Search code examples
kdb

Importing text data with variable size separators in kdb

I want to import a text file where the columns are separated by a variable number of spaces:

A    123
B 222
C  211

Running this won't work well:

f: ("CI"; " ") 0: `$(":myfile")
Solution

  • You can strip the excess spaces as you import it:

    ("CI";" ")0:(ssr[;"  ";" "]/) each read0`:myfile

A   B   C
123 222 211

    This will likely dramatically slow things down though.

    Can you fix the data at the source? Why is there variable numbers of spaces?