0.2 - Getting Started with SAS

App Download Instructions

Obtaining a Copy of SAS

Visit the Statistical Software page on the Penn State Department website to view the information on how to obtain a copy of SAS


Setting up your copy of SAS

Now that you have obtained your copy of SAS, what do you need to do next?

If you acquired SAS 9.4 from Software @ Penn State, you will need to do a few things to get it ready for this class.

Install the Software

The SAS software comes as a downloadable .exe file.  Plan on this taking several hours to complete.  You are going to be setting up a "Software Depot" and then installing SAS from there.  In most cases, the defaults offered during installation are going to be your best choice.

Declaring your Default Program

There are now two versions of SAS on your computer, Enterprise Guide and SAS 9.4.  You should go to your Default Programs Control Panel in Windows and set SAS 9.4 as the default for the .sas extension.  Enterprise Guide, which was the default takes control away from you, the programmer, and will not work for the purposes of this course.

Turn off HTML Output

SAS 9.4 defaults to HTML output.  Again, this takes control away from you, the programmer.  Go into the Tools Menu in SAS and select Options>Preferences.  Select the Results Tab in the Preferences Window.  Uncheck the box that says "Create HTML".  Now check the box that says "Create listing".  You will also want to unselect the box for Using ODS Graphics.

That's it, you are done and ready to learn how to program in SAS.