column is available in packages util-linux and bsdmainutils. Both these packages are installed in Linux Mint 20.2
$ type column column is /usr/bin/column column is /bin/column Both these column are pointing to the bsd column tool. How can I access the tool from util-linux?
In Linux Mint 20.2, util-linux doesn’t provide column; the version shipped in Mint is 2.34-0.1ubuntu9.1, but the package only started providing column in version 2.35.2-3 of the package.
You can verify which packages provide a given binary using apt-file:
$ apt-file search bin/column autogen: /usr/bin/columns bsdmainutils: /usr/bin/column xymon: /usr/lib/xymon/cgi-bin/columndoc.sh column changed packages during a transition from bsdmainutils to util-linux; this transition hasn’t reached Mint yet. The old bsdmainutils tools are now part of a new bsdextrautils package, which is built from util-linux. This will only be available in Linux Mint once a release is made based on Ubuntu 21.04 or later.
If you really want the util-linux version of column, you’ll have to build it yourself.
If you have two executables with the same name, and both are in the PATH - just define a full path: /usr/bin/column
Or make an alias to it: alias clmn='/usr/bin/column' And use that alias in the future work. Do not forget to add alias definition to your .profile or .bashrc.
Or make a bin folder in your home directory, put there a script like:
#!/bin/sh /usr/bin/column $1 $2 $3 $4 $5 $6 Call that script "column", and make sure that the $HOME/bin is the first in the path.
Or just uninstall the tools which you do not need.
/bin is a symlink to /usr/bin.