---
id: linear-tsv
version: "1.1.0"
license: Apache
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: abandoned
---

# linear-tsv — Line-oriented, tab-separated value format

License: permissive · Maintenance: abandoned · Downloads: 249.9K/mo

## What it is and what it does

Linear TSV is a Python library for reading and writing tabular data in the Linear TSV format, a line-oriented, tab-separated serialization designed to be compatible with Unix command-line tools like sort, fgrep, and cut. Unlike CSV, where newlines are quoted and records can span multiple physical lines, Linear TSV uses escape sequences (\n for newline, \t for tab, \r for carriage return, \\ for backslash) to ensure every logical record is exactly one physical line, making naive byte-level splitting on tab (0x09) and newline (0x0a) characters reliable.

The package provides both simple functional APIs (un() to parse, to() to write) and CSV-compatible reader/writer/DictReader/DictWriter classes for drop-in compatibility with existing CSV workflows. It derives its format specification from the TEXT serialization mode of PostgreSQL and MySQL. However, the package has been abandoned since January 2018 and is only tested against Python 2.6, 2.7, and 3.5, making it a poor choice for new projects unless you have a specific requirement for the Linear TSV format or are maintaining legacy code.

Use it for:

- Process tabular data with Unix shell tools (sort, grep, cut) without parsing complications from quoted newlines in CSV
- Migrate data from PostgreSQL or MySQL TEXT output mode while preserving the native escape format
- Build data pipelines where line-oriented processing is essential and record boundaries must never be ambiguous
- Replace CSV in locales where comma is the decimal separator, using tab as an unambiguous field delimiter

## Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts above — verify before relying.

Parses and writes tabular data in Linear TSV format, a line-oriented tab-separated format where newlines and tabs in field values are escaped, enabling reliable processing with standard Unix line tools.

No. The package is abandoned, last released in 2018, and only tested on Python 2.6, 2.7, and 3.5. Install only if you are maintaining legacy code that already depends on it or if you have a strict requirement for the Linear TSV format and cannot use a maintained alternative. For new projects, prefer a maintained TSV or CSV library.

## Install

pip install linear-tsv
uv add linear-tsv
poetry add linear-tsv

## Installing linear-tsv

Before you install: High install friction due to source distribution only. Package is abandoned as of 2018 with no recent maintenance, though the repository remains archived and unstarred. Suitable only for legacy systems or when Linear TSV format is explicitly required.

License in practice: Licensed under Apache (permissive), placing no restrictions on commercial or proprietary use, though the abandoned status means no ongoing legal or security support.

Quickstart:

import tsv
import sys

# Parse TSV stream to list of lists
lists = tsv.un(sys.stdin)

# Write rows back to TSV
strings = tsv.to(lists, sys.stdout)

Package is abandoned since 2018 and only supports Python 2.6, 2.7, and 3.5; compatibility with modern Python versions is unverified.

Verify before relying:

- Whether the package works with Python versions beyond 3.5 (no recent testing or maintenance)
- Whether escape handling correctly implements the full Linear TSV specification in all edge cases
- Performance characteristics on large datasets or streaming use

## Package facts

- License: Apache (permissive)
- Python support: unspecified
- Install friction: high
- Maintenance: abandoned
- Downloads: 249.9K/month (top 15,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

tsv parser tab-separated values, line-oriented tabular data format, escape-based tsv reader writer, csv alternative tab format, unix-friendly data serialization, data-serialization, legacy-unmaintained

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