A SAS variable list is an abbreviated method of referring to a list of variable names. Two variable lists, _NUMERIC_ and
_CHARACTER_, are especially relevant for arrays. As the names imply, these variable lists reflect all of the numeric or
character variables that are defined in the current DATA step when the variable list is specified. You can use these variable
lists in the ARRAY statement, as shown here:
array my_nums[*] _numeric_;
array my_chars[*] _character_;
These variable lists are especially helpful if you want your array to contain all of the numeric or character variables in a SAS
data set referenced in a SAS statement that reads the data set. It is important to emphasize that the variable list refers to all
variables of that type that are previously defined in the DATA step, not just those that exist in a previously referenced data
set.
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