Language Reference


Base SAS Functions Accessible from SAS/IML Software

You can call most functions available in Base SAS software from SAS/IML programs. If you call a Base SAS function with a matrix argument, the function will usually act elementwise on each element of the matrix.

Some DATA step functions are not applicable or not useful in the SAS/IML enviroment. For example, Base SAS functions that take a list of scalar arguments are often not very useful to the SAS/IML programmer. (The SAS/IML language does not support the OF keyword.) However, it is usually possible to use SAS/IML built-in functions to obtain the same results. For example, the SUMABS, EUCLID, and LPNORM functions in Base SAS are used to compute the vector norm of a list of arguments. Instead of using those functions, you should use the SAS/IML NORM function .

The following Base SAS functions are either not available from SAS/IML software, or behave differently from the Base SAS function of the same name.

Function

Comment

CHAR

conflicts with the SAS/IML CHAR function

CALL CATS

return variable must be preinitialized

DIFn

not supported; use the SAS/IML DIF function instead.

DIM

not supported, but see the DIMENSION function for similar functionality.

HBOUND

not supported

LAGn

not supported; use the SAS/IML LAG function instead.

LBOUND

not supported

MOD

base function performs "fuzzing"; the SAS/IML function does not

PUT

Use the PRINT statement instead

CALL PRXNEXT

return variables must be preinitialized

CALL PRXPOSN

return variables must be preinitialized

CALL PRXSUBSTR

return variables must be preinitialized

CALL SCAN

return variables must be preinitialized

VVALUE

not applicable: interrogates DATA step variables

VVALUEX

not applicable: interrogates DATA step variables

VNEXT

not applicable: interrogates DATA step variables

There are also some Base SAS features that are not supported by the SAS/IML language. For example, the DATA step permits N-literals (strings that end with ’N’) to be interpreted as the name of a variable, but the SAS/IML language does not.

The following Base SAS functions can be called from SAS/IML. The functions are documented in the SAS Language Reference: Dictionary. In some cases, SAS/IML does not accept all variations in the syntax. For example, SAS/IML does not accept the OF keyword as a way to generate an argument list in a function.

The functions displayed in italics are documented elsewhere in this user’s guide. These functions operate on matrices in addition to scalar values, as do many of the mathematical and statistical functions.