What does the ODS statement do in SAS?

The ODS statement in SAS, which stands for Output Delivery System, is specifically designed to manage the output of SAS procedures and data step results. It allows users to direct their output to various formats such as HTML, PDF, RTF, and more. This capability is essential for creating reports and presentations in formats that suit different audiences or use cases. By using the ODS statement, users can not only specify the format of the output but can also control where it is displayed, be it in a window, a file, or printed directly.

This functionality enhances the versatility of SAS as a statistical tool by allowing users to format their results in a visually appealing manner and share them easily. The ability to switch between different output formats dynamically is a powerful feature that can streamline the process of generating reports.