Should we install the Add-In?

[SusanParker]

We are moving to server SAS from individual PCs.  One of the decisions we have to make is whether or not to install the Microsoft Add-in.  Looking at the description, I can't see why would need to install it.  Wondering what others think. Thanks!

[Doc_Duke]

To me, the decision boils down to two things:

1) EGuide exports to Office require the AddIn

2) Dynamic reports (e.g. dashboards) can be created much easily with the AddIn.

[SusanParker]

We don't use Enterprise Guide and have no plans to.  We also don't do any dashboard type of reporting.  We're your basic pharma/biotech biometrics shop.  Thanks for taking the time to respond.

[Quentin]

I wouldn't think you would need the Excel add-in.  I've been playing with for a few months.  As I understand it, the Add-In as a way to use Excel as a client which can connect to the SAS server and do stuff. 

So you if you had folks who loved using Excel (sigh) and you wanted to give them the "Power of SAS" (running SAS PROCs or Stored Procedure on Excel data and returning results to Excel), then the add-in is a solution.

But if you're a shop of SAS programmers, who plan to keep being SAS programmers just working on a server SAS instead of PC SAS, wouldn't think folks would be interested in the add-in.

That said, I would suggest installing EG.  It's not a bad programming environment.  Has some benefits (and downside) vs Enhanced editor.  But of course you can do very well with just a good text editor and a terminal window...

HTH,

--Q.

[TomKari]

I would like to suggest you consider using Enterprise Guide if you intend to run SAS on your PCs connecting to your server sessions via SAS/Connect.

Enterprise Guide can take a lot of the fiddling around with connection parameters off the table, and make submitting to a server faster.

Tom