Maybe I missed something while reading this.

I am not sure how you can (accurately) rearrange the order of the variables in the descriptor portion of a SAS data set without re-ordering the variables themselves.

I guess I don;t understand how PROC SQL can...can someone explain it to me?

Perhaps a better approach to Joe Winters' problem is to use the RENAME statement in PROC DATASETS and just change the names of the variables in the descriptor portion. That approach would get him, I think, where he wants without excessive computing resources.

Andrew H. Karp Sierra Information Services, Inc. A SAS Institute Quality Partner in the USA 1489 Webster Street Suite 1308 San Francisco, CA 94115 USA 415/441-0702 (voice) SierraInfo@AOL.COM http://www.SierraInformation.com