TSV Cell Unescape Tool

Backslash unescape for TSV cells using \t, \n, \r and \\; this is an explicit dialect, not quoted CSV.

Description

Backslash unescape for TSV cells using \t, \n, \r and \\; this is an explicit dialect, not quoted CSV.

Cell unescaping restores the custom control escapes without interpreting an entire table file.

When to use this tool

Backslash unescape for TSV cells using \t, \n, \r and \\; this is an explicit dialect, not quoted CSV.

Prepare the supplied cell fields for this operation.
Compare the complete example with the representation used by your own input before carrying the result into another step.

How to use the tool and how it works

Enter cell. Use the exact text syntax, units and index conventions explained below.
Run the tool. If input validation fails, correct the supplied fields before interpreting any result.
Read result.cell. Interpret false, null and empty lists using the distinctions below; they can be valid outputs.

Decode using the strict backslash grammar with pipe as the internal separator, then rejoin resulting pieces by pipe so literal pipes remain in the cell.^[1]

Input field	Meaning and representation	Accepted input
cell	cell.	Text; at most 8,192 UTF-16 code units, subject to the grammar above

Output field	Interpretation
result	Object containing the named outputs below.
result.cell	The cell value under the stated formula or text convention.

json

{
  "input": {
    "cell": "a\\tb"
  },
  "output": {
    "result": {
      "cell": "a\tb"
    }
  }
}

Limitations and assumptions

This supports the paired cell encoder, not arbitrary TSV or C-style escape syntax. Unknown escapes and a final backslash are errors.
Every declared top-level field is required and unexpected fields are rejected. Numeric inputs must be finite; ordinary text fields are bounded to 8,192 UTF-16 code units, with tighter operation-specific limits where stated.
Lists are limited to 128 entries. JSON text must meet bounded size and depth checks, and numeric outputs beyond the safe finite magnitude are rejected. Exact large integers use decimal strings.
Indexes are zero-based and spans have an exclusive end unless explicitly stated otherwise. A valid false, null or empty-list result is distinct from malformed input.

Alternative or Complementary methods

Choose the exact text grammar before combining serializers and parsers. UTF-16 record lengths, raw separators and custom backslash escapes differ from byte framing, CSV, Markdown and spreadsheet semantics.

References

Tool behavior and example: TSV Cell Unescape Tool — tool.io

Similar or alternative tools

TSV Cell Escape Tool
Backslash escape for TSV cells using \t, \n, \r and \\; this is an explicit dialect, not quoted CSV.
TSV Row Field Formatter
Parse or format a single backslash-escaped TSV row, preserving empty cells and explicit control escapes; not a Markdown table parser.