Logging In

When you enter SICL, the screen of your workstation or terminal will probably be blank. The machines are never turned off--just press the RETURN key and the login screen will appear.

If the screen is dark, press the RETURN key and it should light up.

Place the cursor over the login box and click the mouse button so that the login box lights up.

Login:

Type in your username (this will be your first two initials and the first six letters of your last name) and hit return. The password box should then light up. Type your password, which will be your school ID number. (You need to change this as soon as possible.) The password will not appear on the screen as you type. This is for security reasons.

The login window will disappear. The screen should now display two windows: console and xterm. The xterm window is in UNIX and you should see the UNIX system prompt: % . (This is the window where you add your software, your class and start the package that you have added.)

Note: You can change your password using the command "passwd". Choose something you can remember, but preferably not something easily guessed. For instance: names, phone numbers and words appearing in a dictionary are bad choices.

How to start SAS

After you log in to your SICL account you will see two windows sitting in a grey background. In the window called "xterm" type the following sequence of commands:

add sas
add classname_info (where classname is the course you are taking.)
sas

The files for your class will be stored in /ncsu/classname_info. (For example, if you are doing work for st512, you would type:

add sas
add st512_info
sas

The files for st512 are stored in /ncsu/st512_info/ )

How to end SAS

To quit your SAS session type:

bye

on the command line of any SAS window and press RETURN. If you are using pulldown menus (see below), select "Exit" from the "File" menu.

What you see when you start SAS

A few seconds after you type sas in the xterm window, three additional windows will appear on the screen. You may want to move them around so you can see them all. (You move windows by sliding the mouse over the mouse pad until the on-screen cursor is on the titlebar of the window you want to move. Then, while holding down the first button slide the mouse again. The cursor should drag a ghost outline of the window until you stop. Release the mouse button when the ghost is positioned where you want the window to be.) Notice that you can make a different windows "current" by placing the on-screen cursor in the window you want to use and clicking the mouse button. The three main SAS windows are:

Program Editor window
You write and edit SAS programs in this window.
Log window
This window collects information from the SAS system as your programs execute. Warnings and error messages from SAS are written here.
Output window
The final results requested by your program will be printed in this window.

All of these windows will have a command line at the top of the window (just below the title bar). You may either use the command line to "communicate" with SAS or you can use pulldown menus. Hit the key sequence "Control-a" to switch back and forth between the menus and the command line. To use the menus, position the cursor above the menu you want to see and press the left mouse button. Holding the mouse button, scroll down the menu by sliding the mouse towards you. Release the mouse button when the desired option is highlighted.

What you will usually do in SAS

Log into your SICL account. Your login name is made up of your first initial, middle initial and the first six letters of your last name. Type your login name in the login box and hit retun. The password box should light up. Your password is your social security number or your school ID number. (You should change this as soon as possible- use the "passwd" command.) Type in your password and hit return. (Wait for the xterm and console windows to appear.)
Type: "add sas" in the xterm window and hit the return key
Add the class you are taking by typing: "add classname_info" in the xterm window and hit the return key. Remember classname refers to the class you are taking.
Type "sas" in the xterm window and hit the return key. In a moment the SAS windows will appear.
(A) If you are writing your own program, press RETURN. This puts the cursor into the programming area of the Program window, so you can type in your program.
(B)If you want to use a SAS program which is in a file (either a file your instructor has provided or one you wrote in an earlier SAS session) type:
include 'filename'
on the Program window's command line and press RETURN. Or choose "Open-> Read file" from the "File" pulldown menu. The filename is the name of the file containing the program.
Hold down the Control key and press the letter E. This key sequence (Control-E) will execute your program (first making sure the Log and Output windows are clear). Your program will disappear, but don't worry, you will be able to get it back.
Use the mouse to go to the top of the Log window Check all the messages for errors or warnings. If you have errors:
- Go back to the Program window
- Retrieve your program (Control-R)
- Fix the error and execute again (step 6).
When your program executes and no error messages or warnings are listed in the Log window, use the mouse to go to the top of the Output window.
If the output produced by your program looks like it should, you may want to print or save it for later use. Make sure you are in the Output window.
To print the output, type "print" on the command line or choose the print option from the "file" pulldown window.
To save the output in a file, type file 'filename' and press RETURN or choose "Save as-> Write to file" in the "File" menu. Here, filename is the name you want to give the file which will contain your output (see sidebar for one type of naming scheme).
the progam window and hit Control-R, type "recall", or choose "Recall text" from the "Locals" menu to recall your program.
To print the program, type "print" on the command line or choose the print option from the "file" pulldown window.
To save the program in a file, type file 'filename'and press RETURN or choose "Save as -> Write to file" from the "File" menu. Here, filename is the name you want to give the file which will contain the program (this name should be different from the name you specified for output).
If you want to use SAS some more, go to the Program window, use Control-W, type "clear", or chose "Clear text" in the "Edit" menu to erase the window (make sure you saved it as in step 7 if you will need it later). Continue as in the previous steps.
If you are finished with your work, (make sure you saved your program and output if you will need them later), type
bye
on the command line of any window and press RETURN. If you are using pulldown menus select "Exit" from the "File" menu. The SAS windows will dissapear and the xterm window will once again have the UNIX ready prompt (%).
To log out, go to the background window of the screen and hold down the right mouse button. The main system menu will appear. Drag down to the logout option on the menu and release the mouse button. After a few seconds, the login window should reappear.