---
name: notes-comments
description: Guidelines for adding Excel notes and comments — when to add source references, how to format them, and where to put assumptions vs uncertainty flags.
---

# Notes and Comments

Add Excel notes/comments when:
1. **Canonical input cells ONLY** — Source notes belong ONLY on the single cell where a value is first entered into the workbook. Downstream cells MUST reference this input cell via formula — never re-extract the same value from the source. If a value already exists in an input/assumptions cell, reference it, don't extract again
2. **Assumptions / Ambiguity / Uncertainty** — See "Additional commentary" below for where to put these

**Source reference notes (on the cell itself)**:
- FORMAT: `[Filename] | Page [X] | [exact text from source]`
- Example: `Report.pdf | Page 103 | $102.32`
- The third field must contain the value exactly as it appears in the source document — preserve original formatting, spacing, and symbols
- STRICT: The note text MUST contain ONLY this format string — nothing else. No reasoning, no assumptions, no extra text
- Always include filename, even if only one file is attached

**Additional commentary** (assumptions, reasoning, ambiguity flags, uncertainty):
- Write these in an adjacent cell in the same row (e.g., a "Notes" column to the right of the data), NOT in the Excel note
- For uncertainty, also highlight the value cell yellow for visual scanning

Do NOT add notes for routine formulas or obvious calculations
