rmtoo

Development Roadmap

This is a description of the next and next-next generation features to be implemented in rmToo.

Important Notes

No exact timeline: The amount of time spent on this tool varies depending on many factors
Version numbers may change: Customer requests and bug fixes may affect the roadmap
Bug-fix releases: May be released between major versions
Historical context: The history of implemented features can be found in the release notes

Current Focus Areas

Version 24+ Features

Create ready-to-use VM for AWS EC2
Include requirements of rmToo and EMailClient into Python package
Fix: Emacs highlighting on GUI VM

High Priority Features

GUI Development

Status: Design phase

Server component: Backend service for requirements management
Client applications: Multiple client interfaces
Protocol/Interface: Communication layer between server and clients
Requirements: Add requirements from roadmap to main project

Module Unification

Goal: Modules should run (at least partially) for topic-based output

Investigate ways to unify processing approaches
Improve consistency across output formats

Future Features

User Interface Enhancements

GUI for configuration: Visual configuration editor
Tasks/Issues support: Integration with issue tracking
- Possible Bugzilla import capability
Web interface: Browser-based requirements management

Documentation and Help

Enhanced man pages: Complete documentation for all commands
- graph and graph2 commands
- EfEU (Effort Estimation Unit) commands
FAQ improvements: Add max level of topic inclusion
Presentation updates: Include latest changes

Testing and Quality

More test cases: Expand test coverage
Archive management: Maintain version history
Quality improvements: Address user-reported issues

Advanced Features

SCRUM and Agile Support

Burndown diagrams: Sprint progress visualization
Gantt chart integration: Use finished date and duration data
Due dates: Optional due dates for requirements
Requirement states: Add postponed and withdrawn states

Enhanced Output Formats

Sub-graphs in documentation: Include detailed dependency graphs
- Topic-based graphs (all requirements of a topic)
- Requirement-based graphs (dependencies for specific requirements)
Dot file integration: Generic way to include graphviz files
Change tracking: Mark additions, changes, and deletions between versions

Requirements Management Features

Requirement states: Enhanced status tracking
- Postponed requirements
- Withdrawn requirements
Traceability: Track requirement changes and impacts
Dependency analysis: List all dependent requirements for changes

Long-term Vision

Data Storage and Access

Focus: Define who can access (read, write, change) which data

Key considerations:

Write requirements: Define data access patterns
Collaborate with other projects: Integration with ganttproject, freemind, etc.
Architecture decisions: Storage vs. Bus-System approach
Availability: System availability requirements
Fault tolerance: Failure handling and recovery
Collaboration: Multi-user support
Concurrency: Simultaneous access handling

Internationalization

Multi-language support: Define new tag sets for each language
Translation framework: Support for localized content
Cultural considerations: Adapt to different regional requirements

Advanced Analytics

Change impact analysis: Understand ripple effects of changes
Requirement quality metrics: Automated quality assessment
Statistical analysis: Trend analysis and projections
Predictive modeling: Forecast project completion

Technical Improvements

Build System

Makefile dependencies: Improve dependency tracking
Configuration dependencies: Link .rmtoo_dependencies to ConfigX.py
Output level configuration: Make prios.py output level configurable

Code Quality

Clean up code: Address XXX and TODO comments
Use MemLog: Replace print statements with proper logging
Version information: Add version number to rmtoo -v command

Feature Completeness

Roadmap feature: Self-hosting roadmap management
TODO list feature: Integrated task management
Glossary support: Complete glossary implementation
Emacs mode: Topic (.tic) file editing support

Integration Ideas

External Tool Integration

Version control: Enhanced git integration
Build systems: Better CI/CD integration
Testing frameworks: Automated requirement verification
Documentation tools: Integration with documentation generators

API Development

RESTful API: Programmatic access to requirements
Plugin system: Third-party extension support
Import/Export: Data exchange with other tools
Notification system: Change notifications and alerts

Community and Ecosystem

Package Management

Distribution packages: Maintain packages for major distributions
Container support: Docker and container deployment
Cloud deployment: Cloud-native deployment options

Documentation

User tutorials: Step-by-step guides for common use cases
Video tutorials: Visual learning resources
Best practices: Documented patterns and approaches
Case studies: Real-world usage examples

Philosophy and Design Principles

Unix Philosophy

Following the Unix principle: “let one thing do one thing (but this very well)”

Current approach:

Plain text files for input/output
Command-line tools for processing
Interoperability with standard tools

Challenges in requirements management:

Complex data structures
Proprietary file formats
Limited program interoperability
Data ownership issues

Interoperability Goals

Data preservation: Programs should not lose unknown data
Format stability: Consistent data representation
Tool independence: Avoid vendor lock-in
Standard compliance: Use open formats where possible

Contributing to the Roadmap

How to Influence Development

Report bugs: Use GitHub issues for bug reports
Feature requests: Propose new features with use cases
Code contributions: Submit pull requests for improvements
Documentation: Help improve documentation and examples
Testing: Contribute test cases and validation

Priority Factors

User demand: Features requested by multiple users
Technical complexity: Implementation difficulty
Compatibility: Impact on existing functionality
Maintenance: Long-term maintenance requirements

Getting Involved

For Users

Feedback: Share your experience and suggestions
Testing: Help test new features and releases
Documentation: Contribute examples and use cases
Community: Help other users in forums and discussions

For Developers

Code review: Participate in code reviews
Architecture: Contribute to design discussions
Implementation: Help implement roadmap features
Testing: Develop and maintain test suites

Contact and Communication

GitHub Issues: Feature requests and bug reports
Mailing List: rmtoo@florath.net
Documentation: Contribute to docs and examples
Community: Join discussions and help others

This roadmap is a living document that evolves based on user needs, technical constraints, and available resources. For the most current information, check the project repository and recent release notes.

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