I'm trying to split a table in several pages, for doing this I'm using the xtab package and xtabular. However, the behavior of the xtabular* environment (that supposedly should break the two column format and be only one column) is quite odd, because it is not working (as this other question also shows).
It is wrapping around the two columns, instead of creating a single column. And, as you can see in the example below, if the text is wider than the column width it get over the content of the next column.
I would like the behavior of splitting the tables of the xtabular in single column document, in the two column document using xtabular*.
Can you point me in the right direction? Or another package that will accomplish the same result?
\documentclass[twocolumn]{article}
\usepackage{xtab}
\begin{document}
\begin{xtabular*}{\textwidth}{@{\extracolsep{\fill}}|*{5}{p{1.2cm}|}}
\hline
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
\end{xtabular*}
\end{document}
Edit (Partial Solution)
So, I've been trying to solve this, and I try using figure or other float environment (like table*) to make it work. The closest I get was using table*. However, as you may know, by putting it into a one big float the table isn't split into many tables.
So, I thought to try to redefine an xtabular* that is wrapped around a table*. So I make this attempt:
\documentclass[twocolumn]{article}
\usepackage{xtab}
\usepackage{lipsum}
\makeatletter
\newif\ifST@tb
\@namedef{tbxtabular*}#1{%
\@ifnextchar[{\@nameuse{@tbsupertabular*}{#1}}%
{\@nameuse{@tbsupertabular*}{#1}[]}%]
}
\@namedef{@tbsupertabular*}#1[#2]#3{%
\ST@trace\tw@{Starting a new tbxtabular*}%
\def\ST@tableformat{#3}%
\ST@wd=#1\relax
\global\ST@startrue
\global\ST@tbtrue
\ST@rightskip \rightskip
\ST@leftskip \leftskip
\ST@parfillskip \parfillskip
\x@supertabular
\csname table*\endcsname[t]
\noindent\expandafter\csname org@tabular*\expandafter\endcsname
\expandafter{\expandafter\ST@wd\expandafter}%
\expandafter{\ST@tableformat}%
\@@tablehead}
\def\endtbxtabular{%
\ifx\@table@last@tail\undefined
\@tabletail
\else
\@table@last@tail
\fi
\csname endtabular\ifST@star*\fi\endcsname
\csname endtable*\endcsname
\x@endsupertabular
\ST@trace\tw@{Ended an tbxtabular\ifST@star*\fi}}
\expandafter\let\csname endtbxtabular*\endcsname\endtbxtabular
\def\ST@newpage{%
\noalign{\ST@trace\tw@{Starting new page, writing tail}}%
\@tabletail
\ifST@star
\csname endtabular*\endcsname
\else
\endtabular
\fi
\ifST@mp
\endminipage
\fi
\ifST@tb
\csname endtable*\endcsname
\fi
\global\let\ST@skippage\ST@newpage
\newpage\PWSTcalnextpageht
\ST@trace\tw@{writing head}%
\PWSTsethead
\ifST@mp
\noindent\minipage{\columnwidth}%
\parfillskip\ST@parfillskip
\rightskip \ST@rightskip
\leftskip \ST@leftskip
\fi
\ifST@tb
\noindent\csname table*\endcsname[t]
\fi
\noindent
\ifST@star
\expandafter\csname org@tabular*\expandafter\endcsname
\expandafter{\expandafter\ST@wd\expandafter}%
\expandafter{\ST@tableformat}%
\else
\expandafter\org@tabular\expandafter{\ST@tableformat}%
\fi}
\makeatother
\begin{document}
\lipsum[1-5]
\tablefirsthead{\hline \textbf{A} & \textbf{B} & \textbf{C} & \textbf{D} & \textbf{E}\\}
\tablehead{\hline \textbf{A} & \textbf{B} & \textbf{C} & \textbf{D} & \textbf{E}\\}
\tabletail{\hline}
\begin{tbxtabular*}{\textwidth}{@{\extracolsep{\fill}}|*{5}{p{1.2cm}|}}
\hline
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
a & b & c & d & e \\
\end{tbxtabular*}
\lipsum[1-5]
\end{document}
I changed the mpxtabular*, and create a tbxtabular* version of it, that is mainly the xtabular* with a table* around it. I don't know if this is the best approach or I'm just wasting my time. But, at least the tables now are converted into one column and are placed nicely in different pages and not over the text. However, the tables are not split correctly (c.f. pages 4 and 5).
Best Answer
Replace
\textwidthwith\linewidth.