How to redirect SAS output into a PDF file

[deleted_user]

Hi All,

I would like to redirect SAS output window into a PDF file. I'd like that output
to look EXACTLY like the output in the SAS window.

I'm using a solution based on an external PDF printer ( CutePDF ) and
a call to ps2pdf from inside the SAS system. There is a problem with it
though on my SAS 9.2, so I'd appreciate if someone could suggest a
solution based on SAS internal functionality.

Thanks !

[sbb]

Suggest looking at using ODS PDF along with PROC PRINTTO.

Scott Barry
SBBWorks, Inc.

[Cynthia_sas]

Hi:
You could change a style template to use all "fixed" pitch SAS Monospace fonts and you'd come close to the look and feel of the LISTING window, as explained in this Tech Support note:
http://support.sas.com/kb/24/493.html

I have successfully used a Text2PDF command line processor which was offered by the FyTek company. At the time I was investigating the ability to translate a PROC PRINTTO-saved LISTING file....and Text2PDF was just one of many tools available, but not all of the products had command line interface. I used an X command to kick off the Text2PDF conversion.

Personally, I find that changing the template comes close enough to what I need to do...the command line method was sort of klunky.

cynthia

[David_SAS]

In SAS 9.2, PROC DOCUMENT has the undocumented capability to import text files. Try:
[pre]
ods listing file="myoutput.lst";
proc print data=sashelp.class;
run;
ods listing;
proc document name=temp(write);
import textfile="myoutput.lst" to ^;
ods pdf file="myoutput.pdf" notoc;
replay;
run;
quit;
ods pdf close;
[/pre]

-- David Kelley, SAS

[deleted_user]

Thanks for comments everybody. The problem with Cynthia and Dave's approaches is that the outputs do not look exactly like in the SAS output
window. And I indeed need it to look 100% the same. I mean it.

The solution that I'm using is basically

options sysprint="CutePDF Writer" "&path\&g_SAS_START_NAME..ps";

filename pdf printer;

proc printto print=pdf new;
run;

proc printto print=print;
run;

options noxwait;

%sysexec( "c:\program files\gs\gs8.64\bin\gswin32c.exe" -dNOPAUSE -dBATCH -sDEVICE=pdfwrite -sOutputFile="&path\&g_SAS_START_NAME..pdf" -f "&path\&g_SAS_START_NAME..ps" ) ;

%sysexec( del "&path\&g_SAS_START_NAME..ps" ) ;

This one worked in SAS 9.1 like a charm, but in SAS 9.2 it switches to
a portrait mode at some point, and the only way to fix it is to reinstall SAS 9.2.

I did it a couple of times already, but after running some code
( I think it's proc gplot producing tiffp device output or something ),
it switches back to portrait. I was not able to find any setting inside
SAS 9.2 to get it back into a landscape mode. Interestingly,
the output window still produces the lanscape format, and if I print
it to a file directly from the output window, it gives me landscape as well.

Would anybody have any ideas about that ?

Thank you.

[Ksharp]

Would you use PrintScreen key in the keyboard to get a snapshot screen.
then convert the picture into pdf ????

[Cynthia_sas]

Hi:
Is gswin32c.exe a Ghostscript command??? Is it possible that GhostScript is not using the SAS settings for orientation?? It sounds like SAS is respecting the landscape orientation, but the problem is that your -other- software needs to have its orientation set.

For example, this documentation on using Ghostscript has an explicit instruction on changing paper size:
http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/doc/cvs/Use.htm#Change_default_size
and the section on page parameters
http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/doc/cvs/Use.htm#Parameter_switches
talks about using the dOrient parameter:

-dORIENT1=true
-dORIENT1=false
Defines the meaning of the 0 and 1 orientation values for the setpage[params] compatibility operators. The default value of ORIENT1 is true (set in gs_init.ps), which is the correct value for most files that use setpage[params] at all, namely, files produced by badly designed applications that "know" that the output will be printed on certain roll-media printers: these applications use 0 to mean landscape and 1 to mean portrait. -dORIENT1=false declares that 0 means portrait and 1 means landscape, which is the convention used by a smaller number of files produced by properly written applications.


cynthia

[deleted_user]

Hi Cynthia,

thanks. In fact, I tried all that, even reinstalling CutePDF and GS, but the only
thing that helped is re-installing SAS 9.2. This makes me think the problem is
actually inside SAS. There is a setting somewhere in it, which controls it, and I was not able to find it yet.

I could post a dump of proc options and/or other things if it helps.

[Cynthia_sas]

Well reinstalling would have cleaned up all your print drivers for sure. But your best way to resolve this issue definitively would be to open a track with Tech Support.

Cynthia