Date:         Thu, 5 Apr 2001 08:16:51 -0400
Reply-To:     Peter Flom <peter.flom@NDRI.ORG>
Sender:       "SAS(r) Discussion" <SAS-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
From:         Peter Flom <peter.flom@NDRI.ORG>
Subject:      Creating longer variable names from shorter ones
Content-Type: multipart/alternative;

Hello

I will be importing a SAS transport file from a data entry program (Questionnaire Development System) which only allows 8 character names.  (It's a great program in a lot of other ways, for creating questionnaires for survey research).  

I'll be doing most of the data analysis in SAS v 8, and would like to take advantage of the longer variable names, but I will have a LOT of variables (more than 1000).  However, a lot will have similarities, which I can as part of the 8 characters.  e.g. N_ will always mean "number of times", E_ will always mean "ever did".

Is there some easy way to change the variable names so that N_ translates into "times" and E_ into "Ever" and so on?

TIA




Peter L. Flom, Ph.D.
Principal Research Associate
National Development and Research Institutes, Inc.
2 World Trade Center
16th floor
New York, NY 10048

(212) 845-4485
(212) 845-4698 (fax)
Peter.Flom@ndri.org

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