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What's New Table of Contents

What's New in the SAS 9.0 and 9.1 Companion for Windows

Overview

New and enhanced features in Base SAS improve ease of use and SAS performance under the Windows environment:

• SAS now runs under 32- and 64-bit Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 operating environments.
• SAS servers and PCs can use memory-based SAS libraries to process SAS data.
• Network security is enhanced by using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL).
• SAS is now able to sort data using the high-performance sorting tool SyncSort for Windows, by Syncsort, Incorporated, if you have SyncSort installed at your site.
• Sharing files between UNIX and Windows has been simplified.
• You can start SAS with the same destination printer that was specified when you ended your last SAS session.
• During initialization, SAS looks in the Windows user profile directory for a configuration file if you do not specify a configuration file at SAS invocation.
• The Enhanced Editor autosave files are now saved to the Application Data folder.
• Accessibility aids can now access many of the SAS windows and dialog boxes.

Note:   

• This section describes the features of SAS Companion for Windows that are new or enhanced since SAS 8.2.
• z/OS is the successor to the OS/390 operating system. Throughout this document, any reference to z/OS also applies to OS/390, unless otherwise stated.

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Basic Operation of SAS

The basic operation of SAS has been enhanced as follows:

• You can store a customized configuration file in the Windows user profile folder. During invocation, SAS searches this folder for a configuration file named either SASV9.CFG or .SASV9.CFG.
• Performance can be improved by processing SAS data in memory-based SAS libraries.
• Use Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) for secure networks. For information about SSL, see the SAS/CONNECT User's Guide.
• SAS can now sort data by using SyncSort for Windows if you have Syncsort installed at your site.
• To use the same destination printer (not the default printer) from one SAS session to the next, use the PRTPERSISTDEFAULT system option when you start SAS.
• To send an e-mail attachment with records that contain more than 256 characters, the ATTACH email-option in the FILENAME, EMAIL statement now supports the LRECL and RECFM options.
• When you attach the contents of the Results Viewer to an e-mail message, the file is attached according to its file type of either .html or .rtf.
• In 64-bit operating environments, the V6 engine is a read-only engine.
• New keyboard shortcuts are available for resizing the docking view and displaying property sheets from a window that contains a Tree view or a List view.
• If a fatal error occurs during SAS initialization or termination and the MSG dialog box is not available or the SAS log is not open, error messages are written to the SAS console log.

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Accessibility

The following features are new:

• Many of the SAS windows and dialog boxes can be read by accessibility aids.
• The ACCESSIBILITY system option enables access to the Customize Tools dialog box Customize tab and some SAS Properties dialog boxes.
• Text can be enlarged by using the SYSGUIFONT system option.
• Accessibility aids might have fewer problems reading menus if you exclude menu icons.
• You can use the keyboard to resize the docking view.
• When a window (such as SAS Explorer) contains a List view, you can use the Sort Columns dialog box to sort the list by the detail information.
• You can resize the details columns in a List view by using the Column Settings dialog box.

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Enhanced Editor

The following features are new:

• To open new or existing files in an Enhanced Editor window, you can select New Program and Open Program from the File menu.
• The Enhanced Editor now recognizes XML files that have the .xml file extension.
• When you open a file in the Enhanced Editor, the tabs can be converted to spaces.
• The full path and the filename of the last submitted program or catalog entry is available by using environment variables.
• Submit one or more lines of code without submitting your complete program by using the SUBTOP command.
• Line numbers can be turned on and off by using the NUMS command.

The following features have been enhanced:

• The Enhanced Editor accepts lines of data in a DATALINES statement that are longer than 256 characters into one observation without using FILENAME statement options.
• Autosave files are saved to the Application Data folder.
• The default value for the Enhanced Editor Script appearance option is determined by the Windows regional options.

The following feature has been removed:

• The Enhanced Editor no longer prompts you to reload a file on a disk that has been updated.

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Graphical User Interface

The following features are new in the SAS main window:

• The Universal Printing commands are available from the File menu when you specify the UPRINTMENUSWITCH system option.
• More windowing environment workspace is available by minimizing the docking view.
• A maximum of 20 customized help files can be added to the Help menu.
• The Print and Copy toolbar buttons are always enabled if they are commands in a customized toolbar.
• To print line numbers, page numbers, and to print in color, select the Options button in the Print dialog box.
• The About SAS System dialog box includes information about the SAS version and the Windows operating environment that you are currently using.

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SAS Language Elements

Commands

The following SAS commands are new:

• When a SAS window (such as the SAS Explorer window) contains a List view, you can resize the columns by using the DLGCOLUMNSIZE command.
• Sort the columns in a List view by using the DLGCOLUMNSORT command.
• Three new docking view commands, WDOCKVIEWMINIMIZE, WDOCKVIEWRESTORE, and WDOCKVIEWRESIZE, enable the docking view to be minimized, restored, and resized.
• To change the active window to the editor window that was last edited, use the WPGM command.

Functions

The following have specific functionality in the Windows operating environment:

• The DINFO Function, the DOPTNAME Function, and the DOPTNUM Function return directory information.
• To delete an external file, use the FDELETE Function.
• Verify the existence of an external file by using either the FEXIST Function or the FILEEXIST Function.
• To assign or clear a fileref, use the FILENAME Function.
• Verify that a filref has been assigned by using the FILEREF Function.
• Obtain information about a file by using the FINFO Function, the FOPTNAME Function, and the FOPTNUM Function.
• To assign or clear a libref, use the LIBNAME Function.

Statements

The following statements have been enhanced:

• Share files between the UNIX and Windows operating environments by using the TERMSTR host option in the FILE and INFILE statements.
• ^Z is interpreted as character data and not as an end-of-file marker when you specify the IGNOREDOSEOF host option in the %INCLUDE, FILENAME, FILE, and INFILE statements.

System Options

The following system options are new:

• Accessibility features are extended for the Customize Tools dialog box and for some Properties dialog boxes by using the ACCESSIBILITY system option.
• If you create a customized table of contents and index for the SAS Help and Documentation, use the HELPTOC and HELPINDEX system options to specify the file location.
• Use memory-based SAS libraries to improve SAS performance by using the MEMBLKSZ and MEMMAXSZ system options.
• Improve the access to menus by accessibility aids when you use the NOMENUICONS system option.
• The same destination printer can persist from one SAS session to another by using the PRTPERSISTDEFAULT system option.
• Stop the SLEEP window from displaying when you use the SLEEP function or the WAKEUP function by specifying the NOSLEEPWINDOW system option.
• If you have SyncSort for Windows installed at your site, use these system option to specify sort options:
  • SORTPGM system option specifies to sort by using SyncSort for Windows.
  • The SORTANOM system option enables you to specify options for SyncSort for Windows.
  • Use SORTCUT and SORTCUTP system options to specify the number of observations and bytes above which SyncSort for Windows is used instead of the SAS sort.
  • Use the SORTDEV system option to specify a temporary directory for files that are created by SyncSort for Windows.
  • The SORTPARM system option enables you to specify SyncSort parameters.
• SSLCERTISS, SSLCERTSERIAL, SSLCERTSUBJ, SSLCLIENTAUTH, and SSLCRLCHECK are new system options that support Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) authentication.
• To enlarge text for easier readability, use the SYSGUIFONT system option.
• The Universal Print commands are available from the File menu when you specify the UPRINTMENUSWITCH system option.

The following system option has been enhanced:

• The new default value for the SORTSIZE system option is MAX.

The EMAILID and EMAILPW options, which were previously available only in the Windows environment, are now available in all operating environments. See SAS Language Reference: Dictionary.

Macros

The SYSSCPL automatic macro variable returns a value for the Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 operating environments.