Dynamic Data Exchange
(DDE) is a method of
dynamically exchanging information between Windows applications.
DDE uses a client/server relationship to enable a client application
to request information from a server application. SAS is always the
client. In this role, SAS requests data from server applications,
sends data to server applications, or sends commands to server applications.
You can use DDE with
the DATA step, the SAS macro facility,
SAS/AF applications, or any
other portion of SAS that requests and generates data. DDE has many
potential uses, one of which is to acquire data from a Windows spreadsheet
or database application.
Note: Many Windows programs, including
SAS, now support OLE to facilitate communication between applications.
If you need to share data with an application that supports OLE, you
might prefer to use the OLE support that is built into SAS. For more
information, see
About OLE.