sas programming 1 - do I want sas on demand for academics or sas university edition

[Steve_Win]

To complete the activities, demos, and practices in this course, you must access SAS software and then set up your practice files.

1. Access SAS software

You can use free software from SAS or your own SAS software to take this course. SAS has two free software options listed below. Both options use SAS Studio. Choose the software you prefer and follow the instructions to either register for an account (SAS OnDemand for Academics) or download the vApp (SAS University Edition).

Free software option How the software works How you access the software

SAS OnDemand for Academics	You register for an account to get access to SAS in the cloud. All you need is a web browser with an internet connection.	Go here. Select your home region from the menu and then click Register or Check Account to register for access. This is the same page you will use to sign in to OnDemand for Academics after you register.
SAS University Edition	You download and install virtualization software, and then download the SAS University Edition vApp. There are instructions that walk you through these steps! After you are set up, you don't need an internet connection to run the software.	G

then

Set up your practice files

From the options below, click Open next to the software you plan to use for this course, and then follow the instructions to set up your data.

Setup instructions for free software from SAS (open the instructions for the software you chose in Step 1)

Open SAS OnDemand for Academics

Open SAS University Edition

Setup instructions for your own SAS software (these instructions do not apply to free software from SAS)

Open SAS Studio

which option is best?

[Kurt_Bremser]

Both can be used for the course.

University Edition works offline and does not need a login while you use it. You only need your SAS account for the download. But it does require a system that supports the necessary virtualization options.

If your internet connection might be flaky or not present at all while you do your exercises, UE is the way to go.

I do most of my example coding for the SAS communities on UE on a 2015 MacBook Pro.

[Cynthia_sas · Accepted solution]

Hi:
It also depends on the age/bitness of your computer. If you do NOT have a 64 bit machine with Virtualization enabled at the BiOS level, then University Edition is not an option for you. Older 32-bit machines cannot run SAS University Edition. The University Edition install is actually 2 downloads -- you need to download and install the hosting software (either VirtualBox or VMWare Player) and THEN, you need to download the Virtual Machine itself and install the Virtual Machine in the hosting software. Even if you have a 64-bit machine, if virtualization isn't enabled, you may need to fiddle with BiOS settings to make it all work.
If you're not into installing software and you have a decent Internet connection, SAS OnDemand for Academics is a zero-download way of using SAS. You will need to set up a SAS Profile (but you need to do that for either method). But then, after you set up your OnDemand account, you just need to open a web browser to go to the welcome.oda.sas.com web site in order to log onto the OnDemand Control Center and then click on the SAS Studio icon.
Both options will work for you for now, it really depends on your your computer setup and your tolerance level for doing downloads and installs. The SAS OnDemand alternative is zero-download, but you need a stable Internet connection. The University Edition alternative is 2 downloads but after you're done (and assuming you do the configuration correctly), then you don't need an Internet connection to use.

Cynthia