would you code a select construct instead Of If Statements

[rinugour]

Under what circumstances would you code a select construct instead Of If Statements?

[RW9]

That's really up to you. 

For binary choices, then use ifc() or ifn() functions.

For simple if constructs with three or four branches then if statements.

For over 4 consider select.

There are no rules on this, if you prefer if statements, then use them.   

[s_lassen]

Whenever I have a calculated construct that is reused in simple cases, e.g.

select(month(date3));
  when(12,1,2) season="Winter";
  when(3,4,5) season="Spring";
  

A very simple example, but with an IF statement you would have to repeat the month calculation, or insert an extra line to assign it to a variable (and one more line to drop the unneeded month variable). 

It can also be a nice way to throw an error if something unexpected shows up, just omit the OTHERWISE statement.

[Kurt_Bremser]

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@rinugour wrote:

Under what circumstances would you code a select construct instead Of If Statements?

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As soon as it makes the code more readable. If in doubt, put both versions side-by-side and see which one looks better to you.

A potential performance gain has to be determined through testing (in most cases, there won't be a noticeable difference).

[Satish_Parida]

If more number of variables are dependent on some similar nested conditions, it is better to go with if rather than case.

[anjita]

The select statement is used when you are using one condition to compare with several conditions like.

1. Data exam;
2. Set exam;
3. select (pass);
4. when Physics gt 60;
5. when math gt 100;
6. when English eq 50;
7. otherwise fail;
8. run;