ACROSS=number-of-columns: specifies the number of columns to use for legend entries. If there are multiple rows and columns in a legend, use the ROWMAJOR and COLMAJOR options to specify the arrangement of legend entries. Specify the ROWMAJOR option to arrange entries (from lowest to highest) starting from left to right, and then top to bottom. Specify the COLMAJOR option to arrange entries starting from top to bottom, and then left to right.

See: ROWMAJOR | COLMAJOR

Example:Creating a Simple Web Page with the ODS HTML Statement

CBLOCK=block-color: generates and colors a three-dimensional block effect behind the legend. The size and position of the block are controlled by the graphics option OFFSHADOW=(x,y)..
The Java applet treats the CBLOCK option like the CSHADOW option.

Restrictions:Not supported by Java.

The CBLOCK= and CSHADOW= options are mutually exclusive. If both are present, SAS/GRAPH software uses the last one specified.

Interaction:The CBLOCK= option is usually used in conjunction with the FRAME, CFRAME=, or CBORDER= options.

See:OFFSHADOW

Creating Drop Shadows and Block Effects

CBORDER=frame-color: draws a colored frame around the legend.

Style reference:Color attribute of the GraphBorderLines graph element

Restriction: This option overrides the FRAME option.

Interaction: CBORDER= can be used in conjunction with the CFRAME= option.

CFRAME=background-color: specifies the background color of the legend. This option overrides the FRAME option.

Style reference:Color attribute of the GraphLegendBackground graph element

Restriction:If both the CFRAME= and FRAME= options are specified, only the solid background produced by the CFRAME= option is displayed.

Interaction: The CFRAME= option can be used in conjunction with the CBORDER= option.

CSHADOW=shadow-color: generates and colors a drop shadow behind the legend. The size and position of the shadow is controlled by the graphics option OFFSHADOW=(x,y).

Restriction:The CSHADOW= and CBLOCK= options are mutually exclusive. If both are present, SAS/GRAPH uses the last one specified.

Interaction: The CSHADOW= option is usually specified in conjunction with the FRAME, CFRAME=, or CBORDER= options.

See:OFFSHADOW

Creating Drop Shadows and Block Effects

DOWN=number-of-rows: specifies the number of rows to use for legend entries. If there are multiple rows and columns in a legend, use the ROWMAJOR and COLMAJOR options to specify the arrangement of legend entries. Specify the ROWMAJOR option to arrange entries (from lowest to highest) starting from left to right, and then top to bottom. Specify the COLMAJOR option to arrange entries starting from top to bottom, and then left to right.

Default:When there are multiple rows and columns in a legend, the ROWMAJOR option is the default

See: ROWMAJOR | COLMAJOR

FRAME | NOFRAME: draws a frame around the legend. The color of the frame is the first color in the color list. NOFRAME suppresses the drawing of a frame, and is the default.

FWIDTH=thickness-factor: specifies the thickness of the frame, where thickness-factor is a number. The thickness of the line increases directly with thickness-factor. By default, FWIDTH=1.

Restriction:Not supported by Java and ActiveX

LABEL=(text-argument(s)) | NONE

modifies a legend label. Text-argument(s) defines the appearance or the text of a legend label, or both. NONE suppresses the legend label in most instances. By default, the text of the legend label is either the variable name or a previously assigned variable label (except in the case of GPLOT with OVERLAY. In that case, the default label is “PLOT”). In order to use an overlay variable and suppress the legend label that would display that variable name, specify a SAS software font to generate the unprintable hexadecimal character of ‘00’x, as shown in this example:

legend1 label=(font=swiss '00'x);

Text-argument(s) can be one or more of these:

“text-string”

provides up to 256 characters of label text. Enclose each string in quotation marks. Separate multiple strings with blanks.

In addition, if you have a BY statement and you specify the variable that it names, you can embed one or both of the following in the string:

#BYVALn | #BYVAL(BY-variable-name)

substitutes the current value of the specified BY variable for #BYVAL in the text string and displays the value produced by the statement. Specify the variable with one of these:

n: specifies which variable in the BY statement #BYVAL should use. The value of n indicates the position of the variable in the BY statement. For example, #BYVAL2 specifies the second variable in the BY statement.

BY-variable-name: names the BY variable. For example, #BYVAL(YEAR) specifies the BY variable, YEAR. Variable-name is not case sensitive.

Examples:Using BY-group Processing to Generate a Series of Charts

Combining Graphs and Reports in a Web Page

#BYVARn | #BYVAR(BY-variable-name)

substitutes the name of the BY variable or label associated with the variable (whatever the BY line would normally display) for #BYVAR in the text string and displays the name or label produced by the statement. Specify the variable with one of these:

n: specifies which variable in the BY statement #BYVAR should use. The value of n indicates the position of the variable in the BY statement. For example, #BYVAR2 specifies the second variable in the BY statement.

BY-variable-name: names the BY variable. For example, #BYVAR(SITES) specifies the BY variable, SITES. Variable-name is not case sensitive.

Note:A BY variable name displayed is always in uppercase. If a label is used, it appears as specified in the LABEL statement.

See:Substituting BY Line Values in a Text String

text-description-suboption

modifies a characteristic such as the font, color, or size of the text strings that follows it. Text-description-suboption can be as follows:

ANGLE=degrees
COLOR=text-color
FONT=font | NONE
HEIGHT=text-height <units>
JUSTIFY=LEFT | CENTER | RIGHT
POSITION=(<BOTTOM | MIDDLE | TOP> <LEFT | CENTER | RIGHT>)
ROTATE=degrees

See Text Description Suboptions for complete descriptions of these suboptions. .

Specify as many text strings and text description suboptions as you want, but enclose them all in one set of parentheses.

Style reference:Color attribute of the GraphLabelText graph element

Restrictions:Partially supported by Java and ActiveX

#BYVAL or #BYVAR substitution in a text string is not available in the DATA Step Graphics Interface or in the Annotate facility. The reason is that BY lines are not created in a DATA step.

Note:The Java applet does not support the POSITION= suboption—it draws legend labels at the top left of the legend. Also, it does not support multiple values for the JUSTIFY= suboption (only the first is honored). The ActiveX control supports the POSITION= option but does not support multiple values for the JUSTIFY suboption (only the first is honored).

Examples:Rotating Plot Symbols through the Color List

Creating a Simple Web Page with the ODS HTML Statement

MODE=PROTECT | RESERVE | SHARE

specifies whether the legend is drawn in the procedure output area or whether legend elements can overlay other graphics elements. If the space required to display the legend exceeds that of the space required to display the graph, a warning is issued and the legend is suppressed. The MODE= option can take one of these values:

PROTECT: draws the legend in the procedure output area, but a blanking area surrounds the legend, preventing other graphics elements from being displayed in the legend. (A blanking area is a protected area in which no other graphics elements are displayed.)

RESERVE: takes space for the legend from the procedure output area, thereby reducing the amount of space available for the graph. If MODE=RESERVE is specified in conjunction with OFFSET=, the legend can push the graph off the graphics output area. RESERVE is valid only when POSITION=OUTSIDE. If POSITION=INSIDE is specified, a warning is issued and MODE= value is changed to PROTECT.

SHARE: draws the legend in the procedure output area. If the legend is positioned over elements of the graph itself, both graphics elements and legend elements are displayed.

By default, MODE=RESERVE unless POSITION=INSIDE. In this case, the default changes to MODE=PROTECT.

If the MODE=PROTECT option is used with labels on the midpoint axis, the axis labels might overlap the legend. In that case, if a device-resident font is used as the label font, the device-resident font for each label that overlaps the legend is replaced with a SAS/GRAPH font. This includes the axis label and the tick mark labels. Since device-resident fonts do not support clipping, a SAS/GRAPH font must be substituted in that case. To correct an overlap condition, you can use the LABEL=NONE and VALUE=NONE options on your midpoint axis statement to suppress the axis labels. Another choice is to use the positioning options on your LEGEND statement to reposition the legend.

Restriction: Not supported by Java and ActiveX

See:Positioning the Legend

OFFSET=(<x><,y>)<units> | (<x <units>><,y <units>>)

specifies the distance to move the entire legend. x is the number of units to move the legend right (positive numbers) or left (negative numbers). y is the number of units to move the legend up (positive numbers) or down (negative numbers).

To set only the x offset, specify one value, with or without a following comma:

offset=(4 cm,)

To set both the x and y offset, specify two values, with or without a comma separating them:

offset=(2 pct, 4 pct)

To set only the y offset, specify one value preceded by a comma:

offset=(,-3 pct)

The OFFSET= option is usually used in conjunction with the POSITION= option to adjust the position of the legend. Moves are relative to the location specified by the POSITION= option, with OFFSET=(0,0) representing the initial position. You can also apply the OFFSET= option to the default legend position.

The OFFSET= option is unnecessary with the ORIGIN= option since the ORIGIN= option explicitly positions the legend and requires no further adjustment. However, if you specify both options, the OFFSET= values are added to the ORIGIN= values, and the LEGEND is positioned accordingly.

Restriction:Not supported by Java and ActiveX

See:Positioning the Legend

ORDER=(value-list) | DESCENDING

selects or orders the legend values that appear in the legend. DESCENDING specifies that the legend values appear in the legend in reverse of the default order, sorted from maximum to minimum value. Alternatively, use value-list to select only those legend values that you want to display and by their placement in the list, order where they appear in the legend. The way you specify value-list depends on the type of variable that generates the legend:

For numeric variables, value-list is either an explicit list of values, or a starting and an ending value with an interval increment, or a combination of both forms:
- n <...n>
- n TO n <BY increment>
- n <...n> TO n <BY increment> <n <...n>>
If a numeric variable has an associated format, the specified values must be the unformatted values.
For character variables, value-list is a list of unique character values enclosed in quotation marks and separated by blanks:
- “value-1” <...“value-n”>
If a character variable has an associated format, the specified values must be the formatted values.

For a complete description of value-list, see the ORDER= option in the AXIS Statement.

Even though the ORDER= option controls whether a legend value is displayed and where it appears, the VALUE= option controls the text that the legend value displays.

Restrictions:Not supported by Java and ActiveX

Up to 256 characters in a variable value might be displayed.

ORIGIN=(<x><,y>)<units> | (<x <units >><,y <units>>)

specifies the x and y coordinates of the lower left corner of the legend box. The ORIGIN= option explicitly positions the legend anywhere on the graphics output area. It is possible to run a legend off the page or overlay the graph.

To set only the x coordinate, specify one value, with or without a following comma:

origin=(4 cm,)

To set both the x and y coordinates, specify two values, with or without a comma separating them:

origin=(2 pct, 4 pct)

To set only the y coordinate, specify one value preceded by a comma:

origin=(,3 pct)

The ORIGIN= option overrides the POSITION= option if both are used. Although using the OFFSET= option with the ORIGIN= option is unnecessary, if the OFFSET= option is also specified, it is applied after the ORIGIN= request has been processed.

Restriction:Not supported by Java and ActiveX

See:Positioning the Legend

positions the legend on the graph. Values for POSITION= are as follows:

OUTSIDE or INSIDE: specifies the location of the legend in relation to the axis area.

BOTTOM or MIDDLE or TOP: specifies the vertical position.

LEFT or CENTER or RIGHT: specifies the horizontal position.

By default, POSITION=(BOTTOM CENTER OUTSIDE). You can change one or more settings. If you supply only one value the parentheses are not required. If you specify two or three values and omit the parentheses, SAS/GRAPH accepts the first value and ignores the others.

Once you assign the initial legend position, you can adjust it with the OFFSET= option.

The ORIGIN= option overrides the POSITION= option. The value of the MODE= option can affect the behavior of the POSITION= option.

Restriction:Partially supported by Java

Note:The Java applet defaults to BOTTOM-CENTER and supports all possible combinations of BOTTOM | MIDDLE | TOP with LEFT | CENTER | RIGHT except for MIDDLE-CENTER (which would overwrite the map.) The Java applet does not support INSIDE.

See: OFFSET=(<x><,y>)<units> | (<x <units>><,y <units>>)

MODE=PROTECT | RESERVE | SHARE

REPEAT=1 | 2 | 3: specifies how many times the plot symbol is repeated in the legend. Valid values are 1 to 3. The default value is 3 .

Restriction:Not supported by Java or ActiveX

ROWMAJOR | COLMAJOR: specifies the arrangement of legend entries when there are multiple rows and multiple columns. Specify the ROWMAJOR option (the default) to arrange entries (from lowest to highest) starting from left to right, and then top to bottom. Specify the COLMAJOR option to arrange the entries starting from top to bottom, and then left to right.

See: ACROSS=number-of-columns

DOWN=number-of-rows

SHAPE=BAR(width<units>,height<units>) <units> | LINE(length) <units> | SYMBOL(width<units>,height<units>) <units>

specifies the size and shape of the legend values displayed in each legend entry The SHAPE= value that you specify depends on which procedure generates the legend.

BAR(width,height)<units>: is used with the GCHART and GMAP procedures, with the GPLOT procedure if you use the AREAS= option, and with the GCONTOUR procedure if you use the PATTERN option. Each legend value is a bar of the specified width and height. By default, width is 5, height is 0.8, and units are CELLS. You can specify units for the width,height pair or for the individual coordinates.

LINE(length) <units>: is used with the GPLOT and GCONTOUR procedures. Each legend value is a line of the length that you specify. Plotting symbols are omitted from the legend values. By default, length is 5 and units are CELLS. You can specify units for length.

SYMBOL(width<units>,height<units>) <units>

is used with the GPLOT procedure. Each legend value (not each symbol), is the width and height that you specify. For example, this specification produces legend values like the ones in Legend Values Produced with SHAPE= SYMBOL (a):

shape=symbol(.5,.5)

This specification produces legend values like the ones in Legend Values Produced with SHAPE= SYMBOL (b):

shape=symbol(2,.5)

Legend Values Produced with SHAPE= SYMBOL

By default, width is 5, height is 1, and units are CELLS. You can specify units for the width,height pair or for the individual coordinates.

Restriction:Not supported by Java and ActiveX

SPACE=value-spacing

specifies the amount of space between individual legend values along a horizontal baseline. Value-spacing can be any nonnegative number, including decimal values. Units are only character cells. You cannot specify a unit of measure, such as inches or percent. The LEGEND statement calculates spacing based on the available display area, and the number and width of legend entries. If the spacing requested exceeds the display area, the legend values and their descriptions are rearranged to fit.

The SPACE= option is ignored if the following is true:

SPACE=0 is specified.
The specified spacing is requested in conjunction with vertically stacked columns.

Restriction:Not supported by Java or ActiveX

SPLIT=“split-char(s)”

specifies one or more characters that the LEGEND statement uses to break a text description string into multiple lines. Split-char(s) can be any character value that can be specified in a SAS character variable. Do not delimit when specifying multiple split characters. When the LEGEND statement encounters the split character, it automatically breaks the value at that point and continues on the next line. For example, suppose the legend text description contains the string

Berlin,
                              Germany/Europe

, and you specify SPLIT=“,/”. The legend breaks the text string into top-aligned lines as follows:

Berlin
Germany
Europe

If the LEGEND statement does not encounter a specified split character, no break in the text occurs, and no warning or error is issued.

Restrictions:Not supported by Java and ActiveX

Not supported by the GRADAR procedure

Up to 31 split characters are supported. If you specify more than 31 characters, only the first 31 are honored.

Note: The split characters themselves are not displayed.

Example:Creating a Drill-Down HTML Presentation for the Web

VALUE=(text-argument(s) ) | NONE

modifies the legend value descriptions. Text-argument(s) defines the appearance or the text of the value descriptions. By default, value descriptions are the values of the variable that generates the legend or an associated format value. Numeric values are right-justified and character values are left-justified.

NONE suppresses the value descriptions although the legend values (bars, lines, and so on) are still displayed. Text-argument(s) can be one or more of these:

“text-string”

provides up to 256 characters of text for the value description. Enclose each string in quotation marks. Separate multiple strings with blanks. Value description text that is too long to fit in a legend area can result in the entire value not being displayed.

Specified text strings are assigned to the legend values in order. If you submit only one string, only the first legend entry uses the value of that string. If you specify multiple strings, the first string is the text for the first entry; the second string is the text for the second entry; and so on. For example, this specification produces legend entries like those shown in Specifying Value Descriptions with the VALUE= Option:

value=("1986" "1987"
"1988")

Specifying Value Descriptions with the VALUE= Option

In addition, if you have a BY statement and you specify the variable that it names, you can embed one or both of the following in the string:

#BYVALn | #BYVAL(BY-variable-name)

substitutes the current value of the specified BY variable for #BYVAL in the text string and displays the value produced by the statement. Specify the variable with one of these:

n: specifies which variable in the BY statement #BYVAL should use. The value of n indicates the position of the variable in the BY statement. For example, #BYVAL2 specifies the second variable in the BY statement.

BY-variable-name: names the BY variable. For example, #BYVAL(YEAR) specifies the BY variable, YEAR. Variable-name is not case sensitive.

Examples:Using BY-group Processing to Generate a Series of Charts

Combining Graphs and Reports in a Web Page

#BYVARn | #BYVAR(BY-variable-name)

n: specifies which variable in the BY statement #BYVAR should use. The value of n indicates the position of the variable in the BY statement. For example, #BYVAR2 specifies the second variable in the BY statement.

BY-variable-name: names the BY variable. For example, #BYVAR(SITES) specifies the BY variable, SITES. Variable-name is not case sensitive.

Note:A BY variable name displayed is always in uppercase. If a label is used, it appears as specified in the LABEL statement.

See:Substituting BY Line Values in a Text String

text-description-suboption

modifies a characteristic such as the font, color, or size of the text string(s) that follows it. Text-description-suboption can be as follows:

ANGLE=degrees
COLOR=text-color
FONT=font | NONE
HEIGHT=text-height <units >
JUSTIFY=LEFT | CENTER | RIGHT
POSITION=(<BOTTOM | MIDDLE | TOP> <LEFT | CENTER | RIGHT>)
ROTATE=degrees
TICK=n

Place text description suboptions before the text strings that they modify. Suboptions not followed by a text string affect the default values. To specify and describe the text for individual values or to produce multi-line text, use the TICK= suboption.

Specify as many text strings and text description suboptions as you want, but enclose them all in one set of parentheses.

To order or select legend entries, use the ORDER= option.

Restrictions:Partially supported by Java and ActiveX

NONE is not supported by Java or ActiveX

#BYVAL or #BYVAR substitution in a text string is not available in the DATA Step Graphics Interface or in the Annotate facility. The reason is that BY lines are not created in a DATA step.

See:Text Description Suboptions

ORDER=(value-list) | DESCENDING

Text Description Suboptions

ANGLE=degrees: specifies the angle of the legend label or legend value description text with respect to the horizontal. A positive value for degrees moves the text counterclockwise; a negative value moves it clockwise. By default, ANGLE=0 (horizontal).

Note: Some settings of ANGLE= in the LEGEND statement might result in undesirable text positioning.

Alias:A=

Restriction:Not supported by Java and ACTIVEX

See:ROTATE=degrees

COLOR=text-color

specifies the color of the text. If you omit the COLOR= suboption, a color specification is searched for in this order:

the CTEXT= option for the procedure
the CTEXT= option in a GOPTIONS statement
the color of the default style

Alias:C=

FONT=font | NONE

specifies the font for the text. See Specifying Fonts in SAS/GRAPH Programs for information about specifying fonts. If you omit the FONT= suboption, a font specification is searched for in this order:

the FTEXT= option in a GOPTIONS statement
the default style font, NONE

Alias:F=

HEIGHT=text-height <units>

specifies the height of the text characters in the number of units. By default, HEIGHT=1 CELL. If you omit the HEIGHT= suboption, a text height specification is searched for in this order:

the HTEXT= option in a GOPTIONS statement
the height specified by the default style

Alias:H=

JUSTIFY=LEFT | CENTER | RIGHT

specifies the alignment of the text. The default for character variables is JUSTIFY=LEFT. The default for numeric variables is JUSTIFY=RIGHT. Associating a character format with a numeric variable does not change the default justification of the variable.

You can use the JUSTIFY= suboption to print multiple lines of text by repeating the suboption before the text string for each line. For example, this statement produces a legend label and value descriptions like those shown in Specifying Multiple Lines of Text with the JUSTIFY= Suboption:

legend label=(justify=c "Distribution"
              justify=c "Centers")
value=(tick=1 justify=c "Portland,"
              justify=c "Maine"
       tick=2 justify=c "Paris,"
              justify=c "France"
       tick=3 justify=c "Sydney,"
              justify=c "Australia");

Specifying Multiple Lines of Text with the JUSTIFY= Suboption

Place text description suboptions before the text strings that they modify.

Alias:J=L | C | R

See: TICK=n

POSITION=(<BOTTOM | MIDDLE | TOP> <LEFT | CENTER | RIGHT>)

places the legend label in relation to the legend entries. The POSITION= suboption is used only with the LABEL= option. By default, POSITION=LEFT.

The parentheses are not required if only one value is supplied. If you specify two or three values and omit the parentheses, SAS/GRAPH accepts the first value and ignores the others.

Using the POSITION= Suboption with Multiple-line Legend Labels shows some of the ways the POSITION= suboption affects a multiple-line legend label in which the entries are stacked in a column (ACROSS=1). This figure uses a label specification such as the following:

label=("multi-"
        justify=left "line"
        justify=left "label"
        position=left)

In this specification, the POSITION= suboption specifies the default value, LEFT, which is represented by the first legend in the figure. The POSITION= value is indicated above each legend. The default justification is used unless you also use the JUSTIFY= suboption.

Using the POSITION= Suboption with Multiple-line Legend Labels

Using the POSITION= Suboption with Multiline Legend Labels

In addition, specifying POSITION=RIGHT mirrors the effect of POSITION=LEFT, and specifying POSITION=BOTTOM mirrors the effect of POSITION=TOP.

Restriction:Not supported by Java. Partially supported by ActiveX

ROTATE=degrees: specifies the angle at which each character of text is rotated with respect to the baseline of the text string. A positive value for degree rotates the character counterclockwise; a negative value moves it clockwise. By default, ROTATE=0 (parallel to the baseline).

Note: Some settings of ROTATE= in the LEGEND statement might result in undesirable text positioning.

Alias:R=

Restriction:Not supported by Java and ACTIVEX

See:ANGLE=degrees

TICK=n

specifies the nth legend entry. The TICK= suboption is used only with the VALUE= option to designate the legend entry whose text and appearance you want to modify. For example, to change the text of the third legend entry to Minneapolis, specify the following code:

value=(tick=3 "Minneapolis")

The characteristics of all other value descriptions remain unchanged.

If you use the TICK= suboption when you designate text for one legend entry, you must also use it when you designate text for any additional legend entries. For example, this option changes the text of both the second and third legend entries:

value=(tick=2 "Paris" tick=3 "Sydney")

If you omitted TICK=3, the text of the second legend entry would be ParisSydney.

Text description suboptions that precede the TICK= suboption affect all the value descriptions for the legend unless the same suboption (with a different value) follows a TICK= specification. Text description suboptions that follow the TICK= suboption affect only the specified legend entry. For example, suppose you specify this option for a legend with three entries:

value=(color=red font=swiss tick=2 color=blue)

The text of all three entries would use the Swiss font; the first and third entries would be red and only the second entry would be blue.

Alias: T=

Details

Description: LEGEND Statement

LEGEND statements specify the characteristics of a legend but do not create legends. The characteristics are as follows:

the position and appearance of the legend box
the text and appearance of the legend label
the appearance of the legend entries, including the size and shape of the legend values
the text of the labels for the legend values

LEGEND definitions are not automatically applied when a procedure generates a legend. Instead, they must be explicitly assigned with a LEGEND= option in the appropriate procedure statement.

The following figure illustrates the terms associated with the various parts of a legend.

Parts of a Legend

Using Text Description Suboptions

Text description suboptions affect all the strings that follow them unless the suboption is changed or turned off. If the value of a suboption is changed, the new value affects all the text strings that follow it. Consider this example:

label=(font=albany amt height=4 "Weight"
       justify=right height=3 "(in tons)")

FONT=ALBANY applies to both Weight and (in tons). HEIGHT=4 affects Weight, but is respecified as HEIGHT=3 for (in tons). JUSTIFY=RIGHT affects only (in tons).

Using the LEGEND Statement

LEGEND statements can be located anywhere in your SAS program. They are global and remain in effect until canceled or until you end your SAS session. LEGEND statements are not applied automatically, and must be explicitly assigned by an option in the procedure that uses them.

You can define up to 99 different LEGEND statements. If you define two LEGEND statements of the same number, the most recently defined statement replaces the previously defined statement of the same number. A LEGEND statement without a number is treated as a LEGEND1 statement.

Cancel individual LEGEND statements by defining a LEGEND statement of the same number without options (a null statement):

legend4;

Canceling one LEGEND statement does not affect any other LEGEND definitions. To cancel all current LEGEND statements, use RESET= in a GOPTIONS statement:

goptions reset=legend;

Specifying RESET=GLOBAL or RESET=ALL cancels all current LEGEND definitions as well as other settings.

To display a list of current LEGEND definitions in the SAS LOG window, use the GOPTIONS procedure with the LEGEND option:

proc goptions legend nolist;
run;

Positioning the Legend

How to Position a Legend

By default, the legend shares the procedure output area with the procedure output, such as a map or bar chart. See How Graphics Elements Are Placed in the Graphics Output Area. However, several LEGEND statement options enable you to position a legend anywhere on the graphics output area and even to overlay the procedure output. This section describes these options and their effect on each other.

Positioning the Legend on the Graphics Output Area

There are two ways that you can position the legend on the graphics output area:

Describe the general location of the legend with the POSITION= option. If necessary, fine-tune the position with the OFFSET= option.
Position the legend explicitly with the ORIGIN=option.

Using POSITION= and OFFSET=

The values of the POSITION= option affect the legend in two ways:

OUTSIDE and INSIDE determine whether the legend is located outside or inside the axis area.
BOTTOM or MIDDLE or TOP (vertical position) and LEFT or CENTER or RIGHT (horizontal position) determine where the legend is located in relation to its OUTSIDE or INSIDE position.

Legend Positions inside the Axis Area shows the legend positions inside the axis area.

Legend Positions inside the Axis Area

Legend Positions outside the Axis Area shows legend positions outside the axis area.

Legend Positions outside the Axis Area

The default combination is POSITION=(BOTTOM CENTER OUTSIDE). The combination (OUTSIDE MIDDLE CENTER) is not valid.

Use OFFSET=(x,y) to adjust the position of the legend specified by the POSITION= option. The x value shifts the legend either left or right and the y value shifts the legend either up or down.

The offset values are always applied after the POSITION= request. For example, if POSITION=(TOP RIGHT OUTSIDE), the legend is located in the upper right corner of the graphics output area. If OFFSET=(0,0) is specified, the legend does not move. If OFFSET=(–5,–8)CM, the legend moves 5 centimeters to the left and 8 centimeters down.

Using ORIGIN=

Use ORIGIN=(x,y) to specify the coordinates of the exact location of the lower left corner of the legend box. Because ORIGIN=(0,0) is the lower left corner of the graphics output area, the values of x and y must be positive. If you specify negative values, a warning is issued and the default value is used.

Relating Legends to Other Graphics Elements

By default, the legend is inside the procedure output area and the space that it occupies reduces the size of the graph itself. If a choice must be made between displaying the legend or the graph, the legend is suppressed. To control how the legend relates to the other elements of the graph, use the MODE= option. These are values for the MODE= option:

RESERVE reserve space for the legend outside the axis area and move the graph to make room for the legend. This is the default setting and is valid only when POSITION=OUTSIDE.
PROTECT prevents the legend from being overwritten by the procedure output. PROTECT blanks out graphics elements, allowing only legend elements to be displayed in the legend's space.
SHARE displays both graphics elements and legend elements in the same space. This setting is usually used when the legend is positioned inside the axis area. SHARE is useful when the graph has a space that the legend can fit into.

Interactions between POSITION= and MODE=

You cannot specify both POSITION=INSIDE and MODE=RESERVE because MODE=RESERVE assumes that the legend is outside the axis area, and POSITION=INSIDE positions the legend inside the axis area. Therefore, when you specify POSITION=INSIDE, change the value of the MODE= option to SHARE or PROTECT. Otherwise, SAS/GRAPH issues a warning and automatically changes the MODE= value to PROTECT.

Creating Drop Shadows and Block Effects

To produce a drop shadow or a three-dimensional block effect behind the legend use the CSHADOW= or CBLOCK= option in the LEGEND statement in conjunction with the graphics option OFFSHADOW=(x,y).

The value of x determines how far the shadow or block extends to the right (positive numbers) or to the left (negative numbers) of the legend. The value of y determines how far the shadow or block extends above (positive numbers) or below (negative numbers) the legend. If OFFSHADOW=(0,0) is specified, the shadow or block is not visible.

By default, OFFSHADOW=(0.0625, -0.0625) IN. That is, the shadow or block extends 1/16th of an inch to the right and 1/16th of an inch below the legend.

Substituting BY Line Values in a Text String

The BY statement produces a BY line that contains the variable name and its value. If you specify the variable name, options are available to substitute the variable name and its value in text strings. To use the #BYVAR and #BYVAL options, insert the option in the text string at the position you want the substitution text to appear. Both #BYVAR and #BYVAL specifications must be followed by a delimiting character, either a space or other nonalphanumeric character, such as the quotation mark that ends the text string. If not, the specification is completely ignored and its text remains intact and is displayed with the rest of the string.

To allow a #BYVAR or #BYVAL substitution to be followed immediately by other text, with no delimiter, use a trailing dot (as with macro variables). The trailing dot is not displayed in the resolved text.

If you want a period to be displayed as the last character in the resolved text, use two dots after the #BYVAR or #BYVAL substitution.

The substitution for #BYVAL or #BYVAR will not occur if the following is true:

The BY statement does not name the variable specified by #BYVAL or #BYVAR. For example, #BYVAL2 when there is only one BY variable or #BYVAL(ABC) when ABC is not a BY variable or does not exist.
There is no BY statement at all.

No error or warning message is issued and the option specification is displayed with the rest of the string. The graph continues to display a BY line at the top of the page unless you suppress it by using the NOBYLINE option in an OPTION statement.

For more information, see the BY Statement.

Note: This feature is not available in the DATA Step Graphics Interface or in the Annotate facility since BY lines are not created in a DATA step.