snapaid/maxcol.awk

#!/usr/bin/awk -f

{
	if (NF > maxnf)
		maxnf = NF

	for (i = 1; i <= NF; i++) {
		l = length($i)
		if (l > ar[i]) {
			ar[i] = l
			ex[i] = $i
		}
	}
}

END {
	for (i = 1; i <= NF; i++) {
		printf("%2d %2d %s\n", i, ar[i], ex[i])
	}
}