Glossary: Glossary

Glossary

aggregate function: a function that summarizes data and produces a statistic such as a sum, an average, a minimum, or a maximum.
business data: a collective term for data items in an information map. See also data item.
category: a classification of data items. Category data items are used to group measure data items, using an applied aggregate function. For example, a category data item that contains the names of countries could be used to group a measure data item that contains population values.
classification: an attribute of data items that determines how they will be processed in a query. Data items can be classified as either categories or measures.
client: a computer or application that requests services, data, or other resources from a server. See also server.
column: in relational databases, a vertical component of a table. Each column has a unique name, contains data of a specific type, and has certain attributes. A column is analogous to a variable in SAS terminology.
cube: a set of data that is organized and structured in a hierarchical, multidimensional arrangement. A cube includes measures, and it can have numerous dimensions and levels of data.
data element: a general term that can include data (such as table columns, OLAP hierarchies, and OLAP measures) as well as data items. See also data item.
data item: in an information map, an item that represents either data (a table column, an OLAP hierarchy, or an OLAP measure) or a calculation. Data items are used for building queries. Data items are usually customized in order to present the data in a form that is relevant and meaningful to a business user.
data set: See SAS data set.
data source: a logical representation of a table or cube that an information map retrieves data from.
DATA step: in a SAS program, a group of statements that begins with a DATA statement and that ends with either a RUN statement, another DATA statement, a PROC statement, the end of the job, or the semicolon that immediately follows lines of data. The DATA step enables you to read raw data or other SAS data sets and to use programming logic to create a SAS data set, to write a report, or to write to an external file.
dimension: a group of closely related hierarchies. Hierarchies within a dimension typically represent different groupings of information that pertains to a single concept. For example, a Time dimension might consist of two hierarchies: (1) Year, Month, Date, and (2) Year, Week, Day. See also hierarchy.
engine: a component of SAS software that reads from or writes to a file. Each engine enables SAS to access files that are in a particular file format.
Extensible Markup Language: a markup language that structures information by tagging it for content, meaning, or use. Structured information contains both content (for example, words or numbers) and an indication of what role the content plays. For example, content in a section heading has a different meaning from content in a database table. Short form: XML.
filter: in an information map, criteria (rules) that subset data. When a query is generated from an information map, the filter is converted to a query-language statement (for example, an SQL WHERE clause).
format: a pattern that SAS uses to determine how the values of a variable or data item should be written or displayed. SAS provides a set of standard formats and also enables you to define your own formats.
hierarchy: an arrangement of members of a dimension into levels that are based on parent-child relationships. Members of a hierarchy are arranged from more general to more specific. For example, in a Time dimension, a hierarchy might consist of the members Year, Quarter, Month, and Day. In a Geography dimension, a hierarchy might consist of the members Country, State or Province, and City. More than one hierarchy can be defined for a dimension. Each hierarchy provides a navigational path that enables users to drill down to increasing levels of detail. See also member and level.
informat: a pattern or set of instructions that SAS uses to determine how data values in an input file should be interpreted. SAS provides a set of standard informats and also enables you to define your own informats.
information map: a collection of data items and filters that provides a user-friendly view of a data source. When you use an information map to query data for business needs, you do not have to understand the structure of the underlying data source or know how to program in a query language.
inner join: a join between two tables that returns all of the rows in one table that have one or more matching rows in the other table. See also join.
join: (1) the act of combining data from two or more tables in order to produce a single result set. (2) a specification that describes how you want data from two or more tables to be combined. The specification can be in the form of Structured Query Language (SQL) programming code, or it can be done interactively through a software user interface.
level: an element of a dimension hierarchy. Levels describe the dimension from the highest (most summarized) level to the lowest (most detailed) level. For example, possible levels for a Geography dimension are Country, Region, State or Province, and City.
libref: a short name for the full physical name of a SAS library. In the context of the SAS Metadata Server, a libref is associated with a SAS library when the library is defined in the metadata server.
literal: a number or a character string that indicates a fixed value.
MDX language: See multidimensional expressions language.
measure: (1) a classification of data items. The values of measure data items are aggregated (unless otherwise specified) and can be used in computations or analytical expressions. For example, a measure data item could contain age values that are grouped by gender and then averaged. (2) a member of a Measure dimension.
member: (1) a SAS file in a SAS library. (2) in a multidimensional database (or cube), a name that represents a particular data element within a dimension. For example, September 1996 might be a member of the Time dimension. A member can be either unique or non-unique. For example, 1997 and 1998 represent unique members in the Year level of a Time dimension. January represents non-unique members in the Month level, because there can be more than one January in the Time dimension if the Time dimension contains data for more than one year.
metadata: data about data. For example, metadata typically describes resources that are shared by multiple applications within an organization. These resources can include software, servers, data sources, network connections, and so on. Metadata can also be used to define application users and to manage users' access to resources. Maintaining metadata in a central location is more efficient than specifying and maintaining the same information separately for each application.
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.
metadata server: a server that provides metadata management services to one or more client applications. A SAS Metadata Server is an example.
multidimensional expressions language: a standardized, high-level language that is used to query multidimensional data sources. The MDX language is the multidimensional equivalent of SQL (Structured Query Language). Short form: MDX language.
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.
OLAP: See online analytical processing.
online analytical processing: a software technology that enables users to dynamically analyze data that is stored in cubes. Short form: OLAP.
outer join: a join between two tables that returns all of the rows in one table, as well as part or all of the rows in the other table. A left or right outer join returns all of the rows in one table (the table on the left or right side of the SQL statement, respectively), as well as the matching rows in the other table. A full outer join returns all of the rows in both of the tables. See also join.
physical data: data values that are stored on any type of physical data-storage media, such as disk or tape.
port: in a network that uses the TCP/IP protocol, an endpoint of a logical connection between a client and a server. Each port is represented by a unique number.
procedure: See SAS procedure.
prompted filter: a filter that is associated with a prompt, which enables the user of an information map to specify filtering criteria when a query is executed.
query: a set of instructions that requests particular information from one or more data sources.
register: to save metadata about an object to a metadata server. For example, if you register a table, you save metadata about that table to a metadata server.
relationship: the association, between tables in an information map, that generates a database join in a query.
repository: a location in which data, metadata, or programs are stored, organized, and maintained, and which is accessible to users either directly or through a network.
result set: the set of rows or records that a server or other application returns in response to a query.
row: in relational database management systems, the horizontal component of a table. A row is analogous to a SAS observation.
SAS data file: a type of SAS data set that contains data values as well as descriptor information that is associated with the data. The descriptor information includes information such as the data types and lengths of the variables, as well as the name of the engine that was used to create the data. See also SAS data set and SAS data view.
SAS data set: a file whose contents are in one of the native SAS file formats. There are two types of SAS data sets: SAS data files and SAS data views. SAS data files contain data values in addition to descriptor information that is associated with the data. SAS data views contain only the descriptor information plus other information that is required for retrieving data values from other SAS data sets or from files that are stored in other software vendors' file formats.
SAS data set option: an option that appears in parentheses after a SAS data set name. Data set options specify actions that apply only to the processing of that SAS data set.
SAS data view: a type of SAS data set that retrieves data values from other files. A SAS data view contains only descriptor information such as the data types and lengths of the variables (columns) plus other information that is required for retrieving data values from other SAS data sets or from files that are stored in other software vendors' file formats. SAS data views can be created by the SAS DATA step and by the SAS SQL procedure.
SAS Information Map: See information map.
SAS library: a collection of one or more files that are recognized by SAS and that are referenced and stored as a unit. SAS libraries can be defined in a SAS Metadata Server to provide centralized definitions for SAS applications.
SAS Open Metadata Architecture: a general-purpose metadata management facility that provides metadata services to SAS applications. The SAS Open Metadata Architecture enables applications to exchange metadata, which makes it easier for these applications to work together.
SAS procedure: a program that provides specific functionality and that is accessed with a PROC statement. For example, SAS procedures can be used to produce reports, to manage files, or to analyze data. Many procedures are included in SAS software.
SAS program: a group of SAS statements that guide SAS through a process or series of processes in order to read and transform input data and to generate output. The DATA step and the procedure step, used alone or in combination, form the basis of SAS programs.
SAS system option: an option that affects the processing of an entire SAS program or interactive SAS session from the time the option is specified until it is changed. Examples of items that are controlled by SAS system options include the appearance of SAS output, the handling of some files that are used by SAS, the use of system variables, the processing of observations in SAS data sets, features of SAS initialization, and the way SAS interacts with your host operating environment.
SAS Workspace Server: a SAS server that provides access to Foundation SAS features such as the SAS programming language and SAS libraries.
schema: a map or model of the overall data structure of a database. An OLAP schema specifies which group of cubes an OLAP server can access.
server: a computer system that provides data or services to multiple users on a network. The term 'server' sometimes refers to the computer system's hardware and software, but it often refers only to the software that provides the data or services. In a network, users might log on to a file server (to store and retrieve data files), a print server (to use centrally located printers), or a database server (to query or update databases). In a client/server implementation, a server is a program that waits for and fulfills requests from client programs for data or services. The client programs might be running on the same computer or on other computers. See also client.
SQL: See Structured Query Language.
statement option: a word that you specify in a particular SAS statement and which affects only the processing that that statement performs.
Structured Query Language: a standardized, high-level query language that is used in relational database management systems to create and manipulate database management system objects. Short form: SQL.
system option: See SAS system option.
table: a two-dimensional representation of data in which the data values are arranged in rows and columns.
variable: a column in a SAS data set or in a SAS data view. The data values for each variable describe a single characteristic for all observations.
XML: See Extensible Markup Language.

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