[Bug 868747] [NEW] fmt -f <unlimited> should be supported

[jimav]

Public bug reported:

Strictly speaking this is an enhancement request.

fmt imposes an artificial limit on the maximum output line length
controlled by the -f option, which prevents using this tool to "join"
together all lines in each paragraph (for any paragraph size).  This
operation is necessary to prepare plain-text for import into a word
processor such as LibreOffice, where "manual line breaks" (i.e. newlines
in the middle of paragraphs) are undesirable.   If fmt could be run with
an effectively unlimited max line length, then it could be used for this
purpose.

Ideally there would be a way to specify an explicitly unlimited output
line length (say, -f -1).

SUMMARY:
  'fmt -f 9999 file.txt' gives error "invalid width".   It should accept an arbitrarily-large value (up to max 32-bit integer).
  Ideally, an option would allow specifying an explicitly unlimited (or maximum) output line length.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 10.10
Package: coreutils 8.5-1ubuntu3
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.35-30.59-generic 2.6.35.13
Uname: Linux 2.6.35-30-generic x86_64
Architecture: amd64
Date: Wed Oct  5 14:45:27 2011
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 10.10 "Maverick Meerkat" - Release Candidate amd64 (20100928)
ProcEnviron:
 PATH=(custom, user)
 LANG=en_US.utf8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
SourcePackage: coreutils

** Affects: coreutils (Ubuntu)
     Importance: Undecided
         Status: New


** Tags: amd64 apport-bug maverick

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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/868747

Title:
  fmt -f <unlimited> should be supported

Status in “coreutils” package in Ubuntu:
  New

Bug description:
  Strictly speaking this is an enhancement request.

  fmt imposes an artificial limit on the maximum output line length
  controlled by the -f option, which prevents using this tool to "join"
  together all lines in each paragraph (for any paragraph size).  This
  operation is necessary to prepare plain-text for import into a word
  processor such as LibreOffice, where "manual line breaks" (i.e.
  newlines in the middle of paragraphs) are undesirable.   If fmt could
  be run with an effectively unlimited max line length, then it could be
  used for this purpose.

  Ideally there would be a way to specify an explicitly unlimited output
  line length (say, -f -1).

  SUMMARY:
    'fmt -f 9999 file.txt' gives error "invalid width".   It should accept an arbitrarily-large value (up to max 32-bit integer).
    Ideally, an option would allow specifying an explicitly unlimited (or maximum) output line length.

  ProblemType: Bug
  DistroRelease: Ubuntu 10.10
  Package: coreutils 8.5-1ubuntu3
  ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.35-30.59-generic 2.6.35.13
  Uname: Linux 2.6.35-30-generic x86_64
  Architecture: amd64
  Date: Wed Oct  5 14:45:27 2011
  InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 10.10 "Maverick Meerkat" - Release Candidate amd64 (20100928)
  ProcEnviron:
   PATH=(custom, user)
   LANG=en_US.utf8
   SHELL=/bin/bash
  SourcePackage: coreutils

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