My optimism from last week has shrunk a little. I was hoping SAS would be stored in my ROTE memory, however… I still find myself looking up and looking at examples, whether it be my past work or online of how to do PROCs, SQL’s… etc.

&Macros are great. I feel as though I have a good idea of how they work and I understand how critical they will be when processing big data and needing multiple results from the same data set. You have to be careful when staging, but once you have the program running, and wrap it correctly in the Macro it is a game changer and time saver.

I was having trouble with PROC RANK earlier. I wanted to create a table to list the top 10 percocet script providers by their name and primary speciality… my PROC RANK worked fine, but when I went to make the table it was not sorted correctly. I had forgot to use PROC SORT before PROC SQL to create the table, so my results were not coming back with the top 10 observations. I was hoping by now I would start to remember these things and have an easier time with SAS.

Overall my general understanding of SAS is increasing. I become better and better at debugging my code and I am starting to understand the structure of better. I.e., proc’s sql’s, where statements, etc. However, as I know I am sounding redundant… when I can’t figure it out and get stuck for hours it is extremely frustrating and I loose all confidence that I have gained.

I see how crucial %macro’s are going to be. There is a lot of work involved to set up and structure the data… however once that is done and you set your Macro, you can easily manipulate the data and save lots of time!!!

When I was having trouble with week 4’s assignment, especially the CASE WHEN statements… I ran a proc means to be able to see when I finally had captured the data in the case when statements. I thought it was a good and creative way to see if the code was generating an end result.

While working on this weeks assignment I have become a lot better a debugging. Understanding the syntax error and what it is telling me is becoming easier. Not only that, but the ability to look over my work and identify where I have gone wrong, typically a miss-spelling or a forgotten () , or ;. However, understanding what part has gone wrong and knowing where to identify it has become easier.

I’m sure the most experienced coders have to debug and the programs they are debugging are probably light years longer and more complex then my assignment. However, I believe it is a valuable skill and one not to take for granted.

This is my first time using SQL, and that should not be a surprise considering this is my first time coding. I can see how powerful it is and what it allows you to do in SAS. After reading the chapters, and comparing some of the procedures the book explains, SQL makes them a lot easier and more manageable.

And finally, my critical thinking skill are perked again. As I go along with the assignments, and they ask something of me, especially when I don’t have the steps laid out in front of me, I am getting better and looking back at examples, and understanding how to input my dad and work with the problem.

I have had my first aaaah-ha moment! While reading chapter 6 the process involved in writing the code began to make sense! For instance;

Data (no =) followed by this_is_my_new_data is the line for assigning a new name for the raw data I am about to import!

Followed by Infile ‘where it’s coming from… (soon to be renamed) data’ or Set (if merging for example) <====== see I’m starting to understand the lingo… data-set-1 data-set-2

Then DATA (with=) = like in a proc print executes that DATA that I have assigned in the code…

I hope that is legible. What I am getting at is the order of operations is starting to make sense, and if it is while reading it from the text book I’m sure it is going to get easier when writing the code. Mainly, because I am starting to identify it for what it is!

However, this all goes out the window when I come across a new line and have to figure out what it means!

Chapter 6 is all about Modifying and Combining Data Sets, I can see how having this skill would have been useful for understanding cash flow and factors from multiple years of bank account CSV files for company I work for. Knowing what I know now, and having access to SAS, I would have been able to sort that DATA and see how profit and loss compared across years much more easily then doing it in Excel (or so I think).

I still struggle with it as a whole because there is a lot to the program and a lot of ins and outs for BY statements and _N_….

I have no experience with coding. The concept and procedures are all new to me. This creates an extra layer of complexity. Technically, everything that was discussed in our first virtual session was new. However, there were a few items that stood out to me.

Most of us have experience with Excel or Google Sheets. Albeit basic to advanced. With that being said, I assumed all platforms would use the same verbiage for the X and Y axis… I guess not. Instead of rows and columns, SAS uses Observations and Variables. It was also eye opening to me to learn that coding commands are not synonymous between programs. Ignorant thought, yes, however, I thought there would be some similarities. Again, not that any of that would help me since I have never coded in any language.

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton