Confirm that the .uno:FormatColumns command is not available in the Notebookbar's 'Groupedbar Compact' MUFFIN assemblage. But not clear the dialog is really needed, Table Properties dialog (.uno:TableDialog) provides comparable function. @Andreas?
(In reply to V Stuart Foote from comment #1) > But not clear the dialog is really needed, Table Properties dialog > (.uno:TableDialog) provides comparable function. I don't understand. The table is an other feature. I speak about a text which can be formatted into columns like in newspapers : once a column is filled, the text being typed is displayed on a new column like it would do on a new page. If you have table, you would manually move the words in order to allocate the text to each column. A table can't automatically manage the text flow between paragraphs (don't split paragraph, keep with next paragraph, orphan and widow control).
(In reply to Jérôme from comment #2) > ... > I don't understand. The table is an other feature. I speak about a text > which can be formatted into columns like in newspapers : once a column is > filled, the text being typed is displayed on a new column like it would do > on a new page. > ... Oh sorry, you are correct, you didn't mean Tables I misinterpreted. Regarding Page columns, those are available in all the UI from the 'Columns' tab of the 'Page Style...' dialog (.uno:PageDialog) which for the MUFFIN 'Groupedbar Compact' is on the 'Edit' tab menu. And confirm that Groupedbar Compact does not include the specific UNO to bring up only the Columns panel, .uno:PageColumnDialog, as found as 'Format' --> 'Columns...' in the 'Standard Toolbar' UI Alternatively, the MUFFIN 'Tabbed'/'Tabbed Compact' UI page columns get their own button action handling, .uno:PageColumnType, on the 'Layout' tab, including the 'More options...' that will launch the general 'Page Style...' dialog but focused on the 'Columns' tab. So, for the other MUFFIN assemblages there is probably need to include either scheme to provide direct access to the Columns page styling. And of course for such workflows folks need to understand the need for working with page breaks. And behavior of Sections. @Andreas, Something more general to provide .uno:PageColumnDialog for the MUFFIN assemblages?
Not all functions can be placed on the primary UI; a bit more in case of the Tabbed variant but still not each and every option from the dialogs. It makes sense, however, if changing columns is needed frequently. We should also consider the context menu on the document canvas offering access to the page style dialog.
We discussed the topic in the design meeting. The columns seems to be relevant enough to be accessible via the primary UI. We suggest to add it into the Insert menu. Code pointer: sw/uiconfig/swriter/ui/notebookbar_groupedbar_compact.ui Underneath <object class="GtkMenuItem" id="MenuInsert-InsertSection"> add a similar child with the command .uno:PageColumnType
(In reply to Heiko Tietze from comment #5) > Underneath "MenuInsert-InsertSection"> add a > similar child with the command .uno:PageColumnType There are two kinds of columns. One is a section column. However, this one is a page style column. Putting two different column types in close proximity would not be a good idea. It seems better to not include it at all, and require people to either EDIT-PAGE STYLE, or INSERT-SECTION to access the type of column that they want. (If you go with a compact menu, you should know where to find things given a major grouping.)