[Loren_]

Greetings,

I am looking for a way to manage software requirements in Word. What I would like to do is know if MS Word has a provision to number “shalls” within a section of a document.

What I want is a way to uniquely identify each requirement. Typically, each shall statement would be numbered sequentially within a section. A goofy example would be:

The XYZ shall [1] be capable of holding up to ten pounds of software bits. The XYZ shall [2] notify the user when the quantity of bits exceeds 10 pounds. No bits shall [3] be lost if a bit overflow occurs and shall [4] be captured in an auxiliary bit tray.

The numbers I have placed in brackets are there for illustration. However, imagine if I need to add a new requirement at a later date and I need to add it either before requirement #1 or in between requirements. Example:

The XYZ shall [1] be capable of holding up to ten pounds of software bits. The XYZ shall [5] have a folding handle. The XYZ shall [2] notify the user when the quantity of bits exceeds 10 pounds. No bits shall [3] be lost if a bit overflow occurs and shall [4] be captured in an auxiliary bit tray.

My above example illustrates what I want to happen. That is, do not disturb the numbering order of previous requirements.

I thought that Word’s Endnotes would do what I need, but Word forces a total renumbering of the Endnotes in that section. Bad!

Is there any tool in Word to accomplish what I want to do? I need a way to keep and track requirements and I don’t want to do it manually. Sorry for the long post.

Thanks!

Loren

[cpac]

If I understand correctly, what you want to have happen is to be able to footnote sentences, and then, if a new footnote is added in the middle, not have the numbering change. Since that's exactly opposite of how people normally use word processors I would be surprised if Word (or any other word processor) were capable of this sort of numbering.

That said, the numbering you're asking for is what comes naturally as you write a document - so why not just type in the numbers yourself (you can use a small size/superscript to make them look like foonotes if you wish), and manually type the reference section?

Alternatively, why not manage your various "shalls" as a list in something like OmniOutliner? Hell, since it's software requirements you're discussing, there might well be a specialized piece of software to manage these things for you.