Hi there,
I know that we can use the LIKE operator to filter rows of data; below are my notes on this:
LIKE operator for pattern matching
WHERE col-name LIKE "value";
% is a wild card for any number of characters
_ is a wild card for a single character
*A wild card is a character that can be substituted for zero or more characters in a string
My question is, is it possible to apply this same logic to subset data by column names?
More specifically, I have a table with over 100 columns; I want to create a new table that includes only the columns related to Math. Instead of copy/paste or listing all the columns with the word "Math" in the name, can I apply the LIKE operator using the wildcards to create a table including all columns whose name contains the word "Math"?
Moreover, would this subsetting need to happen in a DATA step or PROC SQL?
DATA want; SET have; WHERE *column name; LIKE "%math%"; RUN;
PROC SQL; CREATE TABLE want AS
SELECT *column name LIKE '%math'; FROM have;
QUIT;
Thanks in advance!
Use the dictionary tables, like here :
%LET olnames=;
PROC SQL noprint;
select name into :olnames separated by ' '
from dictionary.columns
where libname='SASHELP' and memname='HEART' and name LIKE "%ol%";
QUIT;
%PUT &=olnames;
data work.have; set sashelp.heart(keep=&olnames.); run;
/* end of program */
Koen
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