Prompts (use both formatted and unformatted values)

[SamuelD]

Context:

I have a SAS EG program, which i use to load data to our SAS VA server, and send an email to notify users that data is being loaded and an email once the load has completed.

As part of this program the user needs to select what dataset they are wanting to load.

EG:

Unformatted Value    Formatted Value

File1                          Customer Data

File2                          Sales Data

Problem:

When i reference the prompt name (input_file) in the code it returns the unformatted value. 

Is there a way to have the program pull the formatted value from the prompt list, without having to actually code it specifically into the program?

Example code:

FILENAME Mailbox EMAIL;
DATA _NULL_;
FILE Mailbox 
TO= (emails here)
FROM= "&uemail"
SUBJECT="SAS VA Reports referencing &input_file table currently unavailable";
PUT "Hello All,";
PUT "Please be advised that table &input_file is currently being loaded to SAS VA (Discovery) by user &_metauser.";
PUT "This message is auto-generated.";
RUN;

Thanks in Advance,

Samuel

[andreas_lds · Accepted solution]

Is the list dynamic oder static? Is the formatted value generated by applying a format to the unformatted value?

For dynamic lists adding a variable with the formatted value to the data source seems to be the only possibility to solve the problem.

[SamuelD]

Hi Andreas_Ids, Yes this may be what i need to do, I guess i was hoping SAS had something built into EG, afterall when you use the prompt creator it lets you key two different values.