MWSUG 2008 Training

The 2008 Midwest SASŪ Users Group Conference is designed to be primarily an educational forum. An extensive selection of formal training classes are available featuring some of the industry's best and most popular trainers. Training for all skill levels is offered before, during, and after the conference in a variety of formats:




Pre-Conference Training

MWSUG is offering extra-fee pre-conference full-day training courses on Thursday through Sunday, October 9th - 12th. The cost for the full-day course is $320 with conference registration and $400 without conference registration.

Date Instructor Course Title (click for description)
Thursday,
October 9		 Art Carpenter Quick Results with SAS/GraphŪ software
North Haven Group Designing and Analyzing Experiments in JMP
Friday,
October 10		 Art Carpenter Advanced Reporting and Analysis Techniques for the SASŪ Power User: It's Not Just About The PROCs!
North Haven Group Designing and Optimizing Robust Products and Processes Using JMP
Saturday,
October 11		 Art Carpenter From %Macro to %MEND: An Introduction to the SASŪ Macro Language
Ben Cochran Intro to SAS BI Toolkit
Kirk Lafler Advanced SAS Programming Techniques
North Haven Group Discovering Knowledge with Dynamic Visualization in JMP
Sunday,
October 12		 Art Carpenter Advanced Techniques in the SASŪ Macro Language
Ben Cochran Manipulating Data with Functions and Arrays
Kirk Lafler ODS: Basics and Beyond
North Haven Group Visual Six Sigma: Lean Data Analysis Using JMP



FREE In-Conference Training

Conference attendees have the opportunity to select up to 2 half-day training classes from the following topics. These in-conference training sessions are included with conference registration.

Date Time Instructor Course Title (click for description)
Monday, Oct. 13 8:30-11:30am Art Carpenter Getting the Most from SAS Formats
1:30-4:30pm Catherine Truxillo Intro to Mixed Models for Pharmaceutical Applications
1:30-4:30pm Ben Cochran Generating Reports With (ODS) Style(s)
Tuesday, Oct. 14 8:30-11:30am Kirk Lafler PROC SQL Programming: The Basics and Beyond
1:00-4:00pm Fang Chen Intro to Bayesian Analysis Using SASŪ Software
1:00-4:00pm Michael Wilson Intro to Survival Analysis Using SASŪ


FREE Hands-On Workshops

Hands-On Workshops give you an opportunity to roll up your sleeves and write some code under the guidance of an expert trainer. Computers are provided to make these sessions as interactive as possible. Be sure to come early as these workshops tend to fill up quickly!

Date Time Workshop Title (click for description)
Monday, Oct. 13 9:00-10:20am Data Step Internals: How It Really Works
11:00–11:50am How Can I Merge Without Sorting?
1:30-2:20pm ODS Basics: Let’s Understand How to Write ODS Code
3:00-3:50pm Let’s Build the Whole Program in Enterprise Guide
Tuesday, Oct. 14 9:00-10:20am Macro Basics: Show Me How to Code Less
11:00–11:50am Tabulate Basics: Why My Brain Doesn’t Work That Way
1:30-2:20pm Graphing Workshop



Destiny Virtual Learning Cafe

Stop by the Destiny Virtual Learning Cafe during the conference to experience a new way of learning SAS. All conference attendees will have free access to the complete vdestiny SAS training library. Over 400 SAS topics and lessons are available in a self-paced format. Poke around for a few minutes to learn about a topic of interest, or stay and complete an entire course.

Here is a partial list of just some of the courses available:



Post-Conference Training

In coordination with MWSUG, Destiny Corporation is offering Instructor-Assisted SASŪ virtual training courses. These are self-paced, CD-based courses with a live instructor present to assist and answer questions. Upon completion of each training session, attendees are provided the supporting vDestiny course and materials. The Virtual Course is valid for 1 year from course dates.

Choose from the following courses:

Course Title   Course Length Description
Introduction to Programming   Virtual 2-Day Course
Programming I: SASŪ Essentials   Virtual 3-Day Course**
Programming II: Data Manipulation Using the Data Step   Virtual 3-Day Course**
Programming III: Advanced Techniques   Virtual 3-Day Course**
Output Delivery System (ODS) Basics   Virtual 2-Day Course
Graphing In SASŪ Software   Virtual 2-Day Course
Version 9 Changes and Enhancements   Virtual 2-Day Course
Enterprise Guide: Querying and Reporting   Virtual 2-Day Course
Report Writing: A Programming Approach   Virtual 3-Day Course**
SQL Processing with SASŪ Software   Virtual 2-Day Course
Macros in SASŪ Software   Virtual 3-Day Course**
Add-In to Microsoft Office: The Word and Excel Interface to SASŪ   Virtual 1-Day Course

**There will be no instructor available for the third day of the Virtual 3 Day Course. Day 3 is completed off-site and instructor support is available by email.




Descriptions of Pre-Conference Training Courses

Quick Results With SAS/GRAPHŪ Software – Art Carpenter
Thursday, October 9, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

This one day seminar is designed for students who are familiar with the DATA and PROC steps of base SAS and who want to learn how to use SAS/GRAPH software to produce presentation quality graphs. The course will discuss various aspects of the construction of graphs and will include discussion of plotting and graphing procedures. Statements and options used to enhance the appearance of the graphs will be presented..

Course topics will include:

Designing and Analyzing Experiments in JMP – Marie Gaudard
Thursday, October 9, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

This workshop will introduce participants to JMP’s powerful capabilities for designing and analyzing experiments. Using examples, we will discuss various JMP DOE platforms, focusing on the Custom Design platform. Modeling will be performed using the Fit Model and Screening platforms. We will also discuss JMP's Sample Size and Power platform. A case study will be used to illustrate some of the techniques.

Hands on use of JMP by participants will be an integral part of the training. For this reason, participants are requested to bring laptops to the training. Demonstration copies of JMP will be provided for use during the workshop.

Advanced Reporting and Analysis Techniques for the SASŪ Power User: It's Not Just About The PROCs! – Art Carpenter
Friday, October 10, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

There are literally hundreds of techniques used on a daily basis by the users of SASŪ software as they perform analyses and generate reports. Although often obscure, most of these techniques are relatively easy to learn and generally do not require specialized training before they can be implemented. Unfortunately a majority of these techniques are used by only a very small minority of the analysts and programmers. They are not used more frequently, because a majority of SAS users have simply not been exposed to them. Left to ourselves it is often very difficult to ‘discover’ the intricacies of these techniques and then to sift through them for the nuggets that have immediate value.

This one day course presents a series of those nuggets. It covers a broad range of SAS topics that have proved to be useful to the intermediate and advanced SAS programmer that is involved with the analysis and reporting of data. The intended audience is expected to have a firm grounding in Base SAS. For most of the covered topics, the course will introduce useful techniques and options, but will not ‘teach the procedure’.

The course includes a wide variety of options and techniques associated with:

Designing and Optimizing Robust Products and Processes Using JMP – Marie Gaudard & Mia Stevens
Friday, October 10, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

In this workshop, we focus on those JMP features that support robust design and optimization, which are key components of product/process development and Design for Six Sigma (DFSS). The workshop will begin with an introduction to the optimization of multiple response experiments using JMP. Using this as background, participants will learn how to analyze designs with noise factors so as to find settings of the process variables that minimize noise variation while optimizing the responses of interest. We will show how simulation can be used to find operating windows for the process factors, guaranteeing acceptable response performance. The extension of this methodology to tolerance design will also be addressed.

Hands on use of JMP by participants will be an integral part of the training. For this reason, participants are requested to bring laptops to the training. Demonstration copies of JMP will be provided for use during the workshop.

From %Macro to %MEND: An Introduction to the SASŪ Macro Language – Art Carpenter
Saturday, October 11, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

This one-day course is designed for the SAS programmer who is new to the Macro Language. We will start at the basics and cover the fundamentals necessary to start applying SAS macros in your programs. By the end of the day you will understand how the Macro Language works, what the Macro Symbol Table is and how to values stored in it, how the SAS System uses Macro Variables, key Macro Language concepts, important SAS Macro Language Functions, and how to invoke Macros in your programs. The example Macros shown in the course materials demonstrate the power and flexibility of this part of the SAS System and will enable you to apply the functionality of the Macro Language to your own programs right away.

This session is suited for the SAS user who already has a basic understanding of the Data Step and Procedure Steps, and who is new to the Macro Language facility in SAS System software. It is a beginning-level course that assumes no prior understanding of the SAS Macro Language. It is also suitable for SAS users who want to understand the Macros found in programs they have "inherited" from other programmers.

Introduction to SAS BI Toolkit – Ben Cochran
Saturday, October 11, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

All topics are a combination of lectures and demonstrations. Lecture notes, handouts, and workshop materials are provided for students.

  1. SAS Add-in for Microsoft Office:
    This course teaches users how to run SAS tasks on SAS (or other) data from within the Microsoft office environment. The attendee will also see how to query data and generate a number of reports.

  2. SAS OLAP Cube Studio:
    This course focuses on building an OLAP cube with drilldown hierarchies so that the user can dynamically analyze the data, then surfacing the cube in Enterprise Guide. Much attention is given to knowing and understanding the data tables and building the hierarchies from them.

  3. SAS Information Map Studio:
    This course takes a step by step approach to building an information map, metadata that describes the data warehouse in business terms. It also surfaces information to the user in ways that are reminiscent of views. Maps can be built with terms that end users can understand.

  4. SAS Information Delivery Portal:
    This course introduces the attendee to Information Delivery Portal which is a product that provides an interface to access enterprise data, applications, and information through a web browser.

  5. SAS Web Report Studio:
    This course focuses on building reports that can be surfaced on the web. The attendee will be taken through a series of steps to take data and generate web reports using the Web Report studio.

Advanced SAS Programming Techniques – Kirk Lafler
Saturday, October 11, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

SAS users who have acquired basic skills presented in a SAS Software Basics course and want to expand their knowledge in the DATA step as a programming language will want to attend the Advanced SAS Programming Techniques seminar. Attendees learn complex programming topics and techniques in the areas of data access, data manipulation, data management, data presentation, and much more. Topics include DATA step programming techniques including reading a variety of file formats; using column and line pointers; specifying system and language options; coding loops, ranges, and arrays; using operators and modifiers; testing and debugging techniques; reshaping columns of data; techniques on managing data ; custom report writing techniques; and integrating ODS for improved output.

Intended Audience: All SAS users
Prerequisites: Minimum 1-year Base-SAS programming experience
Delivery Method: Instructor-led and/or Hands-on with code examples and self-study

Discovering Knowledge with Dynamic Visualization in JMP – Marie Gaudard, Mia Stevens & Phil Ramsey
Saturday, October 11, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

JMP’s ease in producing graphical displays and in linking these with the underlying data table are a powerful asset in discovering knowledge in data. In this workshop, we will introduce participants to a number of JMP’s versatile graphical display platforms, and will illustrate the power of dynamic visualization and linking to the data table. We will also discuss data validation, data summarization, and JMP’s ability to access data from a variety of sources. An introduction to JMP’s data mining capabilities (partition and neural nets) will be provided. We will illustrate the techniques covered in the context of a case study.

Hands on use of JMP by participants will be an integral part of the training. For this reason, participants are requested to bring laptops to the training. Demonstration copies of JMP will be provided for use during the workshop.

Advanced Techniques in the SASŪ Macro Language – Art Carpenter
Sunday, October 12, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

This one day course is designed for students with a good understanding of the DATA and PROC steps and who already understand the basic structure and syntax of the SAS Macro Language. The course will start with a short review of the macro basics and quickly move on topics selected to improve your macro language expertise. Several key macro functions will be introduced, explained and demonstrated. Course topics include:

Manipulating Data with Functions and Arrays – Ben Cochran
Sunday, October 12, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

This one day workshop explores the area of data manipulation and shows you how to accomplish this through using arrays and the myriad of functions provided by the SASŪ System. Beginning to intermediate users of SAS software who want to gain a deeper understanding of the art of transforming and manipulating data. This course focuses on the DATA step and goes into a great deal of detail on it’s inner workings.

This seminar is most appropriate for students with at least six months of experience using the SAS System, or who have completed a fundamentals course in SAS programming.

Course topics include:

Output Delivery System: The Basics and Beyond – Kirk Lafler
Sunday, October 12, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

Expand your SAS output formatting and reporting skills with this Output Delivery System: The Basics and Beyond course. Numerous examples will be presented to improve mastery of ODS capabilities while providing a better understanding of ODS statements and options to perform more complicated tasks. Topics include SAS-supplied Formatting statements and options; Formatting 3rd Party Output; SAS 9.0, 9.1, and 9.1.3 3rd Party Formatting ODS statements and options; Exploring Markup Language output with tagset keywords; the integration of ODS with custom DATA step reports; the construction of drill-down applications with the DATA step, ODS, and SAS/GRAPH software; the creation of thumbnail charts; the integration of traffic-lighting scenarios in output; the creation of user defined ODS styles; and the customization of output with the TEMPLATE Procedure and style definitions.

Intended Audience: All SAS users Prerequisites: SAS Basics course or 6-months SAS software experience Delivery Method: Instructor-led and/or Hands-on with code examples and self-study

Visual Six Sigma: Lean Data Analysis Using JMP – Marie Gaudard, Mia Stevens & Phil Ramsey
Sunday, October 12, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm

Visual Six Sigma is an approach to product and process improvement and design that leverages JMP’s superb dynamic visualization capabilities to accelerate the knowledge development required for these efforts. In this workshop, we will guide participants in working with graphical and analytic tools used to uncover and model relationships between the critical to quality characteristics (Ys) and the Hot Xs in case studies. We will also include an overview of the powerful JMP/SAS interface.

Hands on use of JMP by participants will be an integral part of the training. For this reason, participants are requested to bring laptops to the training. Demonstration copies of JMP will be provided for use during the workshop.






Descriptions of Free In-Conference Training Courses

Getting the Most from SAS Formats – Art Carpenter
Monday, October 13, 2008, 8:30am - 11:30am

This half-day seminar shows you how to get the most from Formats in the SAS System. Starting at the basics, we will cover the essential role that Formats play when working with data stored in SAS data sets. We will then move to how INFORMATs are used when building SAS data sets from other data sources, how to work with SAS-supplied date and time formats, and how to create permanent SAS format libraries. Other topics to be discussed include MULTILABEL formats, the new ANYDATE INFORMAT in SAS 9 Software, using Formats when performing table look-ups, concatenated Format Libraries, creating Formats from Input Control Data Sets, and how to effectively use PICTURE Formats. This seminar is appropriate for all SAS Software users who want to learn more about the power and flexibility of SAS formats, and what they can do for you.

After completing this course the student will be able to:

An Introduction to Mixed Models for Pharmaceutical Applications - Catherine Truxillo (SAS Institute)
Monday, October 13, 2008, 1:00pm - 4:00pm

This class features lecture and demonstrations of mixed model concepts using the MIXED procedure in SAS for several types of analyses common to pharmaceutical and clinical trial research. In addition to basic concepts in mixed model methodology, students will learn to apply mixed models for crossed classification (n-way) designs, nested classification designs, and crossover designs. A combination of lecture and live demonstration format enhance the learning experience.

The recommended audience for this course has a firm understanding of linear models, such as ANOVA and regression. Familiarity with mixed models theory is helpful but is not required.

Intended audience: Researchers, statisticians and data analysts who want to learn some basic concepts and techniques for analysis of models with fixed and random effects.

Generating Reports With (ODS) Style(s) – Ben Cochran
Monday, October 13, 2008, 1:30pm - 4:30pm

This course is intended for two groups of students : those who are brand new to the SAS System, and those who have been using the SAS System for a few years, but want to fill in the ‘gaps’ in their SAS report writing knowledge. Students who take this course will learn a lot about the SAS System and how to use specific procedures as well as the Output Delivery System (ODS) to generate a number of different kinds of reports.

Course topics include:

PROC SQL Programming: The Basics and Beyond - Kirk Paul Lafler
Tuesday, October 14, 2008, 8:30am - 11:30am

This course expands your PROC SQL programming skills using numerous examples and techniques of this powerful database language. Topics include strategies for creating and using virtual tables known as views, using case expressions to perform conditional logic and reclassification of data values, database design concepts including basic normalization rules, examples of implementing table integrity constraints, accessing information contained in read-only dictionary tables, interfacing PROC SQL with the Macro facility to create macro variables and macro variable lists, rules associated with index creation and usage, undocumented and hard-to-find PROC SQL features for debugging and performance purposes, complex queries using inner and outer join constructs including set operators, and performance tuning strategies.

Introduction to Bayesian Analysis Using SASŪ Software - Fang Chen, SAS Institute
Tuesday, October 14, 2008, 1:00pm - 4:00pm

Bayesian methods have become increasingly popular in recent years in a number of different disciplines. This tutorial provides an introduction to Bayesian methods with applications in the areas of the generalized linear model and survival analysis. The first part of the course provides an overview of Bayesian methodology, including motivation and Bayesian inference, as well as computational methods and convergence diagnostics relevant to the SAS implementation. The second part of the course discusses applications using new capabilities in SAS/STAT software in the GENMOD, LIFEREG and PHREG procedures which are based on Gibbs sampling. Examples will include methods such as linear regression, logistic regression, Poisson regression, Cox regression, parametric survival models, and the piecewise exponential model. Note that these enhanced procedures are available as downloads for the 9.1.3 release of SAS software.

A master's level knowledge of statistics is assumed as well as experience with generalized linear models and survival analysis. Previous exposure to Bayesian methods is useful but not required.

An Introduction to the Analysis of Survival Data Using the SASŪ System – Michael Wilson
Tuesday, October 14, 2008, 1:30pm - 4:30pm

This course discusses survival analysis concepts with an emphasis on health care problems. During this In-Conference Course, we will introduce statistical methods for the survival analysis. That is, the analysis of studies where the primary outcome is time-to-event. The principal goal of this course, however, is to illustrate the implementation of these methods using SASŪ. Specifically, we will use methods for estimating survival time (Kaplan-Meier), comparing survival between subgroups (log-rank test), and modeling survival curves (Cox proportional hazards regression). Emphasis will be placed on the concepts of how time is measured (e.g., time since entry, attained age, and calendar time), right censoring, competing risks when comparing subgroups, and assessing the assumption of proportional hazards when modeling.

Learn:

Who should attend?
Intermediate-level biostatistical programmers, statistical analysts, epidemiologists, and social scientists that have a basic understanding of hypothesis testing.






Descriptions of Free Hands-On Workshops

Data Step Internals: How It Really Works - Dana Rafiee, Destiny Corporation
Monday, October 13, 2008, 9:00am - 10:20am

This presentation will demonstrate the way the data step was designed and how it works as a utility for reading and writing data. We will discuss the program data vector, input buffers and understanding many of the standard techniques programmers are expected to know.

How Can I Merge Without Sorting? - Dana Rafiee, Destiny Corporation
Monday, October 13, 2008, 11:00am - 11:50am

Build your SAS tool kit with this workshop of different techniques for combining files without sorting. Topics include Merge, Format, Index, SQL, Macro, and Arrays.

ODS Basics: Let’s Understand How to Write ODS Code - Dana Rafiee, Destiny Corporation
Monday, October 13, 2008, 1:30 - 2:20pm

The Output Delivery System has been available in SAS since Version 7. Isn’t it time you understood how simple it is and why it can make your presentations better. We’ll discuss how to take simple output and create PDFs, RTFs, HTML and more. We’ll investigate the use of Styles and modifying that dreaded Template.

Let’s Build the Whole Program in Enterprise Guide - Dana Rafiee, Destiny Corporation
Monday, October 13, 2008, 3:00pm - 3:50pm

SAS has offered many changes and options in software over the years. One of the key tools SAS offers on the desktop is Enterprise Guide. However, many people need an understanding of how it is best used. This workshop will show what it is designed to do.

Macro Basics: Show Me How to Code Less - Dana Rafiee, Destiny Corporation
Tuesday, October 14, 2008, 9:00am - 10:20am

Get hands-on experience understanding how macros can be used and created in SAS software. We will use macro variables and macro statements such as Call Symput and Symget, %macro, %mend, and %let. Learn to write macros for existing code and make your programs simpler and more efficient

Tabulate Basics: Why My Brain Doesn’t Work That Way - Dana Rafiee, Destiny Corporation
Tuesday, October 14, 2008, 11:00am - 11:50am

For so many years, people have struggled with Proc Tabulate. They usually don’t get it or copy someone else’s code and think there is some type of magic to this process. In this workshop, we will drink the Tabulate Kool-Aid. You will find creating cross-tabulations to be simple, fun and actually make sense.

Graphing Workshop - Dana Rafiee, Destiny Corporation
Tuesday, October 14, 2008, 1:30pm - 2:20pm

This workshop will show attendees how to create interactive web publishable graphics with SAS/Graph software and Enterprise Guide. We will discuss ActiveX and Java capabilities to create Bar and Pie Charts, Plots and more.




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