What I don't understand, for example, is why the second line in your "desired result" should be:
col2:line2||||col5:line2|col6:line2rather than:
|col2:line2|||col5:line2|col6:line2In reply to Re^5: perlform ^* variable field length
by Not_a_Number
in thread perlform ^* variable field length
by Anonymous Monk
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