vi - Is there a ruler line function?

[Bruce Jilek]

I have used editors in the past that allow you to type a command and
get a ruler line at the current position within the document you are editing.
For example:

         1         2         3         4         5         6         7         8
12345678901234567890123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345678901234567890

This can be very helpful for lining up statements for readable blocks that 
have extended beyond the bottom of the screen, etc.  It used to even be a 
requirement if you were coding in FORTRAN and/or COBOL.  

Doesn't vi have this capability?  I can't find it in the documentation.
I do know that you can use ':#z=' (# = line no.) to bracket a line with lines
of minuses, but how about a real ruler?

Bruce Jilek