topic Re: Use && in data step in SAS Programming

Use && in data step

liangchh0 — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 17:17:29 GMT

Hi all,

I'd like to if it is possible to call macro variables by do loop in data step and how to achieve that.

Specifically, how to make the following code work?

%let var1 = varName1;

%let var2 = varName2;

data dsTest;

do i=1 to 2;

&&var&i = i;

end;

run;

Thanks for your help.

Re: Use && in data step

Reeza — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 17:21:51 GMT

SYMGET() function

Re: Use && in data step

PaigeMiller — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 17:44:26 GMT

%let var1 = varName1;
%let var2 = varName2;
data dsTest;
    %do i=1 %to 2;
        &&var&i = &i;
    %end;
run;

Only works inside a macro (can't have a %do loop in open code)

Re: Use && in data step

Kurt_Bremser — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 17:42:30 GMT

@liangchh0 wrote:

Hi all,

I'd like to if it is possible to call macro variables by do loop in data step and how to achieve that.

Specifically, how to make the following code work?

%let var1 = varName1;

%let var2 = varName2;

data dsTest;

do i=1 to 2;

&&var&i = i;

end;

run;

Thanks for your help.

Since the macro triggers are evaluated BEFORE the data step is compiled and runs, data step variable i cannot be used to indirectly address macro variables. If you need dynamic access to data step variables, use array processing.

Re: Use && in data step

liangchh0 — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 18:08:17 GMT

Hi KurtBremser,

Thanks for your reply.

I've tried the following modification but it still doesn't work.

data dsTest;

array varArray (2) var1-var2;

do i=1 to 2;

&array(i) = i;

end;

run;

Could you please show me an example?

Thank you so much.

Re: Use && in data step

liangchh0 — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 18:11:19 GMT

Thanks for your reply. The code doesn't seem to work. Is there a typo or any further modification required?

Re: Use && in data step

Kurt_Bremser — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 18:12:29 GMT

Almost there. See:

data dsTest;
    array varArray (2) var1-var2;
    do i=1 to 2;
        vararray(i) = i;
    end;
run;

Re: Use && in data step

liangchh0 — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 18:15:37 GMT

Thanks for your reply. As far as I know, symget() is usually applied to the right-hand side of "=". I've tried
data dsTest;
do i=1 to 2;
symget(cats('var',i)) = i;
end;
run;

but it didn't work.
Could you show me explicitly how to make symget() work in this situation?
Thank you so much.

Re: Use && in data step

liangchh0 — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 18:19:49 GMT

Thanks for your reply. What I actually need is to call macro variable var1 and var2 such that

var1=1 becomes varName1=1

Is there a way to achieve that?
Thank you.

Re: Use && in data step

SuryaKiran — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 18:54:48 GMT

Try something like this:

%let var1 = varName1;
%let var2 = varName2;

data dsTest;
%let Count=1;
count=1;
    do i=1 to 2;

        &&var&Count = count;
		count+1;
Call symput("Count",count);

    end;

run;

Re: Use && in data step

Kurt_Bremser — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 19:14:04 GMT

That won't work either, because &&var&count will be evaluated before the data step runs and executes the call symput.

Re: Use && in data step

SuryaKiran — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 19:28:56 GMT

@Kurt_Bremser Your right, I'm totally wrong about using CALL SYMPUT there before the Data step is executed.

@liangchh0 Did you try the solution @PaigeMiller mentioned, You need to not that it has to be enclosed in a macro.

%let var1 = varName1;
%let var2 = varName2;
OPTIONS symbolgen mprint mlogic;
%MACRO test();
data dsTest(drop=i);
count=1;
    %do i=1 %to 2;
        &&var&i = &i;
%end;

run;
%MEND test;
%test;

Re: Use && in data step

ballardw — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 20:22:56 GMT

Doesn't work is awful vague.

Are there errors in the log?: Post the code and log in a code box opened with the {i} to maintain formatting of error messages.

No output? Post any log in a code box.

Unexpected output? Provide input data in the form of a dataset, the actual results and the expected results. Data should be in the form of a data step. Instructions here: https://communities.sas.com/t5/SAS-Communities-Library/How-to-create-a-data-step-version-of-your-dat... will show how to turn an existing SAS data set into data step code that can be pasted into a forum code box using the {i} icon or attached as text to show exactly what you have and that we can test code against.

Re: Use && in data step

liangchh0 — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 20:48:37 GMT

The code does work properly after I restart SAS.

Sorry for the confusion.

I have no idea why it didn't work before.

Somehow SAS acts weird after I canceling submissions.

Here are the error messages I got when that happens.

1732 %MACRO test();
1733 data dsTest;
1734 %let var1 = varName1;
1735 %let var2 = varName2;
1736 %do i=1 %to 2;
1737 &&var&i = &i;
1738 %end;
1739 run;
1740 %MEND test;
1741 %test;
MPRINT(TEST): data dsTest;
WARNING: Apparent symbolic reference VAR not resolved.
NOTE: Line generated by the invoked macro "TEST".
3 &&var&i = &i;
-
180
MPRINT(TEST): &&var1 = 1;
WARNING: Apparent symbolic reference VAR not resolved.
NOTE: Line generated by the invoked macro "TEST".
5 &&var&i = &i;
-
180
MPRINT(TEST): &&var2 = 2;
MPRINT(TEST): run;

ERROR 180-322: Statement is not valid or it is used out of proper order.

NOTE: The SAS System stopped processing this step because of errors.
WARNING: The data set WORK.DSTEST may be incomplete. When this step was stopped there were 0
observations and 0 variables.
WARNING: Data set WORK.DSTEST was not replaced because this step was stopped.

I guess SAS is trying to finish the canceled statements and mixing them with the current statements.

Do you know how to tell SAS to "forget" the unfinished execution?

Re: Use && in data step

PaigeMiller — Tue, 03 Apr 2018 20:59:17 GMT

@liangchh0 wrote:
Thanks for your reply. The code doesn't seem to work. Is there a typo or any further modification required?

Utterly useless to say it "doesn't seem to work".

Tell us what happened. Show us the SASLOG, with

options mprint;

before your code.