How to Create a Formatted Column Output in Python?

Create Formatted Column Output in Python

Question:

In terminal administration tools, how can a user-friendly column list be created in Python?

Objective:

To transform a list of variable-length data into a tabular format with evenly spaced columns, like the one shown below:

a	b	c
aaaaaaaaaa	b	c
a	bbbbbbbbbbb	c

Solution:

Python 2.6 offers a simple method using format strings:

<code class="python">table_data = [
    ['a', 'b', 'c'],
    ['aaaaaaaaaa', 'b', 'c'], 
    ['a', 'bbbbbbbbbb', 'c']
]

for row in table_data:
    print("{: >20} {: >20} {: >20}".format(*row))</code>

Output:

               a                    b                    c
      aaaaaaaaaa                    b                    c
               a           bbbbbbbbbb                    c

Benefits:

• Right-aligns text for consistent spacing.
• Adjusts the minimum column width using the number provided in the format string (e.g., {: >20}).
• Accommodates data of varying lengths in each row, providing a readable table format.

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