Step-by-Step Programming with Base SAS 9.4

Writing Output without Creating a Data Set

In many cases, when you use a DATA step to write a report, you do not need to create an additional data set. When you use the DATA _NULL_ statement, SAS processes the DATA step without writing observations to a data set. Using the DATA _NULL_ statement can increase program efficiency considerably.

The following is an example of a DATA _NULL_ statement:

data _null_;
   

The following program uses a PUT statement to write women’s Olympic medalist information to the SAS log. Because the program uses a DATA _NULL_ statement, SAS does not create a data set.

data _null_;
   length medalist $ 19;
   input year 1-4  medalist $ 6-24  medal $ 26-31 country $ 33-35 result 37-41; 
   put medalist country medal result year ...