Not a SAS super hero, just the emceeAnother successful episode in the books. Over thirty participants tuned in and competed in SAS Bowl II, Free Data Friday edition. Yours truly emceed and after some minor technical difficulties, causing a small time lag, we successfully got the game rolling.
Highlights included questions from the two featured Free Data Friday articles on pinball machines and electricity usage by the British Prime minister. Much to the delight of @MichelleHomes, we saw a question that included Roman numerals and Australian history. We all felt the joy from down under. We also learned a little about Dr. Goodnight's rock collection and a mention of the emcee's favorite African American female authors (Zora Neale Hurston, Alice Walker, Toni Morrison, and Maya Angelou).
This weeks winner was @ronan, with an impressive 18 questions correctly answered. Following in second was @supp (SAS Bowl I winner and on a roll) with 17 correct answers. Third place went to sasbowlfdf, aka @ProcWes, with 16 correct answers. Congrats to the winners! I was able to pull game stats this week, so I'll be issuing SAS Bowl badges for all participants.
You can catch the entire experience in the following playback video.
The next installment in the series takes place on Tuesday, October 20, at 10 AM EDT. The featured topic will be SAS Macros. Stay tuned to the Community for further details in the coming days.
Sometimes the things we do second time around are better and hold more value because we take the time to reflect and review, and revive them through a higher love.
-- from Stardust and Star Jumps, by Christine Evangelou
OK, a little heavy and philosophical for a trivia game, but a great way to kick off SAS Bowl II, Free Data Friday. I've got so much to cover here, but I'll try and keep things simple and brief.
First, if you aren't familiar with the SAS Community trivia game, The SAS Bowl, get the 4-1-1 from the introductory Community memo. You can also find details, discussions, and a wrap-up of SAS Bowl I, Enterprise Guide Tips and Tricks in this Community article.
Rumors are afloat on the naming origins of the event. Is it a play on the American football championship, a version of the Saturday morning Quiz Bowl airing on local TV stations throughout the US, or a rebirth of a SAS Users group event from times past? Who knows? Debate among yourselves 🤓. Maybe we just thought the name was catchy?
SAS Bowl II, Free Data Friday features the Community Library series by the same name and is scheduled for Tuesday, September 22, at 10 AM EDT. Add the event to your calendar or download the article attachment for an event reminder. No pre-registration is required. Jump into the event, provide your SAS Support Communities username, and show off your SAS and worldly knowledge while competing for bragging rights and SAS Community swag.
The Free Data Friday series started exactly five years ago and has provided fun, innovative ways to find, load, and use data with SAS. The run of articles has seen various contributors over the years, but has been spearheaded by Community Proc Star @ChrisBrooks. Memorable articles include squirrels, dog bites in NYC, and even Van Halen.
This edition of SAS Bowl spotlights questions from the featured entries listed below. Make sure to read through the articles to gain an advantage in the game.
Join the Pinball Wizards with SAS University Edition
Reading the British Prime Minister’s Electricity Meter with SAS University Edition
Another fabulous midnight SAS Bowl event! 😉 You did a fabulous job @joeFurbee and team!!! It put a huge smile on my face to see a Roman Numerals question with an Australian touch too!
I can't believe Mr. Goodnight has a petrified dinosaur egg in his rock collection but not a diamond!
That's right @supp. If you ever get the pleasure of visiting Cary's campus, you must make sure to get a tour of the collection. My daughter took about 100 photos when she made the rounds. There is simply nothing like experiencing it for yourself. Here are a few media resources from over the years.
Walter Magazine - Natural treasures: The extraordinary collection of Dr. Jim Goodnight
WRAL News - Jim Goodnight shows off his rock collection
Article from datanami - Chips, Stats & Stones: A Morning with SAS CEO Dr. Jim Goodnight
@supp this was one question I knew as I have seen the petrified dinosaur egg and also the articles that @joeFurbee shared above.The trivia question did stump me a bit though as I thought there was a diamond.
I was amazed by the collection when I saw it, 5 years ago and of course tweeted it too! 😉 https://twitter.com/HomesAtMetacoda/status/646348600025436160
Are you ready for the spotlight? We're accepting content ideas for SAS Innovate 2025 to be held May 6-9 in Orlando, FL. The call is open until September 16. Read more here about why you should contribute and what is in it for you!
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