The documentation has a lot of options, but it's well organized. It's a bit overwhelming at first because of the amount of options. But just ignore that for now. I couldn't count the number of options I've never used. But they are there if you need them.
@jaliu wrote:
Well, I have asked around about how to use the documentation, because I agree, it's absolutely essential to be able to use it if one does not know everything by heart, but haven't really gotten any answers. A SAS instructor even told me not to learn from it. I find quite complicated and almost as confusing as the language itself.
One thing is that the exam DOES seem to want to trick you, in the sense that they are many ways to do the same thing and they want you to know every single one of them. This could range from different code leading to the same results or the same statements but in different order. This is the part that scares me the most.
Yes you are correct. There are many ways to do the same thing at times. That goes for every programming language. This is not an exam trick. It's overwhelming when you first start programming in general, but it's just like everything. Practice, practice, practice, practice.
Some general programming/data advice. Before you begin programming (in general) you must first answer the question "What do I want to do". I always break it down into workable parts. Once I do, I begin my work.
Example. So, I have this data set. The first thing I want to do is obtain summary statistics on my table (mean, standard deviation, etc). Ok, I know what I want to do. Let's find a way to do it. Since I'm using SAS I can use PROC MEANS. That's a great efficient way to get summary statistics. Could I get the same information using PROC SQL? Yes. PROC SQL would take more coding on my part, but I could essentially do the same thing (for the most part).
After I get summary statistics on my numeric columns, now I want frequency values of categorical columns. Ok. I've heard of PROC FREQ. I know it can do that but I forgot the statements I need. Go to the doc and look around to find what statements/options you need. Now, maybe you don't know PROC FREQ. Ok, no problem. You can do some similar things with PROC SQL or the DATA STEP to get frequency counts. Would it take more code, yes. But you can get the same answers. Will I use SQL or the DATA step for frequency counts. No. I don't feel like typing all that code.
Well next I want to create quick visualizations of my FREQ output. Well, PROC FREQ has an option for that. Now you must go back to the doc and find it. Honestly I've used it PROC FREQ with plots hundreds of times and I forget the option all the time. But I know what I want. I know the PROC FREQ can do it. Now I need to go back to the doc and find that option. Now, could I use PROC SQL with PROC SGPLOT to do the same thing. Yes I can. Will I? No, because PROC FREQ does it easily with less code.
The idea of the courses and certification is that it exposes you to a variety of methods, PROCs, options, DATA step, accessing data, etc. It's your job to get a fundamental knowledge of how to use them all together for whatever data problem you have at hand.
In the end everything you are learning are just tools to put on your tool belt. I like to explain it like the tools in my garage. I have 3 hammers (small, medium, large), drills, different screws, etc. They all serve a variety of purposes. Could I use my large hammer to nail in a small nail for a picture? Of course. Will I? No, I like the small manageable hammer for that purpose. It's easier to use.
Hope this helps.
- Peter
