What is SCL program

[Phoenix_LJ]

I saw "SCL program" when I learning SAS help. I want to know what "SCL program"  is ?

[Patrick · Accepted solution]

SAS Screen Control Language. 

It's one of the SAS languages but was never really widely used and must be seen as "obsolete" by now. As a SAS learner nothing you have to care about. Better concentrate on SAS9.4 and Viya/CAS.

[SASKiwi]

SAS renamed this language to SAS Component Language quite a while ago to reflect that it is now used commonly in Base SAS, including in SAS 9.4 and SAS Viya.

I, and many others, continue to use SCL statements and functions like EXIST, FEXIST, OPEN, CLOSE etc as they are very useful in Base SAS processing within DATA steps and SAS macro processing..

[Patrick]

@SASKiwi Valid point but.... do you still consider these commands as SCL or just as functions migrated to Base SAS Language?

[SASKiwi]

@Patrick - The current documentation now includes the SCL functions that work in Base SAS without differentiating their heritage. Six of one or half-dozen of the other?!

[Shmuel]

SAS SCL was widely used to write interactive, objected oriented, programs.

Many of SCL code is enabled now to be used within sas base and it is now considered as part of it.