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Glossary
This glossary defines SAS software terms that are used in this book as well as terms
that relate specifically to SAS/ACCESS software.
access descriptor
a SAS/ACCESS file, created by using the ACCESS procedure, that describes
relational database data to SAS. You use an access descriptor as a master descriptor
file from which to create view descriptors. See also view and view descriptor.
browsing data
the process of viewing the observations in a file. Depending on how the file is
accessed, observations can be viewed one at a time or as a group in a tabular format.
bulk load
to load large amounts of data into a database object using methods that are specific
to the DBMS. This enables you to rapidly and efficiently add multiple rows of data
into a table as a single unit.
client
in a network, a workstation or application that requests services from a server. See
also server.
column
a vertical component of a relational DBMS table. Each column has a unique name
and contains data of a specific type and with certain attributes. A column is
analogous to a variable in SAS terminology.
column function
an operation that is computed over each value in the column that is named as the
argument of the function. For example, AVG(SALARY) is a column function.
commit
the process that ends a transaction and makes permanent any changes to the
database that the user made during the transaction. When the commit process
occurs, locks on the database are released so that other applications can access the
changed data. The SQL COMMIT statement initiates the commit process. See also
rollback.
data type
an attribute of every column in a table. The data type tells the operating system how
much physical storage to set aside for the column and what type of data that the
column contains. It is similar to the type attribute of SAS variables.
