col

Filter reverse line feeds from input

$ command | col

$ command | col -x

$ command | col -b

$ command | col -l 256

$ man ls | col -b | less

col [options]

col filters reverse and half-reverse line feeds from input, ensuring output displays in correct order. It replaces whitespace with tabs when feasible and is particularly useful for processing output from nroff and tbl commands.

-b, --no-backspaces

Do not output backspaces; display only the final character at each position

Enable half-forward line feeds (normally deferred to the following line)

Convert multiple spaces to tab characters

Set memory buffer to at least NUM lines (default: 128)

Allow unrecognized control sequences to pass through unchanged

Output multiple spaces instead of tabs

Display help information and exit

Display version information and exit

All unrecognized control characters and escape sequences are discarded by default. The utility warns if input attempts to back up past the last flushed line. Input is assumed to be encoded in UTF-8.

col is part of the util-linux package, originally from BSD Unix. It was designed to process output from nroff for display on terminals that could not handle reverse line feeds.

nroff(1), tbl(1), colcrt(1), expand(1)