w.d foramt decimal

[cheche]

Why set format 4.1 in the program, when input 8, the result is 0.8, input 8.0, the result is 8. I'm a little confused by this logic, please help me~

[PaigeMiller]

Your 4.1 in an INPUT statement is an INformat, not a format. It tells SAS how to read the numbers. If you want to tell SAS how to display (or write to an output) the numbers, then you need a format. This allows numbers to read in a certain way, and displayed (or written to an output) differently, if so desired.

data a;
    input source 4.1;
    format source 4.1;
    cards;
...
;

[cheche]

thank you

[Astounding · Accepted solution]

Those results are to be expected. Why the author might want those results is anybody guess. But they are expected.
Let's examine what the 4.1 informat means. First, it means "read 4 characters." Second, inspect those four characters to see if they contain a decimal point. If a decimal point is found, use it. Third, 4.1 means if no decimal point appears in the 4 characters, assume 1 character belongs after the decimal point.

[cheche]

I got it. Thank you