What's New in the Base SAS 9.3 Language Reference: Concepts

Overview

The following features are new or enhanced for SAS 9.3:

A SAS/GRAPH license is no longer required for ODS Graphics. The Graph Template Language (GTL), the ODS Graphics Procedures, the ODS Graphics Editor, and the ODS Graphics Designer are now all available with Base SAS software.
HTML is now the default destination in the SAS windowing environment for Windows and UNIX operating environments.
HTMLBlue is the new default HTML style when running SAS in windowing mode for the Windows and UNIX operating environments.
Adobe Type1 fonts are now supported and can be added to the SAS registry.
Rules for naming SAS data sets, SAS data views, and item stores have been expanded to allow special characters and national characters.
The new data set option EXTENDOBSCOUNTER= creates an enhanced file format that counts observations beyond the 32-bit long integer maximum.
Optimizing WHERE conditions with an index is improved with the enhanced SUBSTR (left of=) function.
A new JMP engine enables you to quickly and easily read your JMP data tables into SAS.
Enhancements to Universal Printing provide more ways for you to customize output and create higher quality results.
Checkpoint mode and restart mode now support labeled code sections.

ODS Graphics in Base SAS

Selected SAS/GRAPH Products Included with Base SAS Software

A SAS/GRAPH license is no longer required for ODS Graphics. The Graph Template Language (GTL), the ODS Graphics Procedures, the ODS Graphics Editor, and the ODS Graphics Designer are now all available with Base SAS software. The documentation for these products is now included in the Base SAS node in the SAS 9.3 Help and Documentation. For more information about these applications, refer to the documentation below:

SAS ODS Graphics: Procedures Guide
SAS Graph Template Language: User's Guide
SAS Graph Template Language: Reference
SAS ODS Graphics Designer: User's Guide
SAS ODS Graphics Editor: User's Guide

New ODS Output Defaults

Beginning with SAS 9.3, the LISTING destination is turned off and the HTML destination is turned on by default when running SAS in windowing mode for the Windows and UNIX operating environments.

The new default HTML style is HTMLBlue when running SAS in windowing mode for the Windows and UNIX operating environments. This style enhances default output by offering a view that is optimized for display on a computer screen. The new all-color style is ideal for statistical graphics because it provides superior color coordination between graphs and tables, using colors to differentiate between groups.

SAS System Features

Security Enhancements for Password Protected Views and Programs

In the second maintenance release of SAS 9.3, security has been enhanced for password-protected SAS views and stored-compiled programs. Prior to the second maintenance release of SAS 9.3, read or write-protected SAS views or programs could be DESCRIBED without having to specify the password. Now, to DESCRIBE any password-protected view or program, regardless of the level of protection that it was assigned, you must specify its password. If the view or program was created with more than one password, you must specify its most restrictive password when describing the view or program.

Base SAS Indexing

Using an index for WHERE processing is enhanced for the SUBSTR (left of=) function in a WHERE condition.

Observation Count Extension in a SAS Data File

The observation count in a SAS data file is the total number of observations (rows) that are currently in the file combined with the number of deleted observations. The maximum number of observations that can be counted for a file is determined by the long integer data type size for the operating environment. The new EXTENDOBSCOUNTER= option requests an extended file format for an output SAS data file that counts observations beyond the 32-bit long maximum.

JMP Files

A new LIBNAME engine enables you to read and write JMP files in a Base SAS session.

Expanded Rules for SAS Names

New rules for naming SAS data sets, SAS data views, and item stores accommodate special characters and national characters.

Cross-Environment Data Access (CEDA)

CEDA processing is not invoked when you process Windows 32-bit data files in a Windows 64-bit SAS 9.3 session. Likewise, CEDA processing is not invoked when you process Windows 64-bit data files in a Windows 32-bit SAS 9.3 session. If you use Windows data sets in either 32-bit or 64-bit operating environments, you do not need to do anything to benefit from this functionality other than to use SAS 9.3.

Catalogs are an exception. Catalogs are not compatible between 32-bit and 64-bit SAS for Windows.

Universal Printing and Font Support

EMF (Enhanced Metafile) output is now supported by Universal Printing.
SAS now supports Adobe PostScript Type1 fonts. You can add Type1 fonts to your SAS environment by registering them in the SAS registry.
You can change the orientation of an individual page in a Universal Printing document to either portrait or landscape by setting the ORIENTATION= system option before the creation of a new page.
To view the attributes of a universal printer, you can create a report using the QDEVICE procedure whose output goes to either the SAS log or to an output data set.
Most universal printers now support 32-bit CMYK colors or 32-bit RGBA (transparency) colors.
The SVGANIM printer produces SVG 1.1 animated documents.
The control buttons for a multi-page SVG document are now positioned based on the size of the window.

Checkpoint Mode and Restart Mode for Labeled Code Sections

Batch programs that terminate before completing can be resubmitted starting at labeled code sections if checkpoint mode and restart mode for labeled code sections is enabled.

If the CHKPTCLEAN system option is set and your batch program completes successfully, the contents of the Work library are erased.