CATX

[Ronein]

Hello

I am using CATX to concatenate multiple string fields with delimator minus between them.

In the resulted field I get value 100-200-300-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

However I want to concatenate only mon-missing fields  that the value will be 100-200-300

What is the way to correct it please?

Data have;
input X1 X2 X3 X4 X5 X6 X7 X X9 X10;
cards;
100 200 300 . . . . . . .
;
Run;

Data wanted;
set have;
Vector=CATX('-',OF X:);
Run;

[yabwon · Accepted solution]

CATX() id doing implicit conversion from number to text so "missing value" is set to a "dot",

Data have;
input X1 X2 X3 X4 X5 X6 X7 X X9 X10;
cards;
100 200 300 . . . . . . .
;
Run;

Data wanted;
set have;
array XX X:;
length Vector $ 100;
do over XX;
  if XX then Vector=CATX('-',Vector, XX);
end;
Run;
proc print;
run;

Bart

[Ronein]

Thanks,
You wrote "if XX then Vector=CATX('-',Vector, XX);"
As I understand it is same to write "if XX ne . then Vector=CATX('-',Vector, XX);"
My question:
How SAS knows that IF XXX is like IF XXX ne . ???

[yabwon]

#maxim1 [https://communities.sas.com/t5/SAS-Communities-Library/Maxims-of-Maximally-Efficient-SAS-Programmers...]

Read the doc. 😉

"In SAS, any numeric value other than 0 or missing is true, and a value of 0 or missing is false."

https://documentation.sas.com/doc/en/lrcon/9.4/p00iah2thp63bmn1lt20esag14lh.htm#p084fxdgd12w4sn1o2xi...

Bart

[Ksharp]

options missing=' ';
Data wanted;
set have;
Vector=CATX('-',OF X:);
Run;

[ballardw]

Since your issue resolves around MISSING values consider the options involved with missing:

options missing=' ';
Data wanted;
set have;
Vector=CATX('-',OF X:);
Run;
options missing='.';

You get all the - in your result because, as correctly stated by @yabwon the implicit conversion to the dot character for missing numeric. Setting the Missing option to a blank means the conversion still happens but CATX will remove all trailing blanks, the only character, and get the desired result.

When using this approach don't forget to reset the missing option to avoid other possible confusions.

[PaigeMiller]

I think a better idea is to use arrays on X1-X10, rather than the much harder creating the proper string with missings '100-200-300' and then working with this string. Then its easy to test to see if X4 is missing and just skip processing in that case.