Add column renaming/aliasing capability to GLQL tables
Problem to solve
Users need the ability to rename column headers in GLQL tables to provide more context-appropriate labels. For example, a user might want to display labels(...) as "Team" to make the table more intuitive for their team's specific use case.
Intended users
- GLQL query authors
- Users viewing GLQL results who need more contextual column names
Proposal
Implement two different approaches to handle column renaming:
-
Query syntax approach: Add support for column aliases in GLQL syntax:
fields: state, title, assignee, labels("group::*") as "Team" -
UI approach: Add a dropdown menu to each column header with options to:
- Rename column
- Hide column
Questions:
When a user renames a column, should we save this change and make it available to everyone viewing the view, or should that change be stored as a user preference without modifying the original query?
Other thoughts:
- For query authors: The change can be saved to the query definition
- For viewers: The change can be persisted as a user preference without modifying the original query
We need to clearly communicate when changes affect only the current user vs. when they update the saved configuration for all users:
- Add an "unsaved changes" indicator
- When saving, show a modal explaining the change will affect all users with access
Implementation details
- Store column aliases in the GLQL query metadata
- For user-specific customizations, store in user preferences
- Ensure aliases are properly handled during sorting and filtering operations
References
- Related Slack discussion: https://gitlab.slack.com/archives/C07HUEF4VPD/p1744247410202289
- Similar implementation in planning views.