Date:         Tue, 21 Jan 1997 09:57:00 -0500
Reply-To:     Dave_Mabey_at_RDA8POSTOFFICE1%RDCCMAIL%READERSDIGEST@RMAIL.COM
Sender:       "SAS(r) Discussion" <SAS-L@UGA.CC.UGA.EDU>
From:         Dave_Mabey_at_RDA8POSTOFFICE1%RDCCMAIL%READERSDIGEST@RMAIL.COM
Subject:      comm1-comm6 & SQL COALESCE function
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New Forward Item:
 
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From: Dave Mabey at RDA8POSTOFFICE1
Date: 1/17/97 2:36PM
To: SAS-L@VM.MARIST.EDU@INTERNET at RDNOTES
To: j_weedon@ESCAPE.COM@INTERNET at RDNOTES
Subject: Re[2]: comm1-comm6 problem
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New Text Item:  Re: comm1-comm6 problem
 
 
    Paul Kent at SAS Institute points out that the COALESCE function (SAS
    Guide to the SQL Procedure page 161) can be used to find the first
    non-missing value in a list of arguments.  If one, and only one, "comm"
    has a valid code while the rest have missing values, then the following
    may be the simplest way to proceed.
 
 
    PROC SQL;
     select coalesce(comm1,comm2,comm3,comm4,comm5,comm6) as index,
            count(*)
     from comfile
     group by index;
 
 
 
______________________________ Reply
Separator________________________________
 
On Thu, 16 Jan 1997 08:51:23 -0500, Lisa Bastian <eagle89@EROLS.COM> wrote:
 
>I have a total of about 67 codes (numeric), any of which can be found
>among six consecutive fields (comm1 comm6), although for each
>observation, a code can only show up once.  Is there any "easy" way to
>count the occurrence of each individual code?  ie., without an array and
>a bunch of  "if" statements?  Thanx.