ARCHIVED: In SAS, why am I getting the error "Invalid Data"?

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Following are some common reasons for receiving this error message in SAS when reading in a raw data file:

  • You forgot to specify a $ for a character variable.
  • If you are not using column locations, you forgot to indicate a missing value with a . (period).
  • If you have specified column locations for variables, the columns you identified don't match the locations of your data. If they appear to match but do not, look for hidden tabs. A tab translates to one space when SAS reads the raw data file, and this will throw off all your column specifications.

If you have questions about using statistical and mathematical software at Indiana University, contact the UITS Research Applications and Deep Learning team.

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Last modified on 2023-05-09 14:45:52.