric characters, the underscore (_), and the blank. An example is the asterisk (*).

spine

a line on a star chart used to represent the relative value of the chart statistic for a midpoint. Spines are drawn outward from the center of the chart.

spline

a method of interpolation in which a smooth line or surface connects data points.

split character

in some SAS procedures, a character that splits headers across multiple lines. If you use the split character in a column header, the procedure breaks the header when it reaches that character and continues the header on the next line. The split character itself is not part of the column header.

spoke

any of a number of lines that radiate from the center of a radar chart or a star chart. These lines represent statistical information.

SPSS engine

the SAS engine that provides read-only access to SPSS files.

SQL

See Structured Query Language.

SQL pass-through facility (pass-through facility)

the technology that enables SQL query code to be passed to a particular DBMS for processing.

stand-alone plot

a plot that has its own data range and can therefore appear by itself in a layout.

standard data

data in which each digit or character occupies one byte of storage.

standard deviation

a statistical measure of the variability of a group of data values. This measure, which is the most widely used measure of the dispersion of a frequency distribution, is equal to the square root of the variance.

standardization

a method of transforming values of a variable to a different scale based on a particular mean and standard deviation.

star chart

a type of radar chart that features lines drawn to connect the chart statistics for each spoke, resulting in a star-like appearance.

statement

See SAS statement.

statement block (block)

a group of statements that has both a logical beginning and ending statement. For example, a LAYOUT statement along with its ENDLAYOUT statement and all contained statements are a block. Some blocks can be nested within other blocks.

statement label

a SAS name followed by a colon that prefixes a statement in a DATA step so that other statements can direct execution to that statement as necessary, bypassing other statements in the step.

statement option

a word that you specify in a particular SAS statement and which affects only the processing that that statement performs.

statement-style macro

a macro that is defined with the STMT option in the %MACRO statement. See also command-style macro, name-style macro.

station

a field in a choice group. Only one station can be active at a particular time. See also choice group.

stem-and-leaf plot

a plot that shows the shape of a distribution with each value separated into a base number, plotted in the stem, and the remaining portion, plotted in the leaf.

step boundary

a point in a SAS program when SAS recognizes that a DATA step or PROC step is complete.

stored compiled DATA step program

a SAS file that contains a DATA step program that has been compiled and then stored in a SAS library. You can execute stored compiled programs as needed without having to recompile them.

stored compiled macro

a macro program that was compiled in a previous session and which was stored in a permanent directory. Unlike session compiled macros, stored compiled macros can be called in any SAS program.

stratified random sample

a sample that is obtained by dividing a population into non-overlapping parts, called strata, and randomly selecting items from each stratum.

stream

a series of information about the entries and windows that are created when a user invokes a SAS/AF, FSEDIT, or FSVIEW application. Within the stream, SAS creates stacks to keep track of which entries have been called and which windows are currently open. Stacks use a last-in, first-out hierarchy.

stream variable

within an ODS event, a temporary item store that contains output. While the stream variable is open, all output is directed to it until it is closed. See also item store, ODS event, tagset.

string

See character string.

stroked font

in SAS/GRAPH software, a font in which the characters are drawn with discrete line segments or circular arcs. See also polygon font.

Structured Query Language (SQL)

a standardized, high-level query language that is used in relational database management systems to create and manipulate objects in a database management system. SAS implements SQL through the SQL procedure.

style

See ODS style.

style attribute

a visual property, such as color, font properties, and line characteristics, that is defined in ODS with a reserved name and value. Style attributes are collectively referenced by a style element within a style template.

style element

a named collection of style attributes that affects specific parts of ODS output. For example, a style element might specify the color and font properties of title text or other text in in a table or graph. See also table element, style attribute.

style element inheritance

the concept that a child style element receives all of the style attributes that are specified in its parent style element, unless the child style element overrides those attributes.

style reference

a part of the Graph Template Language syntax that indicates the current value of a specific attribute of a specific style element. For example, SIZE=GraphTitleText:FontSize means to assign to SIZE the value of the FontSize attribute of the GraphTitleText style element from the current style.

style template

a type of ODS template that defines the visual aspects (colors, fonts, lines, markers, and so on) of SAS output for a specific style. A style template defines style elements, and each style element consists of style attributes.

subgroup variable

the variable in the input data set for a chart that is used to proportionally fill areas of the bars or blocks on a bar chart, or to identify separate rings of a pie chart.

subquery

a query-expression that is nested as part of another query- expression. Depending on the clause that contains it, a subquery can return a single value or multiple values.

subtable

in the TABULATE procedure, the group of cells that is produced by crossing a single element from each dimension of the TABLE statement when one or more dimensions contain concatenated elements. Each subtable of a larger table could be produced separately by rewriting the TABLE statement as several simple TABLE statements with no concatenated elements.

sum statement

a DATA step statement that adds the result of the expression on the right side of the plus sign to the accumulator variable on the left side of the plus sign. A sum statement has the following form: variable+expression;

summary calendar

in the CALENDAR procedure, procedure output that displays observations from SAS data sets in month-by-month calendars. A summary calendar can display only activities that have durations of one day or less.

summary function

a function that summarizes or describes a group of data values, which are usually numeric data values. For example, SUM and MEAN are summary functions. See also descriptive statistic.

summary line

in the REPORT procedure, a break line that summarizes statistics and computed variables.

summary report

a report that provides a concise overview of information that is derived from one or more data sources. Summary information is typically calculated using descriptive statistics such as SUM, MEAN, and RANGE. See also descriptive statistic.

summary statistic

See descriptive statistic.

summary table

output that provides a concise overview of the information in a data set.

summary variable

a variable in an input data set whose values some SAS/GRAPH procedures total or average to produce the sum or mean statistics, respectively.

surface map

a three-dimensional map that uses spikes of varying heights to indicate levels of relative magnitude.

surface plot

a three-dimensional graph that displays values of a vertical Z variable based on gridded X and Y variables.

switch

See toggle.

symbol table

the area in which the macro processor stores all macro variables and macro statement labels for a particular scope.

symbolic substitution

the process of resolving a macro variable reference (&variable-name)to its value. See also macro variable reference.

symbolic variable

See macro variable.

symmetric multiprocessing

See SMP.

syntax checking

the process by which SAS checks each SAS statement for proper usage, correct spelling, proper SAS naming conventions, and so on.

syntax error

an error in the spelling or grammar of a SAS statement. SAS finds syntax errors as it compiles each SAS step before execution. See also data error, programming error.

system font

a font that can be used by any SAS procedure and by other software such as Microsoft Word. These fonts include TrueType and Type1 fonts. Examples of system fonts include Albany AMT, Monotype Sorts, and Arial.

System Management Facility (SMF)

a feature of the z/OS and OS/390 operating systems that provides information about the computing resources that the operating system utilizes when it runs a job.

system option

See SAS system option.

table alias

a temporary, alternate name for a table that is specified in a FROM clause. Table aliases can be used to qualify column names when tables are joined.

table attribute

a formatting property such as layout of headers, line spacing, and layout of rows and columns, that has a reserved name and value defined in ODS. See also table definition, table element.

table definition

a set of instructions that describe how to format output in the Output Delivery System (ODS).

table dimension (dimension)

one of the basic elements of a table, such as a page, column, or row.

table element

a collection of table attributes that each pertain to a particular column, header, or footer in a table in ODS output.

table lookup

a processing technique in which information is retrieved from an auxiliary source, based on the values of variables in the primary source.

table source

a collection of one or more data sources to be queried.

table template

a template that describes how to display the output for a tabular output object. A table template determines the order of table headers and footers, the order of columns, and the overall appearance of the output object that uses it. Each table template contains or references table elements.

Tagged Image File Format

See TIFF.

tagset

a template that defines how to create a type of markup language output from a SAS format. Tagsets produce markup output such as Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), Extensible Markup Language (XML), and LaTeX. See also markup language.

tagset definition

a template that specifies instructions for creating a markup language for your SAS output. The resulting output contains embedded instructions in order to define layout and some content. Each tagset definition contains event definitions and event attributes that control the generation of the output. SAS provides tagset definitions for a variety of markup languages. You can use the TEMPLATE procedure to modify any of these SAS tagsets or to create your own tagsets. See also ODS markup family.

target variable

the variable to which the result of a function or expression is assigned.

TCP/IP

an abbreviation for a pair of networking protocols. Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) is a standard protocol for transferring information on local area networks such as Ethernets. TCP ensures that process-to-process information is delivered in the appropriate order. Internet Protocol (IP) is a protocol for managing connections between operating environments. IP routes information through the network to a particular operating environment and fragments and reassembles information in transfers.

template

a specification of an area or areas on a page. A GREPLAY template defines a layout in which you can display one or more graphs on a single page.

template compile time

the phase when the source program of a template definition is submitted. The syntax of the definition is evaluated for correctness. If no errors are detected, the definition is converted to a binary format and stored for later access.

template definition (template source)

the TEMPLATE procedure source program that creates a template. A template definition can be generated from a compiled template. Also called the template source.

template panel

in the GREPLAY procedure, a part of the template in which one or more graphics can be displayed. A template can contain one or more panels.

template run time

the actions performed when a compiled template is bound to a data object and then rendered to produce a graph. Run-time errors can occur that prevent a graph from being produced.

template source

See template definition.

template store

an item store that contains definitions that were created by the TEMPLATE procedure. Definitions that SAS provides are in the item store Sashelp.Tmplmst. You can store definitions that you create in any template store to which you have Write access. See also item store.

template-based graphic

graphical output produced by a compiled ODS template of the type STATGRAPH. That is, a graph that is produced within the ODS graphics environment rather than in the traditional device-based environment.

temporary array element

an array element that behaves like a variable but that does not appear in the output data set. Temporary array elements have no names and can be referenced only by their array names and dimensions. They are automatically retained, instead of being reset to missing at the beginning of the next iteration of the DATA step.

temporary SAS data set

a data set that exists only for the duration of the current program or interactive SAS session. Temporary SAS data sets are not available for future SAS sessions.

temporary SAS file

a SAS file in a SAS library (usually the Work library) that is deleted at the end of the SAS session or job.

temporary SAS library

a library that exists only for the current SAS session or job. The most common temporary library is the Work library. See also Work library.

terabyte

2 to the 40th power, or 1,099,511,627,776 (approximately 1.1 trillion) bytes. See also gigabyte, kilobyte, megabyte.

termination phase

in SAS Component Language, the stage at which a program processes any steps that are required before the current observation is written to the data set and another observation is read.

text expression

a type of macro expression that generates text when it is resolved (executed). The text expression can include any combination of text, macro variables, macro functions, and macro calls.

text property

any of a common set of characteristics that can be specified for any text string: color, family, size, weight, and style. By default, values for these properties are derived from a style element in the current style. See also attribute bundle, style attribute.

text string

See character string.

text-editing command

a command that is used with a particular text editor.

thread

the smallest unit of processing that can be scheduled by an operating system.

thread-enabled operating system

an operating system that can coordinate symmetric access by multiple CPUs to a shared main memory space. This coordinated access enables threads from the same process to share data very efficiently.

thread-enabled procedure

a SAS procedure that supports threaded I/O or threaded processing.

threaded I/O

I/O that is performed by multiple threads in order to increase its speed. In order for threaded I/O to improve performance significantly, the application that is performing the I/O must be capable of processing the data rapidly as well. See also I/O-bound application, thread.

threaded processing

processing that is performed in multiple threads in order to improve the speed of CPU-bound applications. See also CPU-bound application.

threading

a high-performance technology for either data processing or data I/O in which a task is divided into threads that are executed concurrently on multiple cores on one or more CPUs.

threshold range

a lower and upper value that specifies the first and last tick mark values for a continuous, linear axis.

throughput

any measure of the amount of data, material, or requests for work that passes through a computer system over a given period of time.

thumbnail

a small image that can be selected in order to display a larger image.

TIFF (Tagged Image File Format)

An industry-standard file format for storing compressed images. The Tagged Image File Format specifies compression routines and file formats for a variety of image types, including bilevel, grayscale, and color.

tile chart

See treemap.

tilt angle

the measure in degrees from the horizontal axis to the major axis of an object.

time axis

an axis type that displays only SAS date, time, or datetime values. Axis tick value increments can be specified as time or date intervals, such as MINUTE, HOUR, DAY, WEEK, MONTH, QUARTER, or YEAR.

time constant

See SAS time constant.

time interval

a unit of measurement that SAS can count within an elapsed period of hours, minutes, or seconds.

time to solution

the elapsed time that is required for completing a task. Time-to-solution measurements are used to compare the performance of software applications in different computing environments. In other words, they can be used to measure scalability. See also scalability.

time value

See SAS time value.

timestamp

a record of the date and time at which a certain event occurred.

title

a heading that is printed at the top of each page of SAS output or of the SAS log.

title area

the region above the graph area where text produced by ENTRYTITLE statements appears.

toggle (switch)

an option, parameter, or other mechanism that enables you to turn on or turn off a processing feature.

token

in the SAS programming language, a collection of characters that communicates a meaning to SAS and that cannot be divided into smaller functional units. A token such as a variable name might look like an English word, but can also be a mathematical operator, or even an individual character such as a semicolon. A token can contain a maximum of 32,767 characters.

tokenizer

the part of the word scanner that divides input into tokens (also called words). See also token, word scanner.

tool palette

the collection of icons that represent functions in the interface.

tooltip

descriptive text that appears when a cursor is placed over certain elements of a graphical user interface, such as the tool icons in a toolbar.

tracking data set

a special data set that is created to save information about user responses to questions in CBT entries.

tradeoff

the increased use of one resource in order to decrease the use of another resource.

trailing at sign

a special symbol @ that is used to hold a line of input or output so that SAS can read from it or write to it in a subsequent INPUT or PUT statement.

transaction data set

in an update operation, the data set that contains the information that is needed in order to update the master data set. See also master data set.

transcoding

the process of converting the contents of a SAS file from one encoding to another encoding. Transcoding is necessary if the session encoding and the file encoding are different, such as when transferring data from a Latin 1 encoding under UNIX to a German EBCDIC encoding on an IBM mainframe. See also encoding, translation table.

translate

to change the location of a graphics object.

translation table

a SAS catalog entry that is used to map data from one encoding to another encoding. SAS language elements that control locale values and encoding properties automatically invoke the appropriate translation table. Translation tables are specific to the operating environment; for example, a translation table that maps the Windows Latin 2 encoding to the ISO Latin 2 encoding. See also encoding, transcoding.

transparency

the degree to which a graphic element (such as a marker or filled area) is opaque or transparent. Transparency is indicated with a number from 0 (completely opaque) to 1 (completely transparent).

transport engine

a facility that transforms a SAS file from its operating environment-specific internal representation to transport format. See also transport format, transport file.

transport file

a sequential file that contains a SAS library, a SAS catalog, or a SAS data set in transport format. You can use transport files to move SAS data libraries, SAS catalogs, and SAS data sets from one operating environment to another.

transport format

either of two file formats that are used to move SAS data sets, SAS data libraries, and SAS catalogs from one operating environment to another. One transport format is produced when the COPY procedure is used with the XPORT engine. The other transport format is produced by the CPORT and CIMPORT procedures. Each of these transport formats is the same in all operating environments. See also transport file, transport engine.

treemap (tile chart)

a graph that represents the relative values of data by using nested rectangular areas. The color or pattern of each area represents the value of one measure in the query. The size of each area represents the value of the another measure in the query.

two-dimensional array

a grouping of variables of the same type under a single name with two dimensions. When processed, this grouping of variables produces results that can be displayed in columns and rows. See also multidimensional array, one-dimensional array.

two's complement arithmetic

a type of arithmetic based on the binary system that determines how the computer represents signed numbers.

typeface

a set of characters with a common design, represented by one or more fonts that differ in weight, orientation, width, size, and spacing. For example, Arial, Arial Bold, Arial Italic, and Arial Bold Italic share the same typeface (Arial), but differ in their orientation and weight.

unconditional branching

in CBT entries, unconditionally changing the flow of control to a statement that does not immediately follow the current statement. See also conditional branching.

Unicode

a 16-bit encoding that is the industry standard for supporting the interchange, processing, and display of characters and symbols from most of the world's writing systems.

Unicode Consortium

a non-profit organization whose corporate and individual members contribute to developing, maintaining, and promoting software internationalization standards and data, particularly the Unicode Standard, which specifies the representation of text in all modern software products. See also Unicode.

union join

a type of join that returns all rows with their respective values from each input table. Columns that do not exist in one table will have null (missing) values for those rows in the result table. See also join.

unit

a single quantity of measurement. In SAS/GRAPH software, units can represent any of the following: centimeters, percentages, points, inches, or cells.

unit area (map area)

a polygon or group of polygons on a map. For example, states, provinces, and countries are typical map areas. In a map data set, a map area consists of all the observations that have the same values for the identification variable or variables. See also identification variable.

Universal Printing

a feature of SAS software that enables you to send SAS output to PDF, PostScript, GIF, PNG, SVG, and PCL files, as well as directly to printers. The Universal Printing system also provides many options that enable you to customize your output, and it is available in all of the operating environments that SAS supports.

unquoting

the process of restoring the meaning of a quoted item. See also quoting.

updating

a process in which SAS replaces the values of variables in the master data set with values from observations in the transaction data set.

User library

a SAS library to which the libref User has been assigned. When the libref User is defined, SAS data sets that have one-level names are stored in this library instead of in the temporary Work library.

variable

See SAS variable.

variable label

descriptive text that is associated with a variable, and that can be printed in the output by certain procedures. By default, this text is the name of a variable or of a label previously assigned with the LABEL= option.

variable length

the number of bytes used to store each of a variable's values in a SAS data set.

variable type

the classification of a variable as either numeric or character. Type is an attribute of SAS variables.

view

a definition of a virtual data set that is named and stored for later use. A view contains no data; it merely describes or defines data that is stored elsewhere.

view descriptor

a SAS/ACCESS file that defines part or all of the DBMS data that is described by an access descriptor. See also access descriptor.

wall

the area bounded by orthogonal axis pairs. In two-dimensional graphs, there is one wall bounded by the XY axes. In three-dimensional graphs, there are three walls, bounded by the XY, YZ, and XZ axes. A wall has an optional outline and can be opaque or transparent.

warning

a message in the SAS log or Message window that indicates that SAS took corrective action to continue processing the program.

web server

a computer program that delivers (serves) content, such as web pages, over the World Wide Web. It can also refer to the computer or virtual machine that runs the program.

weight variable

a numeric variable that represents a weight (for example, costs) to be applied to observations.

WHERE clause

a syntax string that is composed of the keyword WHERE, followed by one or more WHERE expressions. A WHERE clause defines the conditions to be used for selecting observations in a data set. See also WHERE expression.

WHERE expression

is a syntax string within a WHERE clause that defines the criteria for selecting observations. For example, in a membership database, the expression "WHERE member_type=Senior" returns all senior members. See also compound WHERE expression, SAS expression, WHERE processing.

WHERE processing

a method of conditionally selecting rows for processing by using a WHERE expression. See also WHERE expression.

wind rose chart

a type of radar chart that depicts how wind speed and direction are typically distributed at a particular location. The cardinal directions or subdirections with the longest spokes indicate the wind direction that has the greatest frequency. See also radar chart.

word

in the SAS programming language, a collection of characters that communicates a meaning to SAS and which cannot be divided into smaller units that can be used independently. A SAS word can contain a maximum of 32,767 characters. See also token.

word queue

a temporary storage area in SAS from which the word scanner examines tokens (words) before processing them further (as in macro processing) or making the tokens available to the SAS compiler.

word scanner

the component of SAS that examines all tokens (words) in a SAS program and moves the tokens to the correct component of SAS for processing.

Work library (WORK library)

a temporary SAS library that is automatically defined by SAS at the beginning of each SAS session or SAS job. Unless you have specified a User library, any newly created SAS file that has a one- level name will be placed in the Work library by default and will be deleted at the end of the current SAS session or job.

WORK library

See Work library.

workdays data set

in the CALENDAR procedure, a SAS data set that defines workshifts that are named in a calendar data set. Each variable in the workdays data set contains one daily schedule of alternating work and nonwork periods. See also calendar data set.

XML (Extensible Markup Language)

a markup language that structures information by tagging it for content, meaning, or use. Structured information contains both content (for example, words or numbers) and an indication of what role the content plays. For example, content in a section heading has a different meaning from content in a database table.

XMLMap file

a file that contains XML tags that tell the SAS XMLV2 LIBNAME engine or the SAS XML LIBNAME engine how to interpret an XML document.

XON/XOFF handshaking

a method of data flow control in which the flow of data between a computer and a device is regulated by the transmission of XON (DC1) and XOFF (DC3) control characters between the device and the computer.

XPORT engine

the SAS transport engine. This engine accesses SAS files in transport format. See also transport engine, transport format.

youngest version

the historical version of a data set that is chronologically closest to the base version in a generation group. See also base version, generation data set, generation group, historical version.

zoned decimal data

a method of encoding decimal numbers in which each digit requires one byte of storage. The last byte contains the number's sign as well as the last digit. See also packed decimal data.