Column Editing

Column editing commands modify the values inside existing columns in-place. Unlike Adding Columns (which adds new columns), these commands change the data directly.

Learning Focus

Use g= for bulk transformations with Python, ge for setting a literal value, f to fill nulls downward, and g* to regex replace values in-place. All are undoable with U.

Bulk Set with Python Expression (g=)

Set the current column for all selected rows to the result of a Python expression.

g= expr     # set current column for SELECTED rows to expression result (in-place)
gz= expr    # set current column for CURRENT row only (in-place)

# Select all Engineering rows
|
# Enter: Engineering

# Uppercase their department
g=
# Enter: department.upper()

# Normalize region codes
# Select all rows with gs
gs
g=
# Enter: 'sg' if region == 'singapore' else region

Destructive but undoable with U.

Bulk Set with Literal Value (ge)

Set the current column for all selected rows to a fixed text value.

ge text     # set current column for selected rows to literal text

# Set all selected rows' 'status' column to 'inactive'
ge
# Enter: inactive

# Clear a column for selected rows
ge
# Enter: (leave blank)

Regex Replace In-Place (g*, gz*)

Apply a regex replacement directly to existing values.

g* search<Tab>replace     # modify current column for selected rows
gz* search<Tab>replace    # modify ALL visible columns for selected rows

# Normalize status labels across selected rows
gs
g*
# Enter: active<Tab>ACTIVE

# Strip trailing whitespace from all columns for selected rows
gs
gz*
# Enter: \s+$<Tab>

For creating a NEW column with regex replace (keeping the original), see Splitting and Extracting.

Fill Nulls (f)

Fill null cells in the current column with the non-null value from the row above.

f           # fill null cells in current column from above

# A column has sporadic nulls:
# region: sg, null, null, kl, null, jp
# Move to 'region' column
f
# Result: sg, sg, sg, kl, kl, jp

Copy / Paste Columns (Y, gY, gP)

Copy and paste entire columns. These operations work from the Columns Sheet.

Y           # yank (copy) current column row (in Columns Sheet)
gY          # yank all selected column rows (in Columns Sheet)
gP          # paste previously yanked column(s) (in Columns Sheet)

See Columns Sheet Operations for details.

Cell Yank / Paste (zy, zp, gzp)

Copy a single cell value, then either overwrite one cell or fill a column.

zy          # yank (copy) current cell value
zp          # paste into CURRENT cell (single-cell overwrite)
gzp         # paste into current column for SELECTED rows

Single cell → single cell (no row selection needed):

# Source cell
zy

# Move to destination cell
zp

One cell → whole column (requires selected rows):

# Copy a tax rate from a cell
# Move to cell containing 0.07
zy

# Apply it to all rows in 'tax_rate' column
# Move to 'tax_rate' column
gs          # select all rows
gzp

External Editor (g Ctrl+O)

g Ctrl+O (press g, then Ctrl+O; longname sysedit-selected) opens the selected rows — with all their currently visible columns — as a temporary TSV file in your system $EDITOR. One row per line, one column per tab. Save and quit the editor to write the values back.

g Ctrl+O    # edit selected rows (visible columns) in external editor

# 1. Select the rows with messy data
gs

# 2. Hide any columns you do not want to touch (optional)
-           # hide current column

# 3. Launch the editor
g Ctrl+O
# "edit N rows as filetype:" → Enter to accept 'tsv'
# Edit the values in the temp TSV, then save and quit

Not a single-column editor

Despite appearances, g Ctrl+O edits every visible column of the selected rows, not only the current column. To edit just one column, hide the others first with - so it is the only visible column.

Requires selected rows

Use s to select one row or gs to select all rows. With nothing selected, g Ctrl+O reports no rows selected. To edit a single cell instead, use e → Ctrl+O (see Editing Cells).

note

^ is caret notation for the Ctrl key, so ^O means Ctrl+O. Plain o is a different command — it opens a file.

Quick Reference

Key	Action	Destructive?
g= expr	Set column for selected rows to Python expr	Yes — undo with U
gz= expr	Set current row only to Python expr	Yes — undo with U
ge text	Set column for selected rows to literal	Yes — undo with U
f	Fill null cells from row above	Yes — undo with U
g* s<Tab>r	Regex replace in-place (selected rows)	Yes — undo with U
gz* s<Tab>r	Regex replace in all visible columns (selected)	Yes — undo with U
Y	Yank column (Columns Sheet)	No
gY	Yank selected columns (Columns Sheet)	No
gP	Paste yanked columns (Columns Sheet)	Yes
zy	Yank current cell value	No
zp	Paste yanked value into current cell	Yes — undo with U
gzp	Paste yanked value to column (selected rows)	Yes — undo with U
g Ctrl+O	Edit selected rows (all visible columns) in external $EDITOR	Yes — undo with U

What's Next

• Splitting and Extracting — split a column into multiple new columns
• Deleting and Hiding — remove or hide columns