diff --git a/cmd/root.go b/cmd/root.go
index e2d3421..96bd1f9 100644
--- a/cmd/root.go
+++ b/cmd/root.go
@@ -20,14 +20,13 @@ import (
 	"bytes"
 	"fmt"
 	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
+	"github.com/tlinden/tablizer/cfg"
 	"github.com/tlinden/tablizer/lib"
 	"log"
 	"os"
 	"os/exec"
 )
 
-var ShowManual = false
-
 func man() {
 	man := exec.Command("less", "-")
 
@@ -45,62 +44,66 @@ func man() {
 	}
 }
 
-var rootCmd = &cobra.Command{
-	Use:   "tablizer [regex] [file, ...]",
-	Short: "[Re-]tabularize tabular data",
-	Long:  `Manipulate tabular output of other programs`,
-	RunE: func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
-		if lib.ShowVersion {
-			fmt.Printf("This is tablizer version %s\n", lib.VERSION)
-			return nil
-		}
-
-		if ShowManual {
-			man()
-			return nil
-		}
-
-		err := lib.PrepareModeFlags()
-		if err != nil {
-			return err
-		}
-
-		lib.PrepareSortFlags()
-
-		return lib.ProcessFiles(args)
-	},
-}
-
 func Execute() {
-	err := rootCmd.Execute()
-	if err != nil {
-		os.Exit(1)
-	}
-}
+	var (
+		conf        cfg.Config
+		ShowManual  bool
+		Outputmode  string
+		ShowVersion bool
+		modeflag    cfg.Modeflag
+		sortmode    cfg.Sortmode
+	)
 
-func init() {
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.Debug, "debug", "d", false, "Enable debugging")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.NoNumbering, "no-numbering", "n", false, "Disable header numbering")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.NoColor, "no-color", "N", false, "Disable pattern highlighting")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.ShowVersion, "version", "V", false, "Print program version")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.InvertMatch, "invert-match", "v", false, "select non-matching rows")
+	var rootCmd = &cobra.Command{
+		Use:   "tablizer [regex] [file, ...]",
+		Short: "[Re-]tabularize tabular data",
+		Long:  `Manipulate tabular output of other programs`,
+		RunE: func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
+			if ShowVersion {
+				fmt.Println(cfg.Getversion())
+			}
+
+			if ShowManual {
+				man()
+				return nil
+			}
+
+			// prepare flags
+			err := conf.PrepareModeFlags(modeflag, Outputmode)
+			if err != nil {
+				return err
+			}
+
+			conf.PrepareSortFlags(sortmode)
+
+			// actual execution starts here
+			return lib.ProcessFiles(conf, args)
+		},
+	}
+
+	// options
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&conf.Debug, "debug", "d", false, "Enable debugging")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&conf.NoNumbering, "no-numbering", "n", false, "Disable header numbering")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&conf.NoColor, "no-color", "N", false, "Disable pattern highlighting")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&ShowVersion, "version", "V", false, "Print program version")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&conf.InvertMatch, "invert-match", "v", false, "select non-matching rows")
 	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&ShowManual, "man", "m", false, "Display manual page")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().StringVarP(&lib.Separator, "separator", "s", lib.DefaultSeparator, "Custom field separator")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().StringVarP(&lib.Columns, "columns", "c", "", "Only show the speficied columns (separated by ,)")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().StringVarP(&conf.Separator, "separator", "s", cfg.DefaultSeparator, "Custom field separator")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().StringVarP(&conf.Columns, "columns", "c", "", "Only show the speficied columns (separated by ,)")
 
 	// sort options
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().IntVarP(&lib.SortByColumn, "sort-by", "k", 0, "Sort by column (default: 1)")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.SortDescending, "sort-desc", "D", false, "Sort in descending order (default: ascending)")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.SortNumeric, "sort-numeric", "i", false, "sort according to string numerical value")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.SortTime, "sort-time", "t", false, "sort according to time string")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.SortAge, "sort-age", "a", false, "sort according to age (duration) string")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().IntVarP(&conf.SortByColumn, "sort-by", "k", 0, "Sort by column (default: 1)")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&conf.SortDescending, "sort-desc", "D", false, "Sort in descending order (default: ascending)")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&sortmode.Numeric, "sort-numeric", "i", false, "sort according to string numerical value")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&sortmode.Time, "sort-time", "t", false, "sort according to time string")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&sortmode.Age, "sort-age", "a", false, "sort according to age (duration) string")
 
 	// output flags, only 1 allowed, hidden, since just short cuts
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.OutflagExtended, "extended", "X", false, "Enable extended output")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.OutflagMarkdown, "markdown", "M", false, "Enable markdown table output")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.OutflagOrgtable, "orgtbl", "O", false, "Enable org-mode table output")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.OutflagShell, "shell", "S", false, "Enable shell mode output")
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&lib.OutflagYaml, "yaml", "Y", false, "Enable yaml output")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&modeflag.X, "extended", "X", false, "Enable extended output")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&modeflag.M, "markdown", "M", false, "Enable markdown table output")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&modeflag.O, "orgtbl", "O", false, "Enable org-mode table output")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&modeflag.S, "shell", "S", false, "Enable shell mode output")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().BoolVarP(&modeflag.Y, "yaml", "Y", false, "Enable yaml output")
 	rootCmd.MarkFlagsMutuallyExclusive("extended", "markdown", "orgtbl", "shell", "yaml")
 	rootCmd.Flags().MarkHidden("extended")
 	rootCmd.Flags().MarkHidden("orgtbl")
@@ -109,5 +112,10 @@ func init() {
 	rootCmd.Flags().MarkHidden("yaml")
 
 	// same thing but more common, takes precedence over above group
-	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().StringVarP(&lib.OutputMode, "output", "o", "", "Output mode - one of: orgtbl, markdown, extended, shell, ascii(default)")
+	rootCmd.PersistentFlags().StringVarP(&Outputmode, "output", "o", "ascii", "Output mode - one of: orgtbl, markdown, extended, shell, ascii(default)")
+
+	err := rootCmd.Execute()
+	if err != nil {
+		os.Exit(1)
+	}
 }
diff --git a/lib/common.go b/lib/common.go
index ee510aa..a72d138 100644
--- a/lib/common.go
+++ b/lib/common.go
@@ -17,74 +17,6 @@ along with this program. If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 package lib
 
-import (
-	"github.com/gookit/color"
-)
-
-var (
-	// command line flags
-	Debug            bool
-	XtendedOut       bool
-	NoNumbering      bool
-	ShowVersion      bool
-	Columns          string
-	UseColumns       []int
-	DefaultSeparator string = `(\s\s+|\t)`
-	Separator        string = `(\s\s+|\t)`
-	OutflagExtended  bool
-	OutflagMarkdown  bool
-	OutflagOrgtable  bool
-	OutflagShell     bool
-	OutflagYaml      bool
-	OutputMode       string
-	InvertMatch      bool
-	Pattern          string
-
-	/*
-	 FIXME: make configurable somehow, config file or ENV
-	 see https://github.com/gookit/color will be set by
-	 io.ProcessFiles() according to currently supported
-	 color mode.
-	*/
-	MatchFG string
-	MatchBG string
-	NoColor bool
-
-	// colors to be used per supported color mode
-	Colors = map[color.Level]map[string]string{
-		color.Level16: {
-			"bg": "green", "fg": "black",
-		},
-		color.Level256: {
-			"bg": "lightGreen", "fg": "black",
-		},
-		color.LevelRgb: {
-			// FIXME: maybe use something nicer
-			"bg": "lightGreen", "fg": "black",
-		},
-	}
-
-	// used for validation
-	validOutputmodes = "(orgtbl|markdown|extended|ascii|yaml)"
-
-	// main program version
-	Version = "v1.0.11"
-
-	// generated  version string, used  by -v contains  lib.Version on
-	//  main  branch,   and  lib.Version-$branch-$lastcommit-$date  on
-	// development branch
-	VERSION string
-
-	// sorting
-	SortByColumn   int
-	SortDescending bool
-
-	SortNumeric bool
-	SortTime    bool
-	SortAge     bool
-	SortMode    string
-)
-
 // contains a whole parsed table
 type Tabdata struct {
 	maxwidthHeader int      // longest header
diff --git a/lib/helpers.go b/lib/helpers.go
index 4c7ab5c..79757c3 100644
--- a/lib/helpers.go
+++ b/lib/helpers.go
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ import (
 	"errors"
 	"fmt"
 	"github.com/gookit/color"
+	"github.com/tlinden/tablizer/cfg"
 	"os"
 	"regexp"
 	"sort"
@@ -37,13 +38,13 @@ func contains(s []int, e int) bool {
 	return false
 }
 
-// parse columns list given with -c
-func PrepareColumns(data *Tabdata) error {
-	UseColumns = nil
-	if len(Columns) > 0 {
-		for _, use := range strings.Split(Columns, ",") {
+// parse columns list given  with -c, modifies config.UseColumns based
+// on eventually given regex
+func PrepareColumns(c *cfg.Config, data *Tabdata) error {
+	if len(c.Columns) > 0 {
+		for _, use := range strings.Split(c.Columns, ",") {
 			if len(use) == 0 {
-				msg := fmt.Sprintf("Could not parse columns list %s: empty column", Columns)
+				msg := fmt.Sprintf("Could not parse columns list %s: empty column", c.Columns)
 				return errors.New(msg)
 			}
 
@@ -52,14 +53,14 @@ func PrepareColumns(data *Tabdata) error {
 				// might be a regexp
 				colPattern, err := regexp.Compile(use)
 				if err != nil {
-					msg := fmt.Sprintf("Could not parse columns list %s: %v", Columns, err)
+					msg := fmt.Sprintf("Could not parse columns list %s: %v", c.Columns, err)
 					return errors.New(msg)
 				}
 
 				// find matching header fields
 				for i, head := range data.headers {
 					if colPattern.MatchString(head) {
-						UseColumns = append(UseColumns, i+1)
+						c.UseColumns = append(c.UseColumns, i+1)
 					}
 
 				}
@@ -68,41 +69,41 @@ func PrepareColumns(data *Tabdata) error {
 				// a colum spec is not a number, we process them above
 				// inside the err handler  for atoi(). so only add the
 				// number, if it's really just a number.
-				UseColumns = append(UseColumns, usenum)
+				c.UseColumns = append(c.UseColumns, usenum)
 			}
 		}
 
 		// deduplicate: put all values into a map (value gets map key)
 		// thereby  removing duplicates,  extract keys into  new slice
 		// and sort it
-		imap := make(map[int]int, len(UseColumns))
-		for _, i := range UseColumns {
+		imap := make(map[int]int, len(c.UseColumns))
+		for _, i := range c.UseColumns {
 			imap[i] = 0
 		}
-		UseColumns = nil
+		c.UseColumns = nil
 		for k := range imap {
-			UseColumns = append(UseColumns, k)
+			c.UseColumns = append(c.UseColumns, k)
 		}
-		sort.Ints(UseColumns)
+		sort.Ints(c.UseColumns)
 	}
 	return nil
 }
 
 // prepare headers: add numbers to headers
-func numberizeAndReduceHeaders(data *Tabdata) {
+func numberizeAndReduceHeaders(c cfg.Config, data *Tabdata) {
 	numberedHeaders := []string{}
 	maxwidth := 0 // start from scratch, so we only look at displayed column widths
 
 	for i, head := range data.headers {
 		headlen := 0
-		if len(Columns) > 0 {
+		if len(c.Columns) > 0 {
 			// -c specified
-			if !contains(UseColumns, i+1) {
+			if !contains(c.UseColumns, i+1) {
 				// ignore this one
 				continue
 			}
 		}
-		if NoNumbering {
+		if c.NoNumbering {
 			numberedHeaders = append(numberedHeaders, head)
 			headlen = len(head)
 		} else {
@@ -122,14 +123,14 @@ func numberizeAndReduceHeaders(data *Tabdata) {
 }
 
 // exclude columns, if any
-func reduceColumns(data *Tabdata) {
-	if len(Columns) > 0 {
+func reduceColumns(c cfg.Config, data *Tabdata) {
+	if len(c.Columns) > 0 {
 		reducedEntries := [][]string{}
 		var reducedEntry []string
 		for _, entry := range data.entries {
 			reducedEntry = nil
 			for i, value := range entry {
-				if !contains(UseColumns, i+1) {
+				if !contains(c.UseColumns, i+1) {
 					continue
 				}
 
@@ -141,55 +142,6 @@ func reduceColumns(data *Tabdata) {
 	}
 }
 
-func PrepareModeFlags() error {
-	if len(OutputMode) == 0 {
-		// associate short flags like -X with mode selector
-		switch {
-		case OutflagExtended:
-			OutputMode = "extended"
-		case OutflagMarkdown:
-			OutputMode = "markdown"
-		case OutflagOrgtable:
-			OutputMode = "orgtbl"
-		case OutflagShell:
-			OutputMode = "shell"
-			NoNumbering = true
-		case OutflagYaml:
-			OutputMode = "yaml"
-			NoNumbering = true
-		default:
-			OutputMode = "ascii"
-		}
-	} else {
-		r, err := regexp.Compile(validOutputmodes)
-
-		if err != nil {
-			return errors.New("Failed to validate output mode spec!")
-		}
-
-		match := r.MatchString(OutputMode)
-
-		if !match {
-			return errors.New("Invalid output mode!")
-		}
-	}
-
-	return nil
-}
-
-func PrepareSortFlags() {
-	switch {
-	case SortNumeric:
-		SortMode = "numeric"
-	case SortAge:
-		SortMode = "duration"
-	case SortTime:
-		SortMode = "time"
-	default:
-		SortMode = "string"
-	}
-}
-
 func trimRow(row []string) []string {
 	// FIXME: remove this when we only use Tablewriter and strip in ParseFile()!
 	var fixedrow []string
@@ -200,10 +152,10 @@ func trimRow(row []string) []string {
 	return fixedrow
 }
 
-func colorizeData(output string) string {
-	if len(Pattern) > 0 && !NoColor && color.IsConsole(os.Stdout) {
-		r := regexp.MustCompile("(" + Pattern + ")")
-		return r.ReplaceAllString(output, "<bg="+MatchBG+";fg="+MatchFG+">$1</>")
+func colorizeData(c cfg.Config, output string) string {
+	if len(c.Pattern) > 0 && !c.NoColor && color.IsConsole(os.Stdout) {
+		r := regexp.MustCompile("(" + c.Pattern + ")")
+		return r.ReplaceAllString(output, "<bg="+c.MatchBG+";fg="+c.MatchFG+">$1</>")
 	} else {
 		return output
 	}
diff --git a/lib/helpers_test.go b/lib/helpers_test.go
index 795c00c..68d135e 100644
--- a/lib/helpers_test.go
+++ b/lib/helpers_test.go
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ package lib
 
 import (
 	"fmt"
+	"github.com/tlinden/tablizer/cfg"
 	"reflect"
 	"testing"
 )
@@ -62,6 +63,7 @@ func TestPrepareColumns(t *testing.T) {
 			},
 		},
 	}
+
 	var tests = []struct {
 		input     string
 		exp       []int
@@ -77,15 +79,15 @@ func TestPrepareColumns(t *testing.T) {
 	for _, tt := range tests {
 		testname := fmt.Sprintf("PrepareColumns-%s-%t", tt.input, tt.wanterror)
 		t.Run(testname, func(t *testing.T) {
-			Columns = tt.input
-			err := PrepareColumns(&data)
+			c := cfg.Config{Columns: tt.input}
+			err := PrepareColumns(&c, &data)
 			if err != nil {
 				if !tt.wanterror {
 					t.Errorf("got error: %v", err)
 				}
 			} else {
-				if !reflect.DeepEqual(UseColumns, tt.exp) {
-					t.Errorf("got: %v, expected: %v", UseColumns, tt.exp)
+				if !reflect.DeepEqual(c.UseColumns, tt.exp) {
+					t.Errorf("got: %v, expected: %v", c.UseColumns, tt.exp)
 				}
 			}
 		})
@@ -117,22 +119,17 @@ func TestReduceColumns(t *testing.T) {
 
 	input := [][]string{{"a", "b", "c"}}
 
-	Columns = "y" // used as a flag with len(Columns)...
-
 	for _, tt := range tests {
 		testname := fmt.Sprintf("reduce-columns-by-%+v", tt.columns)
 		t.Run(testname, func(t *testing.T) {
-			UseColumns = tt.columns
+			c := cfg.Config{Columns: "x", UseColumns: tt.columns}
 			data := Tabdata{entries: input}
-			reduceColumns(&data)
+			reduceColumns(c, &data)
 			if !reflect.DeepEqual(data.entries, tt.expect) {
 				t.Errorf("reduceColumns returned invalid data:\ngot: %+v\nexp: %+v", data.entries, tt.expect)
 			}
 		})
 	}
-
-	Columns = "" // reset for other tests
-	UseColumns = nil
 }
 
 func TestNumberizeHeaders(t *testing.T) {
@@ -150,23 +147,16 @@ func TestNumberizeHeaders(t *testing.T) {
 		{[]string{"ONE", "TWO"}, []int{1, 2}, true},
 	}
 
-	Columns = "1" // so the len test succeeds, since we don't parse
-
 	for _, tt := range tests {
 		testname := fmt.Sprintf("numberize-headers-columns-%+v-nonum-%t", tt.columns, tt.nonum)
 		t.Run(testname, func(t *testing.T) {
-			UseColumns = tt.columns
-			NoNumbering = tt.nonum
+			c := cfg.Config{Columns: "x", UseColumns: tt.columns, NoNumbering: tt.nonum}
 			usedata := data
-			numberizeAndReduceHeaders(&usedata)
+			numberizeAndReduceHeaders(c, &usedata)
 			if !reflect.DeepEqual(usedata.headers, tt.expect) {
 				t.Errorf("numberizeAndReduceHeaders returned invalid data:\ngot: %+v\nexp: %+v",
 					usedata.headers, tt.expect)
 			}
 		})
 	}
-
-	Columns = ""
-	UseColumns = nil
-	NoNumbering = false
 }
diff --git a/lib/io.go b/lib/io.go
index ae37052..6e1645c 100644
--- a/lib/io.go
+++ b/lib/io.go
@@ -20,43 +20,50 @@ package lib
 import (
 	"errors"
 	"github.com/gookit/color"
+	"github.com/tlinden/tablizer/cfg"
 	"io"
 	"os"
 )
 
-func ProcessFiles(args []string) error {
-	fds, pattern, err := determineIO(args)
-
-	if !isTerminal(os.Stdout) {
-		color.Disable()
-	} else {
-		level := color.TermColorLevel()
-		MatchFG = Colors[level]["fg"]
-		MatchBG = Colors[level]["bg"]
-	}
+func ProcessFiles(c cfg.Config, args []string) error {
+	fds, pattern, err := determineIO(&c, args)
 
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
 
+	determineColormode(&c)
+
 	for _, fd := range fds {
-		data, err := parseFile(fd, pattern)
+		data, err := parseFile(c, fd, pattern)
 		if err != nil {
 			return err
 		}
 
-		err = PrepareColumns(&data)
+		err = PrepareColumns(&c, &data)
 		if err != nil {
 			return err
 		}
 
-		printData(os.Stdout, &data)
+		printData(os.Stdout, c, &data)
 	}
 
 	return nil
 }
 
-func determineIO(args []string) ([]io.Reader, string, error) {
+// find supported color mode, modifies config based on constants
+func determineColormode(c *cfg.Config) {
+	if !isTerminal(os.Stdout) {
+		color.Disable()
+	} else {
+		level := color.TermColorLevel()
+		colors := cfg.Colors()
+		c.MatchFG = colors[level]["fg"]
+		c.MatchBG = colors[level]["bg"]
+	}
+}
+
+func determineIO(c *cfg.Config, args []string) ([]io.Reader, string, error) {
 	var pattern string
 	var fds []io.Reader
 	var havefiles bool
@@ -67,7 +74,7 @@ func determineIO(args []string) ([]io.Reader, string, error) {
 			// first  one is  not a  file, consider  it as  regexp and
 			// shift arg list
 			pattern = args[0]
-			Pattern = args[0] // FIXME
+			c.Pattern = args[0] // used for colorization by printData()
 			args = args[1:]
 		}
 
diff --git a/lib/parser.go b/lib/parser.go
index 2b9c0e0..0e2ca96 100644
--- a/lib/parser.go
+++ b/lib/parser.go
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ import (
 	"errors"
 	"fmt"
 	"github.com/alecthomas/repr"
+	"github.com/tlinden/tablizer/cfg"
 	"io"
 	"regexp"
 	"strings"
@@ -30,13 +31,13 @@ import (
 /*
    Parse tabular input.
 */
-func parseFile(input io.Reader, pattern string) (Tabdata, error) {
+func parseFile(c cfg.Config, input io.Reader, pattern string) (Tabdata, error) {
 	data := Tabdata{}
 
 	var scanner *bufio.Scanner
 
 	hadFirst := false
-	separate := regexp.MustCompile(Separator)
+	separate := regexp.MustCompile(c.Separator)
 	patternR, err := regexp.Compile(pattern)
 	if err != nil {
 		return data, errors.Unwrap(fmt.Errorf("Regexp pattern %s is invalid: %w", pattern, err))
@@ -76,7 +77,7 @@ func parseFile(input io.Reader, pattern string) (Tabdata, error) {
 		} else {
 			// data processing
 			if len(pattern) > 0 {
-				if patternR.MatchString(line) == InvertMatch {
+				if patternR.MatchString(line) == c.InvertMatch {
 					// by default  -v is false, so if a  line does NOT
 					// match the pattern, we will ignore it. However,
 					// if the user specified -v, the matching is inverted,
@@ -119,7 +120,7 @@ func parseFile(input io.Reader, pattern string) (Tabdata, error) {
 		return data, errors.Unwrap(fmt.Errorf("Failed to read from io.Reader: %w", scanner.Err()))
 	}
 
-	if Debug {
+	if c.Debug {
 		repr.Print(data)
 	}
 
diff --git a/lib/parser_test.go b/lib/parser_test.go
index 995a725..332c52f 100644
--- a/lib/parser_test.go
+++ b/lib/parser_test.go
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ package lib
 
 import (
 	"fmt"
+	"github.com/tlinden/tablizer/cfg"
 	"reflect"
 	"strings"
 	"testing"
@@ -49,15 +50,15 @@ asd    igig   cxxxncnc
 19191  EDD 1  X`
 
 	readFd := strings.NewReader(table)
-	gotdata, err := parseFile(readFd, "")
-	Separator = DefaultSeparator
+	c := cfg.Config{Separator: cfg.DefaultSeparator}
+	gotdata, err := parseFile(c, readFd, "")
 
 	if err != nil {
 		t.Errorf("Parser returned error: %s\nData processed so far: %+v", err, gotdata)
 	}
 
 	if !reflect.DeepEqual(data, gotdata) {
-		t.Errorf("Parser returned invalid data, Regex: %s\nExp: %+v\nGot: %+v\n", Separator, data, gotdata)
+		t.Errorf("Parser returned invalid data, Regex: %s\nExp: %+v\nGot: %+v\n", c.Separator, data, gotdata)
 	}
 }
 
@@ -94,10 +95,10 @@ asd    igig   cxxxncnc
 	for _, tt := range tests {
 		testname := fmt.Sprintf("parse-with-pattern-%s-inverted-%t", tt.pattern, tt.invert)
 		t.Run(testname, func(t *testing.T) {
-			InvertMatch = tt.invert
+			c := cfg.Config{InvertMatch: tt.invert, Pattern: tt.pattern, Separator: cfg.DefaultSeparator}
 
 			readFd := strings.NewReader(table)
-			gotdata, err := parseFile(readFd, tt.pattern)
+			gotdata, err := parseFile(c, readFd, tt.pattern)
 
 			if err != nil {
 				t.Errorf("Parser returned error: %s\nData processed so far: %+v", err, gotdata)
@@ -136,8 +137,8 @@ asd    igig
 19191  EDD 1  X`
 
 	readFd := strings.NewReader(table)
-	gotdata, err := parseFile(readFd, "")
-	Separator = DefaultSeparator
+	c := cfg.Config{Separator: cfg.DefaultSeparator}
+	gotdata, err := parseFile(c, readFd, "")
 
 	if err != nil {
 		t.Errorf("Parser returned error: %s\nData processed so far: %+v", err, gotdata)
@@ -145,6 +146,6 @@ asd    igig
 
 	if !reflect.DeepEqual(data, gotdata) {
 		t.Errorf("Parser returned invalid data, Regex: %s\nExp: %+v\nGot: %+v\n",
-			Separator, data, gotdata)
+			c.Separator, data, gotdata)
 	}
 }
diff --git a/lib/printer.go b/lib/printer.go
index 5cc5899..f0ff4d6 100644
--- a/lib/printer.go
+++ b/lib/printer.go
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ import (
 	"fmt"
 	"github.com/gookit/color"
 	"github.com/olekukonko/tablewriter"
+	"github.com/tlinden/tablizer/cfg"
 	"gopkg.in/yaml.v3"
 	"io"
 	"log"
@@ -29,33 +30,33 @@ import (
 	"strings"
 )
 
-func printData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
+func printData(w io.Writer, c cfg.Config, data *Tabdata) {
 	// some output preparations:
 
 	// add numbers to headers and remove this we're not interested in
-	numberizeAndReduceHeaders(data)
+	numberizeAndReduceHeaders(c, data)
 
 	// remove unwanted columns, if any
-	reduceColumns(data)
+	reduceColumns(c, data)
 
 	// sort the data
-	sortTable(data, SortByColumn)
+	sortTable(c, data)
 
-	switch OutputMode {
+	switch c.OutputMode {
 	case "extended":
-		printExtendedData(w, data)
+		printExtendedData(w, c, data)
 	case "ascii":
-		printAsciiData(w, data)
+		printAsciiData(w, c, data)
 	case "orgtbl":
-		printOrgmodeData(w, data)
+		printOrgmodeData(w, c, data)
 	case "markdown":
-		printMarkdownData(w, data)
+		printMarkdownData(w, c, data)
 	case "shell":
-		printShellData(w, data)
+		printShellData(w, c, data)
 	case "yaml":
-		printYamlData(w, data)
+		printYamlData(w, c, data)
 	default:
-		printAsciiData(w, data)
+		printAsciiData(w, c, data)
 	}
 }
 
@@ -66,7 +67,7 @@ func output(w io.Writer, str string) {
 /*
    Emacs org-mode compatible table (also orgtbl-mode)
 */
-func printOrgmodeData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
+func printOrgmodeData(w io.Writer, c cfg.Config, data *Tabdata) {
 	tableString := &strings.Builder{}
 	table := tablewriter.NewWriter(tableString)
 
@@ -93,7 +94,7 @@ func printOrgmodeData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
 	rightR := regexp.MustCompile("\\+(?m)$")
 
 	output(w, color.Sprint(
-		colorizeData(
+		colorizeData(c,
 			rightR.ReplaceAllString(
 				leftR.ReplaceAllString(tableString.String(), "|"), "|"))))
 }
@@ -101,7 +102,7 @@ func printOrgmodeData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
 /*
    Markdown table
 */
-func printMarkdownData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
+func printMarkdownData(w io.Writer, c cfg.Config, data *Tabdata) {
 	tableString := &strings.Builder{}
 	table := tablewriter.NewWriter(tableString)
 
@@ -115,13 +116,13 @@ func printMarkdownData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
 	table.SetCenterSeparator("|")
 
 	table.Render()
-	output(w, color.Sprint(colorizeData(tableString.String())))
+	output(w, color.Sprint(colorizeData(c, tableString.String())))
 }
 
 /*
    Simple ASCII table without any borders etc, just like the input we expect
 */
-func printAsciiData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
+func printAsciiData(w io.Writer, c cfg.Config, data *Tabdata) {
 	tableString := &strings.Builder{}
 	table := tablewriter.NewWriter(tableString)
 
@@ -145,13 +146,13 @@ func printAsciiData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
 	table.SetNoWhiteSpace(true)
 
 	table.Render()
-	output(w, color.Sprint(colorizeData(tableString.String())))
+	output(w, color.Sprint(colorizeData(c, tableString.String())))
 }
 
 /*
    We simulate the \x command of psql (the PostgreSQL client)
 */
-func printExtendedData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
+func printExtendedData(w io.Writer, c cfg.Config, data *Tabdata) {
 	// needed for data output
 	format := fmt.Sprintf("%%%ds: %%s\n", data.maxwidthHeader)
 	out := ""
@@ -165,13 +166,13 @@ func printExtendedData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
 		}
 	}
 
-	output(w, out)
+	output(w, colorizeData(c, out))
 }
 
 /*
    Shell output, ready to be eval'd. Just like FreeBSD stat(1)
 */
-func printShellData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
+func printShellData(w io.Writer, c cfg.Config, data *Tabdata) {
 	out := ""
 	if len(data.entries) > 0 {
 		for _, entry := range data.entries {
@@ -183,10 +184,12 @@ func printShellData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
 			out += fmt.Sprint(strings.Join(shentries, " ")) + "\n"
 		}
 	}
+
+	// no colrization here
 	output(w, out)
 }
 
-func printYamlData(w io.Writer, data *Tabdata) {
+func printYamlData(w io.Writer, c cfg.Config, data *Tabdata) {
 	type D struct {
 		Entries []map[string]interface{} `yaml:"entries"`
 	}
diff --git a/lib/printer_test.go b/lib/printer_test.go
index b132bb4..0f1c6f6 100644
--- a/lib/printer_test.go
+++ b/lib/printer_test.go
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ import (
 	"bytes"
 	"fmt"
 	//"github.com/alecthomas/repr"
+	"github.com/tlinden/tablizer/cfg"
 	"strings"
 	"testing"
 )
@@ -246,8 +247,6 @@ DURATION(2)	WHEN(4)
 }
 
 func TestPrinter(t *testing.T) {
-	NoColor = true
-
 	for _, tt := range tests {
 		testname := fmt.Sprintf("print-sortcol-%d-desc-%t-sortby-%s-mode-%s-usecolumns-%s",
 			tt.column, tt.desc, tt.sortby, tt.mode, tt.usecolstr)
@@ -256,24 +255,27 @@ func TestPrinter(t *testing.T) {
 			var w bytes.Buffer
 
 			// cmd flags
-			SortByColumn = tt.column
-			SortDescending = tt.desc
-			SortMode = tt.sortby
-			OutputMode = tt.mode
-			NoNumbering = tt.nonum
-			UseColumns = tt.usecol
+			c := cfg.Config{
+				SortByColumn:   tt.column,
+				SortDescending: tt.desc,
+				SortMode:       tt.sortby,
+				OutputMode:     tt.mode,
+				NoNumbering:    tt.nonum,
+				UseColumns:     tt.usecol,
+				NoColor:        true,
+			}
 
 			// the test checks the len!
 			if len(tt.usecol) > 0 {
-				Columns = "yes"
+				c.Columns = "yes"
 			} else {
-				Columns = ""
+				c.Columns = ""
 			}
 
 			testdata := newData()
 			exp := strings.TrimSpace(tt.expect)
 
-			printData(&w, &testdata)
+			printData(&w, c, &testdata)
 
 			got := strings.TrimSpace(w.String())
 
diff --git a/lib/sort.go b/lib/sort.go
index 90e4836..37dfa79 100644
--- a/lib/sort.go
+++ b/lib/sort.go
@@ -19,17 +19,21 @@ package lib
 
 import (
 	"github.com/araddon/dateparse"
+	"github.com/tlinden/tablizer/cfg"
 	"regexp"
 	"sort"
 	"strconv"
 )
 
-func sortTable(data *Tabdata, col int) {
-	if SortByColumn <= 0 {
+func sortTable(c cfg.Config, data *Tabdata) {
+	if c.SortByColumn <= 0 {
 		// no sorting wanted
 		return
 	}
 
+	// slightly modified here to match internal array indicies
+	col := c.SortByColumn
+
 	col-- // ui starts counting by 1, but use 0 internally
 
 	// sanity checks
@@ -44,14 +48,15 @@ func sortTable(data *Tabdata, col int) {
 
 	// actual sorting
 	sort.SliceStable(data.entries, func(i, j int) bool {
-		return compare(data.entries[i][col], data.entries[j][col])
+		return compare(&c, data.entries[i][col], data.entries[j][col])
 	})
 }
 
-func compare(a string, b string) bool {
+// config is not modified here, but it would be inefficient to copy it every loop
+func compare(c *cfg.Config, a string, b string) bool {
 	var comp bool
 
-	switch SortMode {
+	switch c.SortMode {
 	case "numeric":
 		left, err := strconv.Atoi(a)
 		if err != nil {
@@ -74,7 +79,7 @@ func compare(a string, b string) bool {
 		comp = a < b
 	}
 
-	if SortDescending {
+	if c.SortDescending {
 		comp = !comp
 	}
 
diff --git a/lib/sort_test.go b/lib/sort_test.go
index c784872..b46cce2 100644
--- a/lib/sort_test.go
+++ b/lib/sort_test.go
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ package lib
 
 import (
 	"fmt"
+	"github.com/tlinden/tablizer/cfg"
 	"testing"
 )
 
@@ -68,9 +69,8 @@ func TestCompare(t *testing.T) {
 	for _, tt := range tests {
 		testname := fmt.Sprintf("compare-mode-%s-a-%s-b-%s-desc-%t", tt.mode, tt.a, tt.b, tt.desc)
 		t.Run(testname, func(t *testing.T) {
-			SortMode = tt.mode
-			SortDescending = tt.desc
-			got := compare(tt.a, tt.b)
+			c := cfg.Config{SortMode: tt.mode, SortDescending: tt.desc}
+			got := compare(&c, tt.a, tt.b)
 			if got != tt.want {
 				t.Errorf("got %t, want %t", got, tt.want)
 			}