topic Re: How to use length command with multiple variables in SAS Programming

How to use length command with multiple variables

Sejin — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 12:29:36 GMT

Hello

I am now trying to use length command with several hundreds of variables.

Since the number of variables are too many, I want to express variables in a short and efficient way.

Following is the code I designed.

length name $ 100 secid $ 100 (time1-204) ($ 100);

I know something is wrong on the last part of the code, but can't figure out how to fix it.

Please give me some help.

Re: How to use length command with multiple variables

PeterClemmensen — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 12:32:41 GMT

Close. Do like this

length name $ 100 secid $ 100 time1-time204 $ 100;

Re: How to use length command with multiple variables

Kurt_Bremser — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 12:32:55 GMT

Try

length name $ 100 secid $ 100 time1-time204 $ 100;

Re: How to use length command with multiple variables

Kurt_Bremser — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 12:33:34 GMT

@PeterClemmensen wrote:

Close. Do like this
length name $ 100 secid $ 100 time1-time204 $ 100;

Beat me by 15 seconds 🙂

Re: How to use length command with multiple variables

Sejin — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 12:42:20 GMT

Thanks for the quick reply!

But this is what I got with no outcome..

Do you know what is another error that needs to be fixed?

Re: How to use length command with multiple variables

PeterClemmensen — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 12:45:47 GMT

You probably do not see any ERRORS in your log, only NOTES that the variables are uninitialized. You probably need an INPUT Statement after your INFILE Statement.

Re: How to use length command with multiple variables

Kurt_Bremser — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 12:52:08 GMT

A SAS log is pure text. To post it here, just use copy/paste into a window opened with the {i} button of the main Rich Text posting window.

The same goes for SAS code, the "little running man icon" will even imitate most of the coloring fo the SAS Enhanced Editor.

And yes, you're missing an input statement.

Re: How to use length command with multiple variables

RW9 — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 13:38:58 GMT

"with several hundreds of variables." - this sounds bad already. Does the data come from Excel by any chance? Observations not columns is the way forward.

Re: How to use length command with multiple variables

novinosrin — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 14:05:26 GMT

specifying the length of 100 bytes does not require to be done one by one in a length statement for each variable or variable list:

data w1;
set sashelp.class(drop=name);
length name  secid  time1-time204 $ 100;
run;

proc contents data=w1;
run;