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.

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

an application that requests either resources or services from a server, possibly over a network.

column

a vertical component of a table. Each column has a unique name, contains data of a specific type, and has particular attributes. A column is analogous to a variable in SAS terminology.

cube

See OLAP cube.

data element

a general term that can include data (such as table columns, OLAP hierarchies, and OLAP measures) as well as data items.

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 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, or the end of the job. The DATA step enables you to read raw data or other SAS data sets and to create SAS data sets.

data view

See SAS data view.

dimension

a data element that categorizes values in a data set into non-overlapping categories that can be used to group, filter, and label the data in meaningful ways. 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, and Date, and (2) Year, Week, and Day.

engine

a component of SAS software that reads from or writes to a file. Various engines enable SAS to access different types of file formats.

Extensible Markup Language

See XML.

filter

See package filter.

format

See SAS format.

global 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.

hierarchy

an arrangement of related objects into levels that are based on parent-child relationships. Members of a hierarchy are arranged from more general to more specific.

informat

See SAS informat.

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.

join

an operation that combines data from two or more tables. A join is typically created by means of SQL (Structured Query Language) code or a 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.

library reference

See libref.

libref

a SAS name that is associated with the location of a SAS library. For example, in the name MYLIB.MYFILE, MYLIB is the libref, and MYFILE is a file in the SAS library.

literal

a number or a character string that indicates a fixed value.

MDX language

See multidimensional expressions language.

measure

a member of a Measures dimension.

measure data item

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.

member

an element of a dimension. For example, for a dimension that contains time periods, each time period is a member of the dimension.

metadata

descriptive data about data that is stored and managed in a database, in order to facilitate access to captured and archived data for further use.

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 stores information about servers, users, and stored processes and that provides this information to one or more client applications.

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).

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 cube

a logical set of data that is organized and structured in a hierarchical, multidimensional arrangement to enable quick analysis of data. A cube includes measures, and it can have numerous dimensions and levels of data.

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.

package filter

specified criteria that are applied to data in order to identify the subset of data for a subsequent operation, such as continued processing.

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.

PROC

See SAS procedure.

procedure

See SAS procedure.

prompted filter

a type of filter that is associated with a prompt, and that enables the user 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 repository. For example, if you register a table, you save metadata about that table to a metadata repository.

relationship

the association, between tables in an information map, that generates a database join in a query.

result set

the set of rows or records that a server or other application returns in response to a query.

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.

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 whose contents are 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 format

a type of SAS language element that applies a pattern to or executes instructions for a data value to be displayed or written as output. Types of formats correspond to the data's type: numeric, character, date, time, or timestamp. The ability to create user-defined formats is also supported. Examples of SAS formats are BINARY and DATE.

SAS informat

a type of SAS language element that applies a pattern to or executes instructions for a data value to be read as input. Types of informats correspond to the data's type: numeric, character, date, time, or timestamp. The ability to create user-defined informats is also supported. Examples of SAS informats are BINARY and DATE.

SAS library

one or more files that are defined, recognized, and accessible by SAS and that are referenced and stored as a unit. Each file is a member of the library.

SAS Metadata Repository

a container for metadata that is managed by the SAS Metadata Server.

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 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 (rows).

schema

a map or model of the overall data structure of a database. A schema consists of schema records that are organized in a hierarchical tree structure. Schema records contain schema items.

server

software that provides either resources or services to requesting clients, possibly over a network.

statement option

a word that you specify in a particular SAS statement and which affects only the processing that that statement performs.

variable

See SAS variable.

XML

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.