Tag: SAS

Checking return codes for errors in SAS

You should check for error return codes in any SAS programs that run unattended in batch jobs, so you can handle the exception properly. For example, if the data are invalid, you don’t want to generate reports or insert bad data into a database. …

NOTE: Code Kata #1 Follow-Up

A few weeks ago I published the first in an irregular series of code katas. In a previous post I had described code katas as a form of training for programmers.

I saw a lot of interest around the post.

Richard Koopman posted an elegant response on hi…

Accessing files via SFTP in SAS

Secure File Transfer Protocol has become the standard for transferring files outside our organization. However, it is not always the easiest thing to do in SAS. Here are a few code examples for you to steal. Importing a CSV file over SFTP: %let host=afhood.com; %let sftpOption=-o IdentityFile=/home/user/.ssh/id_rsa; %let filename=theFile.csv; %let sftpPath=/home/remoteuser/dir/; filename myfile sftp “&sftpPath.&filename.” […]

"The Delegator" – Positive or Negative Epithet?

In a recent meeting, an action arose and I asked one of my team (PJ) to catch it and complete it. He (tongue in cheek) commented to all those at the meeting that I was “the best delegator” he’d ever worked with. His humorous implication was that I don’…

R Appears Among Top 20 Programming Languages

Speaking of R… On the 16th, TIOBE Software released the Tiobe Index of the most popular programming languages. For the first time ever, R is in the Top 20. The top spots are, no surprise, occupied by Java and C respectively. More after the jump. The way this index is assembled is…interesting. The full way […]

You Can’t Fire Everyone

Some years ago I was taught a memorable and valuable lesson by my erstwhile programme manager (we’ll call him BJ). I was brought into the project to provide knowledge of i) business intelligence, and ii) software documentation appropriate for the regul…