Many mainframe shops have had SAS around for years. Often, the current programmers have all but forgotten what unique features SAS was originally licensed for. SAS was designed to be a complete, all encompassing statistical analysis package. As such it comes with a hefty annual price tag. But at many shops, SAS is now mainly used an expensive, CPU-intensive, report writer. Why should you keep on paying so much money for bells and whistles that no one is even using anymore?
If you are mainly using SAS (with MXG) to make SMF reports, click here to learn how Spectrum SMF Writer can save you lots of money!
Otherwise, if your shop is using SAS primarily as an ad hoc report writer
we have great news for you!
z/Writer can provide you with the same
4GL reporting abilities at a much lower cost!
z/Writer is a powerful quick-code utility for z/OS mainframes. It is perfect for those quick-and-dirty one-time queries and analyses. But it is also ideal for quickly creating attractive new reports for production use. Use it to add custom reporting capabilities to any of your existing systems, whether home-grown or from a third party. Use it to report on the VSAM files maintained by your CICS applications. Or on DB2 data. The possibilites are endless for accomplishing more and more — while paying less and less, year after year.
z/Writer's annual costs are much less than SAS's. (We publish our low prices right here. Compare that to what you are currently paying for SAS!) Yet z/Writer provides the same sort of report writing and file manipulation capabilities, including dozens of powerful string and math functions.
z/Writer features a simple syntax that is easy to learn and use. Your programmers will be up and running with z/Writer in no time. And z/Writer accepts your existing COBOL and Assembler record layouts so you can get started using it right away. It is also written entirely in fast, efficient Assembler language to be easy on your CPU.
Best of all, it comes from Pacific Systems Group, with its 25-year history of providing inexpensive, rock solid mainframe software backed up with first class service and support.
A Sample SAS Program Converted to Z-Writer
SAS
FILENAME RAWIN 'WTAP01A.MYRAW.DATA' MVS LRECL=80;
DATA SASDATA INFILE RAWIN;
INPUT IDNUM 1-4
AGE 7-9
STATE $ 17-18
SEX 55-55;
IF SEX = 1
IF AGE < 18 THEN AGEGRP=1;
ELSE IF AGE <= 65 THEN AGEGRP=2;
ELSE IF AGE > 65 THEN AGRGRP=3;
PROC PRINT DATA=SASDATA;
TITLE 'AGE GROUP OF MALES';
RUN;
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Z-Writer
FILE RAWIN LRECL(80)
IDNUM 4
AGE N2 COL(7)
STATE 2 COL(17)
SEX 1 COL(55)
WORKAREA
AGEGRP N4
*
READ RAWIN
DOWHILE #STATUS = 'Y'
IF SEX = 1
IF AGE < 18 AGEGRP=1
ELSEIF AGE <= 65 AGEGRP=2
ELSEIF AGE > 65 AGEGRP=3 ENDIF
PRINT IDNUM AGE STATE SEX AGRGRP
ENDIF
READ RAWIN
ENDDO
TITLE 'AGE GROUP OF MALES'
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See for yourself why Pacific Systems Group products are already in use at over 300 mainframe shops worldwide. Download your own free 30-day trial of z/Writer right now.
Call us at 1-800-572-5517 and we'll answer any questions you may have.
Or send us an e-mail.
Z-Writer Features
versions available that accept Easytrieve, VISION:Results, VISION:Report or CA-Earl control statements and JCL
or, use native control statements featuring an easy, free format, COBOL–like syntax that's quickly learned
user–friendly field names can be up to 70 characters long, and allow full compatibility with existing COBOL, PL/1 and Assembler data names
work with any number of flat files and VSAM files
access DB2 tables, with our available DB2 Option
can automatically format "reports" as comma-delimited files, to export to PC
create and read back temporary work files, without any special JCL
handles complicated record layouts, including variably–located fields, fields located by pointer or pointer expressions, etc.
supports records that contain arrays, nested to any level
use your existing COBOL or Assembler record layouts instead of creating a data dictionary. Or, use Z-Writer's simple data dictionary for added functionality.
support for floating point data
produces efficient internal machine code that is easy on your CPU
make multiple reports (or output files) in a single file pass
macro expansion feature helps in supplying run-time parms
report lines are not limited to only 132 characters. Z-Writer can format a report as wide as your laser printer supports.
any number of control breaks allowed
allows complete control over formatting of numeric fields, including handling of special cases like telephone numbers, social security numbers, etc.
has special formatting options for international users
allows complete control over report titles, column headings (or just use the defaults)
includes an option to validity–check numeric data before processing it, to prevent S0C7 abends
ability to display file data in hexadecimal format, for analyzing invalid data
full program trace facility, to help when developing new program
translate fields from EBCDIC to ASCII and vice verse
supports full "boolean logic" (the use of AND, OR and NOT) in conditional expressions
ability to scan free format fields, to see if a certain text appears anywhere within the field
comparisons and computations are allowed among all numeric fields, (even if some are packed, some are binary, and others are zoned, etc.)
supports all types of mainframe data widely in use, including zoned, packed, BCD, signed and unsigned binary and hexadecimal floating point
full mathematical calculations are supported, including the use of many built–in functions
supports a full range of functions to manipulate string data, including powerful parsing features
"compress" formatting features lets you, for example, compress separate city, state and ZIP fields into a normal formatted line format
built–in fields provide the system date, time, jobname, etc.
ability to print full–page forms
full control of carriage control when printing reports
comes with thorough, clear documentation
