The SAS system is dealt with from a user interface point of view. The intended audience for this book is serious software developers who intend to use SAS as a basis for their deliverables.

SAS has long been an ad hoc tool used by researchers to analyze their data. It has passed from that stage to a system that can easily be used to generate different views of data. Now, with the advent of graphical user interfaces, SAS has become a software implementation language in its own right.

The book is divided into five parts and 18 chapters. Part 1, “The Human Element,” starts with a basic description of the SAS system, followed by a description of typical computer system user interfaces. These are brought together with a description of the SAS user interface.

Part 2 covers “Line Mode,” which is to SAS what batch processing is to operating systems. This section provides an understanding of how to launch SAS on the many different platforms for which it is available. A deeper look at line mode input and output in an SAS data step follows.

Part 3 is devoted to “Windows.” The SAS system contains many different types of windows. The simplest windows are programmatically invoked from a window statement in a data step. More complicated windows are invoked by SAS/AF software. All are covered here.

“Data Windows” are the subject of Part 4. SAS includes programs, such as FSEDIT and FSVIEW, that can be used to view and modify data in SAS databases. In fact, entire software systems can be built just by using and customizing these tools.

Part 5, “Applications,” provides a sample system that illustrates the techniques covered in the book. It then goes on to discuss issues such as multiple user access and security.

The book reads like a programmer’s reference to the products it describes. Someone who has never seen the SAS system before will need some background before tackling this book.