library reference
See libref
libref
a SAS name that is associated with the location of a SAS library. For example, in the
name MYLIB.MYFILE, MYLIB is the libref, and MYFILE is a file in the SAS
library.
line mode
See interactive line mode
line-hold specifier
a special symbol used in INPUT and PUT statements that enables you to hold a
record in the input or output buffer for further processing. Line-hold specifiers
include the trailing at sign (@) and the double trailing at sign (@@).
list input
a style of input in which names of variables, not column locations, are specified in
the INPUT statement. List input scans input records for data values that are separated
by at least one blank or by some other delimiter.
LISTING destination
an ODS destination that produces traditional SAS output (monospace format).
LISTING output
SAS procedure output that is in a monospace font. All text in listing output has the
same font size, and no special font styles are applied to it.
literal
a number or a character string that indicates a fixed value.
little endian
a byte ordering in which lower-significance bytes are written to lower storage
addresses in computer memory than are higher-significance bytes. In the SAS
System, the following platforms are considered little endian: OpenVMS Alpha,
Digital UNIX, Intel ABI, and Windows.
locale
a setting that reflects the language, local conventions, and culture for a geographic
region. Local conventions can include specific formatting rules for paper sizes, dates,
times, and numbers, and a currency symbol for the country or region. Some
examples of locale values are French_Canada, Portuguese_Brazil, and
Chinese_Singapore.
localization
the process of adapting software for a particular geocultural region (locale).
Translation of the user interface, system messages, and documentation is a large part
of the localization process.
log
See SAS log
logical operator
an operator that is used in expressions to link sequences of comparisons. The logical
operators are AND, OR, and NOT.
794 Glossary
logical record length
the number of bytes in a unit of information that consists of related data such as a
line in an external file or a SAS observation. Default values for the logical record
lengths depend on the operating environment.
macro
a SAS catalog entry that contains a group of compiled program statements and stored
text.
macro call
a statement that invokes a stored compiled macro program.
macro execution
the process of following the instructions that are given by compiled macro program
statements in order to generate text, to write messages to the SAS log, to accept
input, to create or change the values of macro variables, or to perform other
activities. The generated text can be a SAS statement, a SAS command, or another
macro program statement.
macro expression
any valid combination of symbols that returns a value when it is executed. The three
types of macro expressions are text, logical, and arithmetic. A text expression
generates text when it is resolved (executed) and can consist of any combination of
text, macro variables, macro functions, and macro calls. A logical expression
consists of logical operators and operands and returns a value of either true or false.
An arithmetic expression consists of arithmetic operators and operands and returns a
numeric value.
macro facility
a component of Base SAS software that you can use for extending and customizing
SAS programs and for reducing the amount of text that must be entered in order to
perform common tasks. The macro facility consists of the macro processor and the
macro programming language.
macro function
a function that is defined by the macro facility. Each macro function processes one or
more arguments and produces a result.
macro invocation
See macro call
macro language
the programming language that is used to communicate with the macro processor.
macro parameter
a local macro variable that is defined within parentheses in a %MACRO statement.
You supply values to a macro parameter when you invoke a macro.
macro processor
the component of SAS software that compiles and executes macros and macro
program statements.
macro variable
a variable that is part of the SAS macro programming language. The value of a
macro variable is a string that remains constant until you change it.
Glossary 795
macro variable reference
the name of a macro variable, preceded by an ampersand. The macro processor
replaces the macro variable reference with the value of the specified macro variable.
mantissa
a portion of the representation of a number. Scientific notation, Ew.d format, and
floating-point processors in computers all represent a number in terms of a mantissa,
exponent, and base, where number=mantissa * (base**exponent).
markup language
a set of codes that are embedded in text in order to define layout and certain content.
master data set
in an update operation, the data set that contains the information that you want to
update.
match-merging
a process in which SAS joins observations from two or more SAS data sets
according to the values of the BY variables.
MDDB
See multidimensional database
megabyte
2 to the 20th power, or 1,048,576 (approximately 1 million) bytes.
member type
a SAS name that identifies the type of information that is stored in a SAS file.
Member types include ACCESS, AUDIT, DMBD, DATA, CATALOG, FDB,
INDEX, ITEMSTOR, MDDB, PROGRAM, UTILITY, and VIEW.
memory
the size of the work area that the central processing unit (CPU) must devote to the
operations in a program.
menu
a window object that presents choices to users. In SAS software, menus include
menu bars, pull-down menus, block menus, and selection lists.
merging
the process of combining observations from two or more SAS data sets into a single
observation in a new SAS data set.
metadata
descriptive data about data that is stored and managed in a database, in order to
facilitate access to captured and archived data for further use.
metadata LIBNAME engine
the SAS engine that processes and augments data that is identified by metadata. The
metadata engine retrieves information about a target SAS library from metadata
objects in a specified metadata repository.
metadata object
a set of attributes that describe a table, a server, a user, or another resource on a
network. The specific attributes that a metadata object includes vary depending on
which metadata model is being used.
796 Glossary
metadata server
a server that provides metadata management services to one or more client
applications.
missing value
a type of value for a variable that contains no data for a particular row or column. By
default, SAS writes a missing numeric value as a single period and a missing
character value as a blank space.
model text
See constant text
modified list input
a style of input that uses special instructions called informats and format modifiers in
the INPUT statement. Modified list input scans input records for data values that are
separated by at least one blank (or by some other delimiter), or in some cases, by
multiple blanks.
multidimensional array
a grouping of variables of the same data type under a single name, with at least two
dimensions. When processed, this grouping of variables produces results in columns,
rows, and, depending on the array, higher dimensions.
multidimensional database
a specialized data storage structure in which data is presummarized and cross-
tabulated and then stored as individual cells in a matrix format, rather than in the
row-and-column format of relational database tables. The source data can come
either from a data warehouse or from other data sources. MDDBs can give users
quick, unlimited views of multiple relationships in large quantities of summarized
data.
MultiVendor Architecture
the strategy on which the SAS System is based, where approximately 70% of the
code is portable (that is, reusable) on any host (the application layer). The remaining
code is divided between core and host code layers, and is largely rewritten on each
platform that SAS is released on. MVA SAS applications that are developed using
the SAS System are host-independent, and they require the SAS System to be
installed in order to execute.
name literal
a name token that is expressed as a string within quotation marks, followed by the
uppercase or lowercase letter n. Name literals enable you to use special characters
(including blanks) that are not otherwise allowed in SAS names when you specify a
SAS data set or a variable. Blanks between the closing quotation mark and the n are
not valid if you specify a name literal. When the name literal of a data set or variable
contains any characters that are not allowed when VALIDVARNAME=V7, you must
set the VALIDVARNAME= system option to ANY. Although you set the system
option to ANY, note that the V6 engine does not support names that have intervening
blanks.
named input
a style in which equal signs appear in the INPUT statement to read data values in the
form variable=data-value.
Glossary 797
named output
a style in which equal signs appear in the PUT statement to write variable values in
the form variable=data-value.
native library engine
a SAS engine that accesses types of SAS files that are created and processed only by
SAS.
native view
a SAS data view that is created either with a DATA step or with PROC SQL.
nibble
half a byte, or 4 bits (binary digits).
noninteractive mode
a method of running SAS programs in which you prepare a file of SAS statements
and submit the program to the operating system. The program runs immediately and
comprises your current session.
noninteractive processing
See noninteractive mode
null statement
a statement that consists of a single semicolon or four semicolons. The null statement
is most commonly used to designate the end of instream data in a DATA step.
numeric constant
a number that appears in a SAS expression.
numeric format
a set of instructions that tell SAS to use a specific pattern for writing the values of
numeric variables.
numeric informat
a set of instructions that tell SAS to use a specific pattern for reading numeric data
values.
numeric value
a value that usually contains only numbers, which can include numbers in E-notation
and hexadecimal notation. A numeric value can sometimes contain a decimal point, a
plus sign, or a minus sign. Numeric values are stored in numeric variables.
observation
a row in a SAS data set. All of the data values in an observation are associated with a
single entity such as a customer or a state. Each observation contains either one data
value or a missing-value indicator for each variable.
ODS
See Output Delivery System
ODS destination
a designation that the Output Delivery System uses to generate a specific type of
output. Types of ODS destinations include but are not limited to HTML, XML,
listing, PostScript, RTF, and SAS data sets.
798 Glossary
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