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# Column menu

> Reference for the Mammoth Column Menu: format, sort, freeze, rename, hide or remove a column, and which actions are Display Changes or pipeline tasks.

The **Column Menu** is a dropdown attached to each column header in the data grid. It gives you formatting options, sorting, visibility controls, and shortcuts to transformation functions without leaving the grid. Some actions are Display Changes that only affect how the View looks; others add a task to the pipeline.

Click the **3-dot menu button** in any column header to open it. The menu closes after you select an action, but you can reopen it immediately to perform another operation on the same column.

## Which changes stay local to this View

The table shows whether each action is a Display Change or a pipeline task, and what other Views see.

| Change | Scope | Who else sees it? |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Format a number or date column** (currency, percentage, decimals, date format) | Display Change (this View) | Other Views keep their original formatting |
| **Format a text column** (change case, normalize whitespace) | Pipeline task (this View) | Adds a Text Formatting task to this View's pipeline |
| **Sort ascending / descending** | Display Change (this View) | Saved with the View and listed under Grid Changes in Display Changes |
| **Hide column** | Display Change (this View) | Other Views still display the column |
| **Rename column** (display alias) | Display Change (this View) | Other Views still use the original column name |
| **Freeze column** | Personal setting (this View) | Saved for you in this View; it does not change the View for others |
| **Duplicate column values** | Pipeline task (this View) | Adds a Copy Columns task to this View's pipeline |
| **Apply Filter with this Column** | Pipeline task (this View) | Adds a Conditional Filter task to this View's pipeline |
| **Remove Column** | Pipeline task (this View) | Adds a Remove Column task to this View's pipeline; suspend or delete that task to bring the column back |

Display Changes (formatting, sort, hide, rename) only change how this View looks. Operations that open the Functions Panel (like splitting, combining, or removing columns) add tasks to this View's pipeline.

## Menu structure

The Column Menu has five zones, top to bottom:

1. **Format section**—appears at the top; layout varies by column type (see below)
2. **Sort**—a dropdown to sort the column ascending or descending
3. **Conditional Highlights**—opens the Conditional Highlights panel for this column
4. **Display checkboxes**—Show Whitespaces (TEXT columns only) and Freeze column (all types)
5. **Action list**—type-specific operations followed by common operations

For a TEXT column whose values look like JSON, the menu opens with an **Extract JSON** shortcut at the top and tucks everything else under **More options**.

## Format columns by type

Number and date formatting change how data appears in the grid—they do not change the underlying data. Text formatting is different: it adds a Text Formatting task to the pipeline. The Format section at the top of the menu behaves differently depending on the column type.

### Format a TEXT column

For TEXT columns, "**Format**" appears as an expandable submenu with a right-facing arrow. Hover over or click it to open the text formatter flyout.

Inside the formatter:

**Change text case**—Make all text uppercase, lowercase, or capitalized:

1. Check the box next to "Change case to"
2. Select from the dropdown: **UPPER**, **lower**, or **Capitalized**
3. Click **Apply**

**Normalize whitespace**—Remove extra spaces and tabs:

1. Check "Normalize whitespace"
2. Click **Apply**

This applies the Text Formatting function's whitespace option to the column. Useful for cleaning up messy text.

**More options**—Opens the Text Formatting panel with your selections pre-filled so you can adjust them before applying.

The **Apply** button stays disabled until at least one option is checked. Clicking **Apply** adds a Text Formatting task to the pipeline and changes the column's values.

**Show Whitespaces**—Visualize spaces and special characters in the column:

This is a checkbox directly in the main menu body (not inside the Format submenu), visible only for TEXT columns.

1. Check "Show Whitespaces"
2. Whitespace characters are now displayed as visible symbols throughout the column

Uncheck to hide them. Helpful when debugging data quality issues where leading spaces or tabs affect analysis.

### Format a NUMERIC column

For NUMERIC columns, the formatter appears **inline** within the main menu—there is no submenu to expand.

The formatter is headed **Formatting** and has a row of icon buttons (they have no text labels):

**Separator**—Toggle thousand separators (1,234,567 vs 1234567):

Click the separator button to toggle. It is **on by default**.

**Percentage**—Display numbers as percentages (0.45 → 45%):

Click the percentage button to toggle.

Note: currency and percentage are mutually exclusive. Enabling one disables the other.

**Currency**—Add a currency symbol:

Click the currency button to open the currency picker. Select one of:

- **$** (USD)
- **€** (EUR)
- **¥** (YEN)
- **£** (GBP)
- **₹** (INR)

Click the symbol to select it.

Note: currency and percentage are mutually exclusive.

**Decimal precision**—Adjust visible decimal places (up to 5):

Use the left/right chevron buttons next to the decimal preview to step the precision. The default is **2 decimal places**.

**Apply**—Confirms formatting changes. The button is enabled only when the current settings differ from the saved format.

**Reset**—Reverts all numeric formatting back to defaults (separator on, no currency, no percentage, 2 decimals). The **Reset** button (tooltip: Reset to original formatting) appears only when the column's format differs from the default.

---

### Format a DATE column

For DATE columns, "**Format**" appears as an expandable submenu. Inside the formatter:

1. Select the date type from the dropdown: **Universal**, **US**, or **UK**
2. A list of format options appears for your chosen type, each showing today's date as a live preview
3. Click any format to apply it immediately

## Sort your data

Below the format section, the menu shows a **Sort** dropdown.

**Sort ascending or descending**—Organize rows by a column's values:

1. Click the 3-dot menu on any column
2. Select "Ascending" or "Descending" from the Sort dropdown
3. The grid reorganizes immediately

The Column Menu sorts by one column at a time; choosing a sort in a different column replaces the previous one. To sort by several columns, use the **Sort by** button in the footer of the View, which opens the Sort Columns dialog with **Add another sort**.

Sorting is a Display Change on this View, not a pipeline task. It is saved with the View and shows under **Grid Changes** in the Display Changes modal, where you can revert it. There is no dedicated Sort pipeline task in Mammoth—if you need a specific row order for a calculation, use the **Add Sort** option available inside functions like Fill Missing Values or Window Function, which is saved as part of that task.

## Freeze a column

The **Freeze "[column name]"** checkbox appears in the main menu body for all column types, below the sort control.

**Keep a column visible while scrolling horizontally:**

1. Click the 3-dot menu
2. Check **Freeze "[ColName]"**
3. The column is now pinned to the left side of the grid

When you scroll right to see more columns, the frozen column stays visible. Useful for reference columns like "ID" or "Name."

**Unfreeze**—Uncheck the freeze option to return the column to normal scrolling behavior.

The freeze setting is saved for you per View—the column stays pinned after you refresh.

## Type-specific operations

Below the checkboxes, the action list shows operations specific to the column's data type, followed by common operations available on all columns.

### TEXT column operations

| Operation | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| **Label & Insert Values** | Set all cells in the column to a fixed value or expression |
| **Split this column** | Break the column into multiple columns using a delimiter or pattern |
| **Bulk Replace** | Find and replace multiple patterns simultaneously across the column |
| **Extract Text** | Pull out a substring based on position or regex pattern |
| **Combine with another column** | Merge this column with another using an optional separator |

### NUMERIC column operations

| Operation | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| **Label & Insert Values** | Set all cells in the column to a fixed value or expression |
| **Math Function** | Apply math formulas to the column |
| **Calculate running total** | Compute a cumulative sum across rows in order |
| **Ranking** | Assign rank values based on numeric order |

**Note on running total:** Row order matters for a cumulative sum.

### DATE column operations

| Operation | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| **Label & Insert Values** | Set all cells in the column to a fixed value or expression |
| **Extract Date Part** | Pull out a specific component (year, month, day, quarter, etc.) |
| **Add / Subtract Date Values** | Add or subtract days, months, or years from the date |

When you select any of these, the Functions Panel opens with your column pre-selected. Configure the operation and click Apply to add it to your pipeline.

## Common operations (all column types)

After the type-specific items, a divider separates the following operations available on every column:

| Operation | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| **Apply Filter with this Column** | Opens the Functions Panel with a filter pre-configured for this column |
| **Duplicate column values** | Opens the Copy Columns panel to add a copy of the column |
| **Convert Column Type** | Changes the data type (TEXT → NUMERIC → DATE) |
| **Add New Column to the right** | Inserts a blank column after the current column |
| **Rename Column** | Opens an inline input to set a display alias for this View |
| **Revert to original column name** | Removes the display alias (appears only if the column has been renamed) |
| **Hide Column** | Removes the column from the current View without deleting data |
| **Remove Column** | Opens the Remove Column panel; applying adds a task that removes the column from this View |

## Rename a column

**Create a display name without changing the dataset:**

1. Click the 3-dot menu
2. Click **Rename Column**
3. An inline input field appears with the current name
4. Type your new display name and press Enter

The column shows your new name in this View only. Other Views still use the original name.

**Revert to original name**—The **Revert to original column name** option appears in the menu only after the column has been renamed. Click it to remove the display alias and restore the original column name.

Note: the Rename option is disabled while the transformation info panel is open, or while any pipeline task is in error. Close the panel or fix the failing task first.

## Hide a column

**Remove a column from view without deleting it:**

1. Click the 3-dot menu
2. Click **Hide Column**
3. The column disappears from the grid

The data is still there—just not visible in this View. Other Views are unaffected.

To unhide: use the Column Browser (the column count at the bottom of the View) or open **Display Changes** and revert the hidden column.

## Remove a column

**Remove a column from the View:**

1. Click the 3-dot menu
2. Click **Remove Column**
3. The Remove Column panel opens with the column selected; click **Apply**

Removal is a pipeline task, so it affects this View only. To bring the column back, suspend or delete the Remove Column task in the Pipeline panel. If you only want to hide a column from the grid, use **Hide Column** instead.

## When the menu is disabled

The 3-dot menu button is disabled and cannot be opened when:

- The pipeline is currently processing
- Changes are being applied to the dataset
- Draft mode is on and Mammoth is tracking pending tasks

Wait for the pipeline to finish processing and the button becomes active again.

While any pipeline task is in error (and is not suspended or deleted), the menu still opens, but **Rename Column**, **Hide Column** and **Revert to original column name** are disabled, and formatting and sort changes are ignored. Fix or remove the failing task to use them again.

## Common questions

**Q: Will my formatting changes affect other people working with this dataset?**\
A: Number and date formatting are Display Changes on this View only; other Views keep their original formatting. Text formatting adds a pipeline task to this View, so everyone using this View sees the result.

**Q: I sorted my column, but the sort disappeared when I refreshed. Why?**\
A: Sorting in the Column Menu is saved with the View as a Display Change, so it should persist after a refresh. If it does not, check the Grid Changes section of the Display Changes modal. There is no dedicated Sort pipeline task in Mammoth. Some functions (like Fill Missing Values and Window Function) let you define an **Add Sort** order that is saved as part of that specific task.

**Q: What's the difference between renaming a column here and renaming it in the Column Browser?**\
A: They're the same thing—both create a View-specific display alias. The Column Menu rename is just a quicker way to do it without opening the full Column Browser panel.

**Q: Why is the Rename option disabled?**\
A: The Rename option is disabled while the transformation info panel is open or while any pipeline task is in error. Close the panel, or fix or remove the failing task.

**Q: I removed a column by accident. Can I get it back?**\
A: Yes. Remove Column is a pipeline task. Suspend or delete the task in the Pipeline panel to bring the column back.

**Q: Can I use both a currency symbol and percentage at the same time?**\
A: No—currency and percentage are mutually exclusive. Enabling one automatically disables the other.

**Q: How many columns can I freeze?**\
A: You can freeze more than one column. Freezing many columns leaves less horizontal space for scrolling through the rest of your data.

---

## Troubleshooting

| Symptom | Reason | Solution |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 3-dot button is disabled | Pipeline is processing, applying changes, or Draft mode is on with pending tasks | Wait for the pipeline to finish |
| Rename option is disabled | Transformation info panel is open, or a pipeline task is in error | Close the transformation info panel, or fix or remove the failing task |
| Hide Column or Revert to original column name is disabled | A pipeline task is in error | Fix or remove the failing task |
| Sort or other Display Changes are rejected | The pipeline has a task in error | Fix or remove the failing task, then try again |
| Format didn't apply | Apply was not clicked | Reopen the menu and click Apply to confirm |

---

## See also

- [**Column Browser**](https://docs.mammoth.io/learn/explore-discover/column-browser/)—Manage all columns at once (hide/show, reorder, bulk operations)
- [**Grid Operations**](https://docs.mammoth.io/learn/transform/grid-operations/)—Select multiple columns to bulk hide, show, or remove
- [**Transform and pipeline**](https://docs.mammoth.io/learn/transform/)—How pipeline tasks transform data
- [**Date, Numeric & Text**](https://docs.mammoth.io/learn/transform/date-numeric-text)—Functions for DATE, NUMERIC and TEXT columns

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Source: https://docs.mammoth.io/learn/transform/column-menu.md · Updated: 2026-10-13