Editing Flat-file database (section)

=== Delimiter-separated values ===

In [[delimiter-separated values]] files, the [[field (computer science)|field]]s are separated by a character or string called the [[delimiter]].
Common variants are [[comma-separated values]] (CSV) where the delimiter is a comma, [[tab-separated values]] (TSV) where the delimiter is the tab character), space-separated values and vertical-bar-separated values (delimiter is <code>|</code>).

If the delimiter is allowed inside a field, there needs to be a way to distinguish delimiters characters or strings that are meant literally. For example, consider the sentence "If I have to, I'll do it myself.". To encode it in CSV, there needs to be a way to prevent the comma from splitting the field. Several [[Delimiter#Solutions|strategies to prevent delimiter collision]] exist.