Keep coding while SAS is busy with execution?

[braam]

I'm wondering if there is a way to keep coding while SAS is busy with executions of statements I've submitted earlier. I know it's possible in stata, but perhaps not in SAS? Of course, I can keep coding the next step in other programs like txt, but it doesn't sound great to me. It would be more convenient if I can still use enhanced editors. Thanks.

[SASKiwi]

SAS Enterprise Guide allows this. I guess you must be using the SAS Windowing Environment (Display Manager). Are you using a local or a remote SAS server? If you are using a remote SAS server then you can switch to asynchronous RSUBMITs (rsubmit wait = no). If you are submitting locally there is no workaround apart from opening another SAS session or switching to SAS Enterprise Guide.

[PaigeMiller]

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@SASKiwi wrote:

SAS Enterprise Guide allows this.

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As I don't have EG 8.1 yet, how does Enterprise Guide allow you to code while SAS is busy with execution?

[Tom]

I am not sure what you are talking about. I never have any trouble editing code while SAS is executing statements.

[FreelanceReinh]

Hi @braam,

Thank you for raising this long-standing issue.

This has been annoying me since I started using SAS (version 6.12) 20+ years ago and I don't know why they haven't fixed it yet (in the mature and proven Display Manager interface). To quote the v9.4 documentation "Understanding Foreground Processing": "Foreground processing begins immediately, but as your program runs, your current workstation session is occupied, so you cannot use it to do anything else."

I'm used to running two or more SAS sessions in parallel to mitigate this shortcoming.

Now that I'm thinking about it, I believe it should be possible to emulate the missing functionality by using

1. an external program editor, which could be the Enhanced Editor of a second SAS session or any other text editor of your choice
2. either automation software (e.g. AutoIt) or a keyboard (or mouse) with programmable function keys.

Then you could select code in the external editor (1), hit a shortcut key and by means of (2) the selected code would be copied to the clipboard and submitted in the primary SAS session (e.g. by using Run --> Submit Clipboard from the main menu). Immediately after this you would be back in the external editor and could continue coding.

Both options in (2) are available on my private PC (but not on my SAS workstation) and I've just tested something similar using a programmable keyboard: copied selected text from Notepad, pasted it into Word, selected it there, opened a "Search and Replace" window in Word (just as an example) and switched back to Notepad -- all with a single keystroke, within milliseconds.

Sounds promising?

[SASKiwi]

@FreelanceReinh  - Back in the days when I still used Display Manager, I got around this issue by defining a function key or menu icon to RSUBMIT WAIT = NO (the default is YES) when using remote SAS servers. Of course this wont work for local SAS.

Unfortunately, Display Manager is pretty much in maintenance mode mode now as it has been for many years so I wouldn't hold my breath on any enhancements.

I suggest you give EG a go. The latest version 8.1 provides a coding-only option which is similar to Display Manager.

[ChrisNZ]

I suppose another way would be to remote-submit everything to the local computer.

There are still 2 SAS sessions, in a similar fashion to @FreelanceReinh's idea, but all the session-changing logic is integrated within SAS. One downside to doing this is that a SAS/Connect licence is required.

As @SASKiwi notes, it's unfortunate that SAS chose to stop working on the DMS after they added the Enhanced Editor in Version 8. 

[hashman]

@ChrisNZ:

The first thing I do when configuring the DMS after installing SAS is making sure than the Enhanced Editor is never seen and never pops up when I fire a session. To me, it's vastly inferior to the Program Editor, and whatever fluffy functionality it's added doesn't nearly compensate for the ISPF functionality of the Program Editor it's lost. The loss of the COLS line command alone isn't worth any of the fluff. I'm not even talking about the myriad of other super utile line commands like repeat, move, copy, delete, left/right shift, lower/upper case (both on individual lines and code blocks), etc., which don't require the mouse and greatly reduce the carpal tunnel. Whenever I used those at my SUGI/SGF HOWs, the folks who had never used the Program Editor sat stupefied ("Huh, you can really do that?"). 

Of course, it's a strictly personal opinion of usage and taste, not intended to start any editor preference flame in any way, shape, or form.

Kind regards

Paul D.

[ChrisNZ]

@hashman 

Mmm very interesting viewpoint.

I never thought anyone would regret the ISPF-style commands, but I totally see your point. 

I reckon few people would forego the mouse nowadays, though.

[hashman]

@ChrisNZ:

There's no way I would forego the little rodent myself ... but reducing its use (and more pain-free and productive because of that)  isn't a bad thing at all.