linebasert

Linebasert refers to approaches, systems, and workflows that process data on a line-by-line basis. In linebasert processing, input is interpreted as a sequence of lines, and each line is handled independently or in a controlled sequence. The concept is widely used in text processing, log analysis, and streaming pipelines, particularly in environments that emphasize low memory usage and incremental computation.

Origin and usage: The term is Norwegian and combines linje (line) with basert (based). It is used to describe both data formats that are line-delimited and programming styles that favor linear, sequential processing over bulk operations. While not a formal standard, linebasert is a common descriptor in documentation for tooling and libraries that operate on lines of text.

Applications and characteristics: Linebasert processing is well suited to processing large text corpora, log files, and streaming data where each record is contained in a single line. It supports streaming, requires modest memory, and often enables simple error handling by line. Typical tools and languages used in linebasert workflows include text-processing utilities and streaming parsers that read input line by line, apply transformations, and emit output line-by-line. It also plays a role in line-oriented data formats such as CSV, JSONL, or log formats.

Limitations and challenges: Multi-line records, complex layouts, or embeddings that cross line boundaries complicate linebasert approaches. Handling different line endings, character encodings, and backpressure in streaming pipelines are common concerns. Parallelization is less straightforward than in block-oriented or columnar processing.

See also: Text processing, line-oriented programming, streaming data, log analysis, AWK, Sed.