Hi

I had the requirement to build a text table with Template::Toolkit. It's for the purpose of sending tabular data in a plain text mail.

As I couldn't find any module, I built my own TextTable filter.

An example table could look like this:

[% FILTER $TextTable %]

>>ID<<|<<Name<<|>>Value>>
------+--------+---------
<<1>><<Bank ABC>><<5,740.00>>
<<2>><<Super Fund>><<12,280.00>>
<<1003>><<Big Savings Bank>><<430.00>>

[% END %]
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And the result would be

 ID |      Name      |  Value
----+----------------+---------
  1 |Bank ABC        | 5,740.00
  2 |Super Fund      |12,280.00
1003|Big Savings Bank|   430.00
[download]

• The << and >> in the header line define the alignment of the columns.
• Spaces before and/or after the header texts define the alignment of the headlines. Centered is the default.
• The separators are defined in the headline as well. Everything not between the << and >> is a separator.
• The second line, if it does not contain any << and >>, is a rule. The first character will be the standard, the second will be used for "crossings".
• The << and >> in the columns surround the values.

My Filter Plugin simply parses the text and translates it into Text::Table code.

I'm wondering whether or not the plugin could be useful for others, so my questions are:

• Did I reinvent the wheel?
• Do you have any suggestions for enhancements?
• What do I have to do to make it a CPAN moduke?

Thanks for your attention.