communicating with SAS datasets from R - 【StackMirror】|r|sas

I have a bunch of datasets that are in SAS format. I would like to avoid using SAS since I think R provides more than enough functionality for me. Therefore, is there a package that would allow me to interact with the SAS datasets from R? I have the SAS software installed but I would like to avoid coding things in multiple languages.

2012-04-05 15:54
by Alex

General reference for import/export format questions in R: http://cran.r-project.org/doc/manuals/R-data.pd - Ben Bolker 2012-04-05 18:08

What kind of SAS format? sas7bdat or something else - ktdrv 2012-04-05 23:21

Since you have SAS, you can use Frank Harrell's 'Hmisc' package which has sas.get and sasxport.get functions. It also has a bunch of utility functions: label,sas.get, contents,describe. For those without a SAS license, package 'foreign' has read.ssd, lookup.xport, and read.xport.

EDIT1: I will also mention that Anthony Joseph Damico recently announced a package to parse SAS INPUT code into read.fwf code. From its description file: " Using importation code designed for SAS users to read ASCII files into sas7bdat files, the SAScii package parses through the INPUT block of a (.sas) syntax file to design the parameters needed for a read.fwf() function call."

EDIT2: There is also a package by Matt Shotwell called 'sas7bdat' with read.sas7bdat(file) that describes its function as " Read SAS files in the sas7bdat data format."

2012-04-05 16:15
by 42-

sas7bdat is experimental. So experimental, in fact, that I've never managed to get it to work -- and I did try - ktdrv 2012-04-05 23:21

Thanks for the warning. I hope you communicated with its author - 42- 2012-04-06 03:29

reading sas7bdat works fine for me, even without SAS installed. But I wonder whether there is an opportunity to read SAS source code without installing it. Not run the code, only read it - Matt Bannert 2012-08-08 15:05

Not being a SAS user (since 1999) I have little memory of what "SAS source code" formats would be. I always used text files for my SAS source, (SAS is after just seeing the world as a bunch of punch cards, right), but maybe PC-SAS has added some proprietary format - 42- 2012-08-08 15:17