Yeah, they suck (necessary evil, though). Once you get over the learning curve, they aren't too bad. I mostly learned by starting with old programs and seeing what they did (from my mentor).
There is also a small tan book (Applied Statistics and the SAS Programming Language by Ronald P. Cody, Jeffrey K. Smith) that I like. Some use The Little SAS Book: A Primer, Third Edition by Lora D. Delwiche, Susan J. Slaughter.
thanks dante201!
say..isn't there a UCLA or something site where guys can get online tutorials on SAS/STATA?i think i heard about it someplace..*scratches head, looking puzzled and lost*
But I hadn't heard of the tutorials (hopefully someone else has, b/c that would be nice). And, sorry I don't use STATA unless I absolulely have to (I don't have a license for home use, and most of what I do can be accomplished within SAS or R).
I know this is a pretty old topic, but anyone needing to practice and polish their SAS skills ***NEEDS*** to buy "The Little Book of SAS" by Susan Slaughter. It is really, really helpful and helps you to write complicated (working) programs even if you really have no previous understanding of the topic! 😛
Blech! I'm in a SAS class right now - required here at KUMC for the MPH program. I must say it is not the highlight of my day. The book we use for class seems very straightforward (though I can't say I've read it, I've only flipped through the pages.)
The Analyst Application (Paperback, 2003)
Author: Sas Inst
ISBN: 158025991X