Date:         Wed, 12 Sep 2001 10:14:02 -0400
Reply-To:     "Diskin, Dennis" <Dennis.Diskin@PHARMA.COM>
Sender:       "SAS(r) Discussion" <SAS-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
From:         "Diskin, Dennis" <Dennis.Diskin@PHARMA.COM>
Subject:      Re: Proc Summary
Comments: To: Jan Mie Cheah <Janmie.Cheah@SAS.COM>
Content-Type: text/plain

Jan,

A quote from the SAS online help:
"the variable _TYPE_ that contains information about the class variables. By
default _TYPE_ is a numeric variable. If you specify CHARTYPE in the PROC
statement, _TYPE_ is a character variable. When you use more than 32 class
variables, _TYPE_ is automatically a character variable."
This explains what you are seeing. In the case of 32 class variables you get
a numeric _TYPE_ but when you go over 32 it becomes a character variable.

hth,
Dennis Diskin



> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jan Mie Cheah [SMTP:Janmie.Cheah@SAS.COM]
> Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2001 5:25 AM
> To:   SAS-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Subject:      Proc Summary
>
> Dear All,
>
> I would like to know if there are any known limitation to the PROC SUMMARY
> procedure. The situation I encountered is that when I summarized using 32
> class variables and NWAY option(i.e. having a total of 32 variables in the
> class statement of my proc summary), the _TYPE_ will have a value of
> 4294967295; however when I used 33 variables (the same 32 variables with
> additional one variable), the _TYPE_ value is
> 111111111111111111111111111111111; and again when I used 34
> variables, the _TYPE_ value is
> 1111111111111111111111111111111111.
>
> My question is, should this be the case? I understand that when you use
> the
> NWAY option, PROC SUMMARY/PROC MEANS may encounter insufficient memory to
> the summarization all the class variables. Is this tested and proven? Are
> there any work-arounds for this? What is the maximum number of class
> variables that can be processed?
>
> Thanks in advance!!!
> Janmie