term% cat index.txt TBL(1) General Commands Manual TBL(1)
NAME
tbl - format tables for nroff or troff
SYNOPSIS
tbl [ files ] ...
DESCRIPTION
Tbl is a preprocessor for formatting tables for nroff or troff(1). The
input files are copied to the standard output, except for lines between
.TS and .TE command lines, which are assumed to describe tables and re‐
formatted. Details are given in the reference manual.
As an example, letting \t represent a tab (which should be typed as a
genuine tab) the input
.TS
c s s
c c s
c c c
l n n.
Household Population
Town\tHouseholds
\tNumber\tSize
Bedminster\t789\t3.26
Bernards Twp.\t3087\t3.74
Bernardsville\t2018\t3.30
Bound Brook\t3425\t3.04
Branchburg\t1644\t3.49
Bridgewater\t7897\t3.81
Far Hills\t240\t3.19
.TE
yields
Household Population
Town Households
Number Size
Bedminster 789 3.26
Bernards Twp. 3087 3.74
Bernardsville 2018 3.30
Bound Brook 3425 3.04
Branchburg 1644 3.49
Bridgewater 7897 3.81
Far Hills 240 3.19
If no arguments are given, tbl reads the standard input, so it may be
used as a filter. When it is used with eqn or neqn the tbl command
should be first, to minimize the volume of data passed through pipes.
SEE ALSO
troff(1), eqn(1)
M. E. Lesk, TBL.
TBL(1)