NOTE: SAS Software is Great, But ...

It can be quite disconcerting when you unexpectedly find that something (or somebody) with which (whom) you've become very familiar over the years has suddenly changed significantly. I can't even remember why I was recently looking for information about the SASware Ballot, such was the shock to find the changes that had happened to this old friend.

Since I can remember, the SASware Ballot was an annual survey of customers by SAS, with the aim of giving customers the opportunity to influence product development by voting on their favoured enhancements. It used to be posted to all customers; the results would be announced at SAS Global Forum (and its predecessor, SUGI) with great fanfare.

So, imagine my surprise to find that it's now online and open all year round. Fantastic! There is still a fanfare and announcement of results at SAS Global Forum, but it's now an ongoing, continuous "conversation" between SAS developers and SAS customers.

So, if you would like to propose an enhancement to SAS software, go visit the SASware Ballot and make your voice heard. You can propose new ideas (to be considered by Development for inclusion in the Ballot), and you can vote on existing suggestions.

I was disappointed at the absence of a category for SAS DI Studio, but I took the opportunity to vote for a number of features (I won't risk skewing the voting by mentioning them individually). And, no, I still can't remember why I was looking for the Ballot in the first place!

Get voting!