Re: What is the best approach for doing.....

  I was planning on using the in build numbered lists for the numbering, so 
  am not sure if I can achieve this...


well that's easy enough: in your fix-up template for a, instead of
copying a span element just generate the number by the method outlined
in the original answers: go to the reference and use xsl:number

so 
<xsl:template match="h:a[starts-with(@href,'#')">
<a href="{@href}">
 <xsl:for-each select="id(substring-after(@href,'#'))">
  <xsl:number ... whatever parameters you need here to get the format ../>
 </xsl:for-each>
</a>
</xsl:template>

Actually I'm horrified that anyone would _want_ to edit the document in
its expanded form with all cross references etc explict. I've not used
such a primitive authoring environment since at least the early eighties
Wouldn't your users have a more pleasant experience if they could author
an xml source and just use named links and xrefs and just "know" that
the system will generate a correctly linked/numbered document at the end
rather than in a system where they are looking at a link to "paragraph
2" which should now be paragraph 3 as something has been inserted?

David

-- 
The LaTeX Companion
  http://www.awprofessional.com/bookstore/product.asp?isbn=0201362996
  http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0201362996/202-7257897-0619804


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