Org property columns

M-x org-columns opens a read-only property projection for the current subtree, or the whole file when point precedes its first heading. Enter visits the exact canonical heading; g refreshes from current source and q closes the projection. Opening, closing and refreshing columns do not write properties or add history. The view uses unsaved canonical text, retains source revision/heading provenance, and marks incomplete clock evidence. It does not select additional agenda files.

Use an inherited heading COLUMNS property or a top-level file declaration:

#+COLUMNS: %ITEM %TODO %OWNER %EFFORT{:} %POINTS{+} %CLOCKSUM

The native profile admits 1..16 distinct %PROPERTY fields and optional {+} numeric or {:} duration sums on stored properties. Names have 1..64 ASCII letters, digits or underscores and start with a letter. Widths, custom titles, other summaries and executable formatters reject explicitly. The default is %ITEM %EFFORT{:} %CLOCKSUM %CLOCKOPEN %CLOCKUNRESOLVED.

Property sums derive parent values from direct children, working from leaves upward; the parent's own stored value is not added again. Leaf values retain their source meaning, empty numeric/duration input is zero, and non-finite or invalid input rejects the operation. Duration sums display hours and minutes using configured native duration units. Summaries never write property drawers.

CLOCKSUM includes all admitted recorded intervals in each subtree, including its parent heading's intervals. It uses the operation's configured time zone, without a calendar date filter. CLOCKOPEN and CLOCKUNRESOLVED count incomplete or unresolved records. Reports disclose open, unresolved and overlapping records even when their status columns were omitted. Unknown/malformed intervals never become fabricated elapsed time.

M-x org-columns-insert-dblock inserts a native report at an admitted blank line or updates a selected columnview block. org-dblock-update and contextual C-c C-c on its opening line update the existing recognized body explicitly:

#+BEGIN: columnview :id global :format "%ITEM %EFFORT{:} %CLOCKSUM"
#+END:

Supported options are :id local (current subtree, the default) or global (whole file), :format "..." and :maxlevel 1..256. Unspecified format uses the source declaration. Unsupported options, ID/file lookups, malformed options, unknown blocks and values that cannot be represented as native table cells reject before publication. An inserted block defaults to global scope.

Updates retain the exact opening/closing lines and unrelated source. The whole body replacement is one checked undo unit, uses the source's newline format, and rechecks canonical source/view/read-only authority. Identical updates add no history. Opening/saving a file does not update reports. Clock tables retain the existing explicit interval/date-range behavior.

Column work shares the existing single cancellable report worker and configured job deadline. The existing report scan admits at most 262144 source UTF-8 bytes, 4096 headings/records and 1 MiB generated output. Other source/query limits still apply. C-g cancels owned work; rejected reports leave ordinary editing available.

The Org column attributes and columnview blocks define the compatible source forms. The native profile above states the admitted subset and keeps computed parent properties separate from canonical source.