O

object

in object-oriented methodology, a specific representation of a class. An object inherits the characteristics (attributes or instance variables ) of its class as well as the operations ( methods ) that class can execute. For example, a push button object is an instance of the Push Button class. The terms object and instance are often used interchangeably.

Object Linking and Embedding ( OLE )

See OLE (Object Linking and Embedding).

ODBC (Open Database Connectivity)

an interface standard that provides a common application programming interface (API) for accessing data. Many software products that run in the Windows operating environment adhere to this standard so that you can access data that was created using other software products.

ODBC driver

a loadable library module that provides a standardized interface for accessing, manipulating, and updating data that is created and maintained by a particular vendor's data management software. For example, the SAS ODBC driver enables you to access, manipulate, and update SAS data sources from any application that conforms to the ODBC standard. See also ODBC (Open Database Connectivity).

ODS (Output Delivery System)

a component of SAS software that can produce output in a variety of formats such as markup languages (HTML, XML), PDF, listing, RTF, Postscript, and SAS data sets.

OLE (Object Linking and Embedding)

a method of interprocess communication supported by Windows that involves a client/server architecture. OLE enables an object that was created by one application to be embedded in or linked to another application.