topic Re: Create a Macro Variable Concatenating today() and Some Text in SAS Programming

Create a Macro Variable Concatenating today() and Some Text

AndyTam — Fri, 05 Jun 2020 15:15:39 GMT

Hi, I'd like to create a macro variable holding a file name that will be used in proc export. The filename will contain a company and a date, like "ABC -- 20200605.xlsx". First there what is a better way than adding in layers of %sysfunc?

%let FileName=%sysfunc(cats(ABC, %sysfunc(putn(%sysfunc(today()), yymmddd.))));
%put &FileName;

Second, SAS returned ABC--9, which does not have a date.

Re: Create a Macro Variable Concatenating today() and Some Text

PaigeMiller — Fri, 05 Jun 2020 15:20:52 GMT

You don't need CATS for concatenation in macro variable

%let filename = %str(ABC -- )%sysfunc(putn(%sysfunc(today()),yymmddn.)).xlsx;
%put &=filename;

The whole thing would probably be easier in a DATA step, no %SYSFUNC needed then.

Re: Create a Macro Variable Concatenating today() and Some Text

novinosrin — Fri, 05 Jun 2020 15:21:16 GMT

%let FileName=ABC-- %sysfunc(today(), yymmddn8.);
%put &FileName;

Re: Create a Macro Variable Concatenating today() and Some Text

AndyTam — Fri, 05 Jun 2020 15:30:21 GMT

Thanks for your help too

Re: Create a Macro Variable Concatenating today() and Some Text

ballardw — Fri, 05 Jun 2020 15:34:12 GMT

One question: is that file name supposed to have a space on either side of the -- , only before, only after, or no space?

%let FileName1=ABC-- %sysfunc(today(), yymmddn8.);
%let FileName2=ABC -- %sysfunc(today(), yymmddn8.);
%let FileName3=ABC --%sysfunc(today(), yymmddn8.);
%let FileName4=ABC--%sysfunc(today(), yymmddn8.);
%put Filename1:&filename1.
 Filename2:&filename2.
 Filename3:&filename3.
 Filename4:&filename4.;